Insuring Your Items

Insuring your jewellery against theft, loss or damage is a common practice, especially if the pieces are valuable or highly sentimental. However, it is extremely important that you do you research and choose the right insurance product to avoid being under-insured if you ever make a claim. Insurance companies will often require you to provide a certificate of valuation for insurance purposes or other documents (Like a diamond certificate) before they cover your items.

Making a claim when your jewellery has been lost, damaged or stolen can be an emotional time, especially if the item was an heirloom, engagement ring or bespoke piece. Therefore it is important to know that many insurance policies reserve the right to have a jewellery item repaired or replaced by a jeweller of their choice - even if the item was a one-off designer piece. However, some polices and most specialist jewellery insurance products will allow you to nominate your preferred jeweller in the event of a claim.

Home and Contents Insurance

If you have an existing Home and Contents policy or are looking at getting one, check to see whether the policy covers jewellery items for theft, loss or damage. However, many policies will only cover jewellery items up to a certain limit so it is important to find out whether you'll need to specify the items ensure you are adequately covered for the full value of the item and if you need an extension on the policy to cover your jewellery outside the home.

When a loss is suffered and a claim is lodged, the insurance company in question will request proof of purchase and proof of the value. (Inexplicably insurance companies do not usually request this at the time a policy is first issued). Most jewellery claims fall under the unspecified jewellery category and consumers are strongly advised to ensure they can provide proof of purchase and value.  High quality photographs of your jewellery items can be used to assess proof of purchase and the value, should the sales docket be lost.

Specialist Jewellery Insurance Products

In addition to Home & Contents policies, there are insurance products that have been specifically designed to cover jewellery items. These policies often provide high levels of cover inside and outside the home and allow greater flexibility on how to go about replacing your item(s) in the event of a claim.