Laura Packard (pictured) is vice president, sales and marketing, for American Collectors Insurance.

Spring brings thoughts of baseball cards to the minds of fans, collectors, dealers, and insurance agents in the collectibles insurance marketplace. That's true even more so this year, after a rare Honus Wagner 1909 baseball card sold for an auction record $2.1 million in April.

In the early 1900s Wagner was the best-known name among all ballplayers, leading his team to the World Series title in 1909. He later became one of the first five players inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. Many consider him the greatest shortstop to ever play baseball. His 1909 T206 card also has its own plaque in the hall.

The card depicting the Pittsburgh Pirates legend was issued by the American Tobacco Co. as part of a series between 1909 and 1911. (Beginning in the 1870s, baseball cards of the era were included in cigarette packs.) Wagner's card is believed to be so valuable because it's rare: Fewer than 200 of his cards were ever issued, in part because of his request not to have his card included in cigarette packs.

Baseball cards and other sports-related collections draw special interest from hobbyists throughout the country. Here's a look at how baseball cards got started, and how they're insured today.

champs

The First-Ever Baseball Card: 1865

Baseball card collecting is just a generation younger than baseball itself. Wikipedia reports that the “first published rules of baseball were written in 1845 for a New York City 'base ball' club called the Knickerbockers.” The reference site notes that the author of the rules, Alexander Cartwright, “is one person commonly known as 'the father of baseball.'”

Card collecting as a hobby is nearly 150 years old.

A team card for the Brooklyn Atlantics created in 1865 is known as the first baseball card. However, it would be unfamiliar to today's modern fans since it was actually a photograph of the team that was handed out to spectators prior to games. Fans of the game began to collect these team photos glued to cardboard.

joe

Buy Me Some Peanuts and Cracker Jack (and Get a Card, Too)

Around the time of World War I, hand-colored cards could be found in boxes of the snack Cracker Jack, still popular today and immortalized in the 1908 song “Take Me Out to the Ballgame”–long the unofficial anthem of baseball in America and traditionally sung during the seventh-inning stretch.

For Love or Money – Or Both?

Gus Sauter, former chief investment officer of mutual fund firm The Vanguard Group, recently gave The Wall Street Journal his analysis of whether collections make for good investment vehicles:

Collectibles, like art, or stamps or comic books, do not have a measurable fundamental value. Certainly, they provide enjoyment to some people who love to examine them. But the only way to make money investing in collectibles is to find someone who is willing to pay more for them than you did.

It's true that the value of any collectible is in the eye of the beholder. Enjoyment, as the quote suggests, is really the name of the game for many sports card collectors.

Although some collect for money's sake, many do it out of interest or passion. Collecting allows them to enjoy the past, own a piece of a sport that they love, and give them a connection with famous athletes. For many collectors, any investment value of cards and other sports collectibles is secondary.

What Risks Do Collectors Take On?

Collectors typically want to protect what they collect, even if they are not choosing to collect for investment purposes. The largest risks to baseball cards are loss in a home fire, water damage due to flood, and theft either from a home, vehicle, or during a show.

From an insurance perspective, underwriting guidelines and pricing decisions focus on understanding the values of different eras of cards and collections. While some collectors like to get appraisals, typically insurance underwriters don't require them. Collectors and insurance adjusters alike turn to sports card price guides for valuation and claims information.

Homeowners insurance might cover valued collections under a sublimit for possessions, but cover only perils such as fire, lightning and windstorm. Specialty collector insurance, by contrast, typically provides coverage for full collector value, and for a multitude of perils including accidental breakage, fire, flood, theft, hurricane and earthquake.

Many consumers aren't aware of the distinctions between policies. Agents who bring the issues to the attention of collectors can gain an add-on sale as well as a better-protected and more loyal client.

pin

Sports Collectibles Galore

Baseball cards are just one type of sports collectible. The social networking site Pinterest includes many boards with photos of sports collectibles. For infographics on baseball cards, sports collectibles and other collections, see pinterest.com/amercollectins/.

Want to continue reading?
Become a Free PropertyCasualty360 Digital Reader

Your access to unlimited PropertyCasualty360 content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:

  • Breaking insurance news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
  • Weekly Insurance Speak podcast featuring exclusive interviews with industry leaders
  • Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
  • Critical converage of the employee benefits and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, BenefitsPRO and ThinkAdvisor
NOT FOR REPRINT

© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.

E&S/Specialty