<p>NervousNellie1, just a quick comment on insurance. Yes, most homeowner’s policies cover student property in the dorm, but here are a couple of extra considerations:</p>
<ol>
<li><p>The deductible on your homeowner’s policy may be high relative to the value of your student’s property. For example, a $500 or $1,000 deductible is of no help for replacing a typical smart phone, bike, etc.</p></li>
<li><p>If you <em>do</em> make a claim on your homeowner’s policy, this will typically cause your premiums to rise significantly, for years. So most people find (sometimes the hard way) that a small claim costs too much in increased premiums (often adding up to more than the claim itself!)</p></li>
</ol>
<p>These are the reasons that many people elect to cover their student’s belongings with CSI or NSSI. We did.</p>
<p>We went with NSSI. DH read both policies, liked NSSI better, but I have no idea why…and I won’t discount the fact that I had the sign up page open on my laptop. The coverage for the year, with a $25 deductible was a LOT less than the deductible alone on my homeowner’s policy, and included accidents (ie a soda spilling into her laptops. Worth it for us.</p>
<p>giterdone - thanks for adding us to the launch list!
lilmom - great advice about collecting photos, serial numbers, receipts of items to be insured. weatherga - I was wondering why homeowners insurance wasn’t the best route - thanks! And many thanks to all those who responded with their insurance plans as well – so much helpful information. :)</p>
<p>SOLD! - this board either cost me a hundred bucks, or saved me a bunch. I talked with DD and she’s planning on bringing her spendy camera stuff (she’s a photophile!) Between that, the cell phone, lap top and e reader? the 4k policy with 50 dollar deductible for a hundred bucks a year? seems like a bargain.</p>
<p>I went with CSI over the NSSI policy. After reading both, the deciding factor was; the CSI policy is underwritten by Allianz and I have a friend that works for them :), so if I end up getting the “run around…” I at least have the guilt factor ;)</p>
<p>Thanks! (peace of mind is a beautiful thing)</p>
<p>I bought separate instrument insurance for my son’s violin. It was worth the peace of mind since it’s by far the most valuable thing we own. Total Dollar had a 3 year premium for about $384.</p>
<p>I’ll check our homeowners and find out what their policy is on dorm items. Great topic; thanks for bringing it up.</p>
<p>For those with daughters…We rewatched the whole Gilmore Girls series this summer and I am feeling like this today, with 4 days left till we drive D six hours away…</p>
<p>Rory: Mom?
Lorelai: Yeah?
Rory: I don’t get it.
Lorelai: What?
Rory: How can you be so okay with everything? Ever since I told you that I’m leaving, you’re just all busy with shopping and packing, and you seem so fine with it.
Lorelai: It’s too soon.
Rory: What?
Lorelai: If I stop to think about you leaving now, I’m gonna fall apart. We still have time. It’s too soon.</p>
<p>Aw, psychmomma, that’s exactly how I feel right now…48 hours and counting til launch.
DH keeps asking me if I’m ok. He’s feeling just as sad as I am. Yes, we will be sad and we will cry but just not now.</p>
<p>We went with CSI. It looked practically identical to the NSSI info but the NSSI web site had 2 dead links for pages I was trying to access at the time. That annoyed me enough to give up on them and just go with CSI. It was practically a coin flip for me, though. </p>
<p>My homeowner’s insurance deductible is currently $1000. My insurance agent’s staffer refused to give a real answer regarding if a dorm claim would have a negative affect on my policy. I took that as a YES.</p>
<p>My insurance agent’s office did offer me a separate policy for all my kid’s dorm stuff based on the value of what she’d have with her, mostly laptop, cell phone, iPad, iTouch, and non-electronic personal items. It’s probably just renter’s insurance but they didn’t call it that. Without doing a detailed accounting of the value of her stuff, they estimated it would probably cost around $40-50 per year and I think it had no deductible. (sorry, I threw my notes about it away already!) She no longers plays a musical instrument and doesn’t have any speciality camera items. If she killed her laptop, her highest value item, it would cost me less to pay for a whole new laptop than to pay my deductible!</p>
<p>But that policy and my regular homeowner’s policy didn’t cover things like killing your laptop by spilling liquid into it and I even questioned the insurance staffer about that specifically after seeing that was covered on the CSI/NSSI web sites! So it seemed to me that the CSI/NSSI plans might be a bit better for real world situations for my kid, even though she has yet to spill much inside her laptop before now! However, there will be other people wandering around her personal stuff in a much smaller space than her laptop and other items are currently kept in at home. I think there was also coverage for something else beyond spillage that the two policies from my insurance wouldn’t have covered so that’s why I decided to go with the CSI. </p>
<p>Also, there were a bunch of posts on CC on this subject (just use the search feature to find them) where pretty much everyone said they had zero problems getting claims paid by CSI/NSSI. It seemed like I might pay a tad more for it but the low hassle factor if I ever used it for a claim might be worth it to me in the future, especially if it doesn’t tick off my insurance company that I put a dorm claim on my homeowner’s policy.</p>
<p>Okay, less then two weeks… It’s starting to really feel real, we are almost done getting things for dorm! Just picked up his new glasses [got a buy-one-get-one free deal, so he will have an extra!] And everything is set, all we have to do is go on our vacation next week, then take the four days to pack and do some last minute shoping (if we remembered everything I will be SO surprised), and then he’s off. </p>
<p>Quick question about the dorm insurance. I started researching both CSI and NSSI by looking at how to file a claim. </p>
<p>I don’t remember which one it was but I thought that one provided replacement cost while the other one provided cost after depreciation. My son’s laptop is 4 years old so that would be a big difference.</p>
<p>^ yes. On the CSI site, you can elect for either “Actual Cash Value” (the depreciated cost) or “Replacement Cost Value” (means no matter what it costs, you get a new one). I opted for the “Replacement Cost Value” and the premium difference was minimal.</p>
<p>Off the CSI site; CSI is the Best Value! Worldwide Coverage, Low Deductible, Lowest Premiums, Replacement Value, NO Depreciation!</p>
<p>We went with the Replacement Cost on NSSI. I wonder if DH was looking at the depreciated cost value on the CSI website. Oh well, I’m happy to know it’s taken care of…once I list all the serial numbers, etc.</p>
<p>My husband and I live in another country. We sent him off for a visit with his grandma in yet another country. My son will fly to his college with one bag. Before he left us a few weeks ago, I put a few clothes in that bag including one towel. No bed sheets. I wish I were there to help him with the first one or two days of getting in his room etc We called him yesterday telling him that we were sorry we could not be there like other parents and we love him. He told us he would be OK.</p>
<p>Oh MidniteMom, that would be tough. I am sorry to hear that, but at least he will learn independence, resilience and appreciate the trust that you have in him.</p>
<p>FYI many colleges ask you to register your child’s important serial numbers with their security dept in the event of a theft and recovery of the item (makes it so much easier to track). Wish we had done that for my son. He had a PS3 stolen during a summer session and the campus police asked if he had his serial numbers. We will do that for my daughter for sure.</p>
It was practically a coin flip for me, though. </p>