The Generalitat guarantees damages to cultural collections leased for exhibitions

The Consell has approved Decree 138/2026, of September 25, which develops the guarantee of the Generalitat against material damage suffered by assets forming part of leased cultural collections. The regulation is published in the Diari Oficial de la Generalitat Valenciana number 10463, of October 1, 2026, within the general provisions, and enters into force the day following its publication, that is, October 2, 2026. The text develops the eighth additional provision of Law 4/1998, of June 11, on Valencian Cultural Heritage (LPCV), which already enabled the Generalitat to lease collections of movable assets and grant guarantees over them.

The coverage is inspired by the technique already consolidated at the state level for the public guarantee of cultural assets, particularly in the regulation of the State guarantee for works of cultural interest, and is adapted to the jurisdictional and patrimonial reality of the Comunitat Valenciana. The decree pursues three objectives: to protect cultural assets of special value, to promote their access and public dissemination, and to rationalize spending, as the guarantee allows for the reduction, modulation, or supplementation of private insurance and avoids policies for the total declared value. The application of the regulation will have no impact on the Generalitat’s budgets and will be handled with its own means.

Who can request the guarantee and how is it processed

The procedure begins at the request of cultural entities and institutions, public or private, responsible for the exhibition, conservation, research, or dissemination of the assets, as well as by their owners or those who hold a legitimate title for their loan, transfer, deposit, or lease. It may also be initiated ex officio by the department (conselleria) competent in cultural matters.

The instruction corresponds to the managing center competent in cultural heritage, which submits the proposed resolution to the head of the department competent in culture. Before resolving, a report must be issued by the Valencian Cultural Heritage Asset Valuation Board or, where applicable, the scientific-artistic commission provided for in the LPCV, pronouncing on the protection, conservation, and security measures and on the suitability of the coverage regime.

The maximum period for resolution is six months. The resolution must detail the covered assets, the value assigned for compensation purposes, the scope, duration, and conditions of the guarantee, the required security measures, and the maximum limit of the commitment assumed.

What the guarantee covers and which risks are excluded

The guarantee covers damages resulting from the destruction, loss, theft, or deterioration of the assets during their transport, storage, exhibition, or any action linked to their cultural or museum destination. The maximum limit of the commitment per work or set of works in a single exhibition, and the total accumulated amount of the commitments, shall be established in the annual budget laws.

The following cases, among others, are excluded:

• The inherent vice or intrinsic quality of the asset and the simple passage of time.
• The deliberate action or omission of the lessor, its employees, or agents.
• Seizure, retention, or attachment ordered by a competent body.
• Nuclear accident or explosion.
• Damages resulting from willful misconduct, negligence, or breach of contract by the lessor or the managing entity.

Deductibles, indemnities, and recovery of assets

In the event of loss, theft, or total destruction, the indemnity is equivalent to the value assigned in the resolution; in the event of damage, it includes the reasonable cost of restoration and the subsequent loss of value, without in any case exceeding the assigned value. The guarantee does not cover the first portion of the damage, with the following deductibles:

• 30,000 euros when the total guaranteed value does not exceed 1,500,000 euros.
• 50,000 euros when it exceeds 1,500,000 euros and does not exceed 7,500,000 euros.
• 86,000 euros when it exceeds 7,500,000 euros and does not exceed 15,000,000 euros.
• 144,000 euros when it exceeds 15,000,000 euros.

Once the indemnity has been paid, the Generalitat may exercise a right of recourse against the promoting or managing entity if the loss resulted from breach of contract, willful misconduct, or negligence, and shall be subrogated to the rights against responsible third parties. If the lessor recovers an asset indemnified for loss or theft, they must first return the indemnity updated according to the consumer price index published by the National Statistics Institute.

Multi-year validity and contracts already in force

The guarantee may be granted with a validity period exceeding the budget year, provided that the maximum amount for successive years does not exceed that fixed in the year of the resolution. The value assigned to the assets may be revised, effective from its express acceptance by the lessor and by the promoting institution.

Lease contracts for cultural collections in force upon the entry into force of the decree may be adapted by means of an addendum, provided that their nature and object are not altered and the agreement of the lessor and, where applicable, the managing entity is recorded. The guarantee may only be granted regarding future risks not materialized since the formalization of the addendum. The amounts of the deductibles may be updated by joint order of the departments of culture and finance.

The decree bears the signature of the President of the Generalitat, Juan Francisco Pérez Llorca, and the Minister of Education, Culture and Universities, María del Carmen Ortí Ferre, following the deliberation of the Consell on September 25, 2026.

The regulation provides a stable and predictable framework for a figure that until now lacked regulatory development, which directly affects museums, collectors, galleries, and cultural managers who organize exhibitions with leased works. For them, the public guarantee can significantly reduce the cost of insurance premiums in operations of high economic value, freeing up resources for the conservation, research, and dissemination of heritage, although in exchange for submitting to an administrative procedure, technical security conditions, and a regime of liability and deductibles.

Source: Diari Oficial de la Generalitat Valenciana, no. 10463, of October 1, 2026, I. General Provisions, page 1 (official reference: DOGV-C-2026-30038).