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Heed the warning! My soundsystem and records are a pile of ashes

Hi Audiogon family,

Wanted to reach out with a message of warning to please endorse your soundsystem on your insurance policy if you have not already. I have just lost my home and all belongings in the Eaton Fire in Altadena, CA, and I will likely not be able to recover it in full because I did not specifically insure it.

This also goes for records! I'm learning that I will probably be sub-limited on my $80k record collection that I have been assembling since childhood.

I know that stuff is stuff. I literally had to evacuate within minutes because of my house's proximity to the fire's origin. How I wish I had grabbed some of the priceless, unbuyable records that I searched high and low for throughout my life. But I'm alive, my family is alive, and that's what matters most. 

I've worked so hard to provide for my family all these years - we are not a trust fund situation. Records/hifi - MUSIC - was, is and will continue to be my most beloved hobby. I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy, and hope some of you may heed my advice to avoid losing your priceless collections.

I have a gofundme setup if anyone is feeling generous, but would appreciate any thoughts and prayers as well. I've found encouragement from my community has been a major saving grace for us during this time. Also, if anyone has experience starting again from the ground up, I'd love to hear your inspirational stories.

128x128nardandsaffron
sns
3,318 posts
 

Sorry for your loss. I've been closely monitoring the situation out there, complete devastation in some areas. Trying hard to imagine how I would cope if faced with similar loss, and these losses are not simply individual but entire communities have been lost, major trauma here! I've watched many videos of the devastation, how surreal to see such a beautiful area of the country now looking like a war zone. How will people carry on after this!

immatthewj
2,150 posts
 

@livinon2wheels 

I pray your experience with your insurance is better than ours has been.

Is there anything you can tell us about your past experience that would help us adjust our home owners insurance in order to be prepared, just in case?

evanpress
23 posts
 

I live in Van Nuys.  We are safe and sound.  I have a Haffler amp, a B&K preamp, an Outlaw Receiver and Bose 901 speakers in the garage.  I would like to offer them to you, gratis.  I also have a box of CDs, blues and rock, I have them backed up to a NAS.  You are welcome to take what you like.

EvanLPress@gmail.com

 

 

curiousjim's avatar
curiousjim
4,824 posts
 

OMG!

I am so sorry to hear of your loss and very happy to hear that you and yours are safe!

All the best to you and your family!

nonoise's avatar
nonoise
10,903 posts
 

Congressman Sherman did some more research and found this as well:

Additional Assistance for Fire Victims

The information below describes federal assistance for fire victims.

Here's some additional information regarding housing assistance:
  • In addition to the $43,600 of housing assistance, you may qualify for additional temporary rental assistance from FEMA. The amount of assistance is based on prevailing rental value in your community, and the number of people in your household.

 

  • If you qualify for the full $43,600 in FEMA housing aid, you will probably qualify for an additional $10,000 in aid from the California State Supplemental Grant Program. This aid can be used on rental expenses, housing repairs or rebuild, replacement of personal property, medical expenses, etc. Importantly, there is no separate application to obtain this state assistance. Individuals who receive the maximum in FEMA housing assistance will automatically receive state assistance. For more information on the California State Supplemental Grant Program, Click Here.

 

  • The “Other Needs” (car, medical, etc.) FEMA grant of up to $43,600 is in addition to the initial FEMA housing assistance, which also has a separate maximum of $43,600.

 

  • If you submit the application for assistance with FEMA and you have insurance, you may receive a message that your assistance was “not approved.” This is a glitch in the FEMA website.  If you have insurance that does not fully cover all of your costs (under-insured), you are still eligible for FEMA assistance. You will need to provide additional information to show that your insurance will not cover all of your costs. I am pushing FEMA to correct the glitch, and to reduce the paperwork and delay for those who are under-insured. 

 

The $43,600 in housing assistance is the maximum set by current law for disaster victims. I will be advocating for new special laws to provide additional assistance to Los Angeles area fire victims. I realize that the cost to rebuild some homes can exceed $1 million, and that many fire victims do not have adequate insurance.

Hope that helps,

All the best,
Nonoiise

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