Nicole Mitchell instruments stolen

[brownie]

The perils of traveling...

Nicole Mitchell's misfortunes

[CJ Shearn]

Wow, major bummer.

[JSngry]

After Mitchell returned to Chicago, she discovered – to her dismay – that her home insurance policy didn't cover her instruments.

Yep.

[Free For All]

Most musicians I know (myself included) ALWAYS take their instruments with them and NEVER leave them in a vehicle. A lesson learned the hard way for her, unfortunately.

[David Ayers]

Well there are two stories there, losing the instruments, and failing to insure them. Really it is the second which stands out.

[JSngry]

I think this story highlights how much of a disconnect can exist between world-class musicians and their real-world practical knowledge.

Many people naively think that their regular insurance covers stuff like instruments and collections. It doesn't. Somebody should have told her this long ago, and, yeah, at some point she should have looked into it herself, because whenever you leave home shit can definitely happen.

And no, there's no blaming the victim here. She did nothing to bring this on herself. But she was naive. It's a sad story, but a lesson for all.

[Justin V]

I'd be shocked if she couldn't find some flute company to give her a flute in exchange for an endorsement. Did Wayne Escoffery ever get his lost saxophone back, by the way?

[Jim Alfredson]

Home insurance does not cover instruments that are used outside of the home. If they stay at home, they are usually covered (depends on the policy of course). So for instance, the gear in my studio is covered, but if my portable organ got nipped, since it was in my car, it is not covered.

Last month I played a festival with Janiva Magness in Little Rock, AR and the act before us had a nice conversion van pulling a trailer with all these fancy graphics on it talking about how this band won the International Blues Challenge in 2009 and perform their "hit songs" and the like. I was thinking, "Wow, nice way to advertise your gear to thieves."

[AllenLowe]

just got an email from her - she basically says it will be a while before she can even begin to think about replacing it. Unfortunate.

[mikeweil]

There are special insurance policies for musical instruments, that of course cover for loss or damage, but you need to pay extra fees if you take them abroad. I don't know of any home insurance covering for musical instruments taken outside ... she really should have read the small print. 

Still, a sad story, but naive, as Jim said.

Shit really happens: A cousin of mine once dug out a large black case out of the sand on a beach in Sardegna, and it turned out there was a tenor sax inside. She gave note at the local police station, but nobody claimed it, no serial numbers to help identify the owner. After a year of waiting they told her to keep it, she had it overhauled, and its a beauty. It was almost new when it was taken off board by a wave or something like that ...

[mikeweil]

I was thinking, "Wow, nice way to advertise your gear to thieves."

Word ... that's the way Tom Nicholas, my first conga drum teacher, lost his best drum ever, a fiberglass conga with a mule hide so thick I wouldn't get a tone out of it. The band, Mombasa, had their logo all over the van. When they returned from dinner after the gig one night, all was gone. He was weeping .... 

My instrument insurance explicitly excludes covering when you leave stuff in the car overnight, except when the car is in a garage under lock and key. But it would cover for a case like Nicole Mitchell's for alittle extra fee.