Insuring your jewellery
Imagine if a diamond falls out of your engagement ring or you lose a gold earring. These items can be expensive to replace and that’s why it’s sensible to insure them. However, not all policies are created equal. So in this article, we explain in 8 simple steps how to get the best jewellery insurance for you.
1. Decide if you need to insure your jewellery
Whether your jewellery item costs £50 or £50,000 is not important. Instead, you should ask yourself, would it be difficult for you to replace your jewellery if it was stolen, lost or damaged? If the answer is yes, then it’s a good idea to have it insured.
2. Find out the value of your jewellery
If you bought the jewellery yourself, then you’ll already know its value and you’ll have a receipt to back it up. In the case of gifts or heirlooms, you can either ask the person who gave it to you or, if that feels awkward, have the item valued. The National Association of Jewellers is the best place to get advice on valuations.
3. Be clear on what is covered by your guarantee
What does jewellery guarantee cover? Fine jewellery sometimes comes with a guarantee that covers manufacturing flaws. This is similar to when you buy a car and it comes with a warranty. In other words, if a jeweller sells you an item with a defect, and it comes to light within the guarantee period, then they must repair or replace the item for free.
What doesn’t a jewellery guarantee cover? If you think about the car comparison again, then if you have an accident or your car is stolen, you must have insurance to get compensated. In the same way, if your jewellery is stolen, lost or accidentally damaged, then a guarantee won’t cover these instances, you’d need to have jewellery insurance.
4. Be aware of the pitfalls with home insurance
Many people mistakenly assume that their home owner’s or content insurance policy automatically covers all their valuables. However, this is not always the case with jewellery. Always check with your insurer what is actually covered.
A home insurance policy may impose the following limitations for jewellery:
- It might only cover loss, damage or theft that occurs in your home, not elsewhere.
- It may include a ‘single-item’ limit that caps how much you can claim for one item.
- It may include an ‘aggregate limit’ that caps how much you can claim for multiple items.
- You may need extended cover for jewellery, which will raise your premium.
- Some insurers simply decline to cover jewellery.
5. Compare home insurance with other types of insurance
If insuring jewellery items under your home insurance isn’t an option, or you just want another quote, then some insurance companies offer more tailored insurance. For instance, there are some policies that cover valuables in general, such as art objects and watches.
However, the most tailored type of insurance for jewellery is simply called ‘jewellery insurance’. The benefit of tailored jewellery insurance is that these policies, being specialist, are often more affordable yet give you wider coverage.
6. Get the best price
Tailored jewellery insurance is one of the more affordable types of insurance. To give you an example, it can be up to ten times cheaper than mobile phone insurance. The exact cost will depend on the value of your jewellery, but as a guide, it may start from as low as under £20 per year for single items.
The main benefit of tailored jewellery insurance? It can be adjusted to the exact value of your item, so you’ll only pay for the cover you need, no more, no less.
7. Know the hidden costs
There is also another hidden benefit to tailored jewellery insurance, when compared to other types of policies. Since it affords customised yet wide cover, you won’t need to pay for a home insurance extension, or extra travel insurance if you take your valuables on holiday.
8. Choose the right policy
This is topic in its own right. So we have written another quick and easy guide on choosing a jewellery insurance policy. Jump here to read it now, or simply click below to get a free quote.
