Jewelry Insurace?

Hi - Homeowners usually doesn't cover much, and it might not be true replacement value. We have a separate policy with Jeweler's Mutual (recommended by a friend who owns a jewelry store).

Yep--homeowners covers a bit (usually up to $1000), but you can pay for additional coverage through a jewelry rider. Some cover theft only, others will cover any loss of a piece.

Hi there!

THis is something I know a little bit about. Growing up, my Parents owned and operated a Jewelry store in Gaithersburg. I worked there for a number of years, and this would come up a lot. :) (I miss it, but they have since passed away and the industry for small family-owned Jewelers has been tough.)

Typically most household insurance only covers contents of the house, but not "Luxury" items, like Jewelry, furs, rugs and antique items. You would need a Rider Insurance policy to cover those things individually.

The best thing I would suggest, especially if you're husband is in the buying business, is to look into insuring the pieces through his business. That usually covers a larger volume than the average home owner's collection. If you do go under the Home owner's policy, I would suggest finding a Jeweler you TRUST that is GIA certified, who does Insurance appraisals. Some do it by the piece, and some also do it based on time to do all your jewelry. Also make sure they have a good photo set-up to take pictures of everything for your records (That you keep out of the house somewhere, in case of fire!)

Whatever you PAID for the piece, the value comes down to 3 types. RETAIL value, FAIR REPLACEMENT value and any Antique or Estate values (If you had the hope diamond or a historical piece, that would need to be valued under more of an antique value.) Typically, the Retail value is what the Insurance companies charged you based on. It's what the current market value is at the TIME you did the appraisal/rider. (If there's a huge drop or change in prices, every few years you might want to update your Appraisal.)

When you need to make a claim on the piece(s), the Insurance company usually goes to trusted jewelers (or your own if the item is unique) and ask them what they could expect to pay to REPLACE the item, and that is the fair replacement value. If they can do it for less than the retail value (And most often they can, to some degree.) They will issue the check to that jeweler, or to you and that Jeweler in some circumstances... To replace the item.

If the piece(s) are highly collectable or antiques with value, that's usually done by a different type of appraiser, and I'm not too sure how all that works. It doesn't sound like your situation.

Check with your husband and his Purchasing Insurance first. He might have to have a license for buying in the US, that required a certain amount/type of transport insurance.

And Psssst! Don't mention anything personal about where you are or what he does on a public forum anymore. It's not a good time for that to get out! My Dad used to have to travel different routes home all the time, or change up his travel when moving things about. Sometimes thieves take the easy target, and just follow Buying reps and wait 'til they park somewhere for a meal or a stop. We knew several reps in the area that from time to time, would find their cars broken into!

Best of luck with this! It must be exciting to get to see so many shiny things. My heart still skips a beat when I think of the holidays and all those little velvet boxes I would wrap for people's surprises!

Oh and one more thing... All the other women did suggest similar. But I just want to add this. Safety deposit boxes are safe, and have SOME limits of insurance, but you still have to inventory/Photo and appraise what is IN the box. Otherwise there is now way to prove the contents. (Banks tend to be discreet and just want to make sure there's no Uranium in their vault!)

But you STILL have to know in advance during that Bank's hours what you want to wear! It takes all the spontaneity out of just choosing what you want to wear. And Jewelry is meant to be in the light, sparkly and LOVED! Not locked away in a dark box somewhere. A Fireproof safe (Preferably mounted in a cement floor if you can) is preferable.

And for the lady who's Jeweler told you "Why Bother"...There is a seed of truth. If the piece is lower than the average deductible, it may not be prudent to add that to your collection Rider. Family memories can never be replaced either, so be sure to write down your history of the piece and document stories/photos of you wearing it. That is important. BUT, at the very least, if you have pieces over about 5000.00 in replacement value that you wouldn't just want to lose, it's probably a good idea to insure it.

The True value in a piece of Jewelry isn't just what you pay for it. It's wearing it often and enjoying the REASON you got it. Just like a car though, unless the thing is HUGE, once you drive it off the "Showroom floor" It's never an investment for the money.

I have a personal articles insurance policy on my jewelry and my other high ticket items: TVs, cameras, etc. It is separate from my homeowners. You can get a rider on your homeowners, but as we know homeowners insurance can be very expensive and some companies will raise you rates substantially after one claim and drop you after two claims. That's why we have a separate policy on these items so that we are not forced to file a homeowners insurance claim over jewelry loss.

You need a rider for specific pieces of jewelry, and the jewelry needs an appraisal to obtain the rider, If I am not mistaken. It isn't expensive, but there are definitely limits to what your homeowner's policy will cover without an additional jewelry/valuables rider.

The rider I had on my wedding set (forgot to add it on our current policy, but had it on our previous one in our first house), cost about $12 annually, and included coverage for replacement of lost stones.
hth

There is some basic coverage which is minimal (maybe $2500) on my homeowners policy. SO.... anything of value over that amount is not covered.

We have a special rider on our policy and it is an extra $1000 per year but the peace of mind is worth it. It only covers my engagement ring, my my watch and 1 pair of diamond stud earrings (3 items).

We collect numismatics and we have a separate policy for that as well. Everything is kept in the safe but we are insured if we decided to take something out to a dealer or what not.

Your homeowners insurance agent should be able to help you get what you need. Make sure you have up to date appraisels.. you don't want to underinsure.

Usually your policy minus the deductible for any/all jewelry is a small amount. Some amounts for coverage may go up to $2,000. If you have more than that in value you need it appraised and then on a floater for the amount up to $50,000 or more. It will also cover the loose gems as well. It is best to cover yourself than not.

Take pictures of the actual items and put the away with the appraisals.

I need to do this as well.

