Inland Marine Insurance
Inland marine insurance, as you can tell, has it's roots in and was popularized by the marine transportation industry. Don't let that confuse you though. Inland marine insurance simply means insurance for things being transported over land. The marine part is believed to have come from an earlier form of transportation insurance called marine insurance which covered items being transfered over a body of water. Naturally the items were not always over water, they had to be moved to ships, held and shipped to the proper location after the transport across water, but they were still covered by the same insurance. As the transporting the items over land became more and more a part of transporting items it grew into a thing of its own, branching off the marine transportation, so it branched off, but kept part of its original name.
Inland Marine Insurance Coverage
Inland marine insurance covers a variety of different items including: computers, furniture, art and fine art, tools, clothing etc etc. The insurance covers all stages of travel/transprotation including when the property or item is being held for transportation, while it's actually being moved and while it is at a location (temporarily) during the transportation.
Advantages
If items are damaged or lost in some manner during the transportation, it would be covered by the insurance. Think about how much things are moved around today. Many items are shipped across the country on their journey to their final destination. In todays world there is no distance too far and accidents happen all the time. There are also times of year that this may be particularly helpful. Many roads and bridges ice up during the winter and as you know business is booming around the winter time.
Disadvantages
Like any insurance it costs money and statistically, you may not need it, and if you do statistically need it, it is likely the insurance provider will know this and it'll cost just a little bit more. There is also a matter of how damageable the items in transit are. If it is really fragile, you may want it covered, if it's pretty cheap or durable, and the ride is pretty safe, not crossing any bridges it could fall off of, not going through a war zone, you may be ok, but you should, nevertheless, talk to an insurance agent or perhaps do some research and maybe cover the most important items only. However, no matter how small the risks are, there are still risks.
Important Papers and Data?
Can inland marine insurance cover paper work and computer data? In some cases yes. You will however have to talk to an insurance agent. But in this growing world of technology, there is a pretty good change the insurance company will be able to cover these items. There are already companies that do.