Melissa M. Dunn 
It is a well known fact that a woman’s handbag is her life. We need to always have our most important items on hand if we need them, i.e. our ID books, wallets, makeup bag and lipstick, sunglasses, phone and headphones, perfume – basically everything except the kitchen sink is there.
And as we all know, smash-and-grabs and hijackings are rife in South Africa, especially as the season of silliness approaches.
If you’ve ever violently parted with your purse before, you’ll know how much it costs when you need to replace everything. Your makeup alone will probably cost you over R 2000, not to mention the time and administration it takes to get new bank cards, new ID, and new rewards cards at all your favorite stores.
Losing the contents of your purse is a major financial and administrative headache, but by insuring your purse you can at least be assured that all the contents in it will be covered and paid for in the event of an incident.
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Chief actuary at Momentum, Rudolf Britz answers a common question about purse insurance:
Do the items need to be specified?
Insurance companies typically cover items such as eyeglasses, sunglasses, makeup, perfume, your purse, and wallet, so there is no need to specify a particular item.
Britz says each insurer has their own terms and conditions, which you should take note of before purchasing handbag coverage.
“AT Momentum Insurance, we will not cover cell phones and personal documents such as your driver’s license and ID, as well as bank or credit cards.
How much will a handbag be paid in the event of theft?
This will depend on the amount shown on your policy schedule.
How to take out handbag insurance?
It will depend on which insurer you choose, but at Momentum the optional women’s benefit is available on any Momentum Insure policy and includes purse coverage and breast cancer coverage. So, if you have an auto insurance policy or a household inventory policy, you can select the wife’s allowance out of one of the two.
Is the cover only for a specific handbag?
No. Britz explains that this is general coverage for your purse and you will be covered even if you use a different bag each day. It is important to remember that you will not get payment for a Gucci handbag if your bag and its contents were insured for the price of a non-designer bag.