The cost for coverage is a few dollars added to your homeowner's policy.

The other S.

We had it for a while and it was on our homeowners insurance under the contents section. Our computers and electronics actually are worth more than my wedding rings and few other pieces though. It is pretty easy once you talk to the insurance person about it.

You need to contact your insurance agent about this... there are frequently exclusions/limits on insurance, or deductibles.... You will probably have to have either appraisals or the receipts for the items, and get a rider to cover those items for full coverage, depending on the value.

Your homeowners policy must specifically list the pieces you wish to have covered. When I got my engagement ring, we added it to our homeowners. We had to get a written appraisal (by an approved/licensed jeweler) and submit it along with a photo to our insurance agent.

Yes, I have additional coverage through our homeowners policy like others mentioned here.

Yes - we have a rider that's specific to my engagement ring that's additional $ on top of our basic premium. Your policy will spell out what's covered regarding jewelry (usually a total loss limit applies and it's like $1000) and if you need more coverage, you'll have to purchase specific coverage and also prove the value of the pieces. Mine is valued through and appraisal that we had done. Call your agent and he or she should be able to answer your questions and talk to you about pricing coverage for anything you want to protect.

recently, I asked a jeweler "how" to determine what to insure. His answer shocked me! He said, "why bother? Keep it in a safety deposit box or a fireproof safe. The question you have to ask yourself is: will you replace it with something similar, because you will never/ever find an exact replacement. So why mess with insurance?"

still a stunner for me....but, in essence, he is right. My family heirloom pieces can never be replaced....they are one of a kind. So do I want to pay $$ to receive $$ back....because that's all I'll have left if they're stolen. On the other hand, if I use a safety deposit box/fireproof safe, then they'll be secure....without paying for insurance!

You'll need a rider to cover your stuff.

You'll need an appraisal for each piece. It may or MAY NOT be worth it.

Call your insurance agent to get more information.

Might as well count your homeowners out of it. It would be subject to your deductible and there are limits. Very little help if any.
Buy a persanol articles/inland marine policy as an addition or rider to your home policy. For instance, with State Farms policy, there is no deductible and it would be covered fully for things like mysterious desapearance - even if you just lose it, and even if a stone falls out. They are very cheap. Maybe $200 a yr for $10,000 worth of coverage.

Hi, Mom:
Call your insurance carrier and ask about the coverage.
Take pictures and put them in a file. Also put the cost to replace on the
back of the pictures.
Keep this file in a safe place so you can get your hands on it quickly if anything happens to your jewelry.
Thanks for asking.
D.

I can't answer your specific question about insurance coverage (and everyone else already has) but I have another idea for you.

I don't know how often you wear your expensive pieces, but what my parents have done is get a safe deposit box at a local bank and my mpom keeps some of her jewelry in there. Ii can be a bit inconvient, since she has to think ahead and go to the bank to retrieve something, but it gives her peace of mind this way. I think they pay less than $50a year for the box, but the cost depends on the size of the box. Of course, they keep other items in there too, like the deed to their house, their passports, ect.

Just a thought.

homeowners coverage usually has a limite of a couple hundred dollars for jewelry. Call your insurance saleperson and ask what you have. I'd bet the limit is no more than $500. It's pretty easy to add additional jewelry coverage to your homeowners policy and it's not that expensive unless you have a few pieces worht many thousands of dollars.

The best way to handle it is to lay out your gold jewelry on a dark fabric and take photos. For scale include in the photo a quarter, dime & penny or some other items of standard size that are easily recognizable. Bring the photo to yoru isnurance person and he or she will tell you how mmuch coverage you should get. If there a few pieces that are very costly such as a diamond ring or something with a large precious gem it should be appraised separately and listed separately on the policy rider. But it it's all gold bracelets, earrings, etc. then a photo should be enough.

Realize that the price of gold is very high right now so the amount of coverage you'll need to replace the jewely is high. If you see news that gold prices are dropping you may want to adjust the value down when it happens - unless your DH has bought you even more jewelry!

You go girl - just take care not to flaunt it - I've seen people get their necklace grabbed right off their neck in Manhattan - it hurts like crazy and it makes you feel violated. Who needs that!

You should talk to your agent. Homeowners Insurance will cover a certain amount, but if you have some really nice expensive pieces, you should have an additional rider policy.

I think the rule for my policy is a total value of $1000.00 (will never come close to that!) Anything above should be on a rider.

Its pretty simple. It also involves you taking pictures of the pieces, along with a description/bill of sale, and storing the 'proof' in a safe deposit box (i.e. not in the same location as the jewelry.)

Check your policy, of course. You will have a minimal amount of coverage, but if you have a number of nice pieces they should be covered individually. You will need either a bill of sale or an appraisal of each piece that you want to cover, to submit to the insurance company. Another good idea is to take your video camera and video all of your most expensive items, jewelry and otherwise, make a cd of this and put it someplace safe (security deposit box, safe, etc). It will make recovery a lot easier if you have this kind of evidence to submit to the insurance company in case of theft or fire.

We have a rider on my jewelry. We got it after one of my cleaning ladies stole my engagement ring....too late - although the company paid for the ring.

They will pay replacement value on pieces....they have paid for repairs as well, when my emerald fell out of my emerald and diamond ring - there is $0 deductible and the money was put in my account within 24 hours of notification of loss. Anything up to $1999.99 is 24 hour payout. after that? police report, adjuster, etc. I have a Tanzanite and diamond ring - appraised at $10K - they have the appraisal report on file for that ring and my other items that are valued over $2K....

Getting a current appraisal, with a picture, is the best thing you can do for yourself. Then a jeweler can make your ring or piece off that appraisal and picture.

ETA: You have USAA insurance right? Call them - that is who we have.