It is important to have insurance to protect your artwork, art can be very valuable and unfortunately it can also be damaged or stolen. It is also important that you know how filing and art insurance claim works. The insurance company doesn't always have your best interests at heart and you need to understand what is happening rather than relying on the adjuster. This will help to ensure that you receive a fair payment for the damage to your artwork.
Filing an art insurance claim is similar to filing a claim for any other type of insurance, if something happens you will need to contact the insurance company. They will then assign an adjuster to determine how much you should compensated for the piece of art, this is where things can get interesting. The insurance company will want to pay as little as they possibly can, you are going to need to make sure that you have as much supporting documentation as possible to help you get the maximum value. When you first take out insurance you are going to want to make sure that you have photographs of art and that you get it appraised. You should also have appraisals done on a regular basis to make sure that you account for the changing value of the art. If your art is stolen or damaged beyond repair these appraisals will go a long way in helping you to prove the value of the artwork.
Where things start to get really interesting when filing an art insurance claim is if there is minor damage that can be repaired. In this case you are going to need contact an art conservator who can help you determine how much it is going to cost to fix the damage. In general the insurance adjuster will go along with this assessment but they will likely want to get a second opinion. The real problem is going occur when it comes time to determine how much the piece of art is worth after it has been restored.
When filing an art insurance claim if your piece is damaged but can be repaired you will be compensated for the diminished value of the artwork. This is the area where the insurance company will definitely try to reduce how much they have to pay. The adjuster will often try to get the conservator to place a value on the painting after it has been restored based on how successful the restoration was. Unfortunately the success of the restoration has no bearing on the value, just because a restoration is 95% successful doesn't mean the painting is worth 95% of its previous value. You are going to want to make sure that you get an appraisal done by a certified appraiser in order to determine the real value of the painting before you negotiate with the insurance company on the diminished value of a piece of art.