In the event of a claim your insurer will only pay the amount of the item as noted on your policy. Your high end watch or diamond necklace that was formally valued 5 years ago may actually be worth a great deal more today. Is it insured correctly?
Collector’s items and limited edition pieces will tend to increase in value as the years go by. Indeed, many pieces are purchased as an investment, so the increase in value is expected, particularly if you keep the box and the receipt! Failing to keep up to date with the true value of your watch and jewellery collection will put you at risk of a low payout in the event of a claim.
Time Flies
So you bought your Rolex for £15k back in 2010. As a high value piece, it’s unlikely your existing home contents insurance will have covered it, unless you already had a High Net Worth (HNW) policy. You will have had to insure the watch in isolation or place it under a HNW policy. Either way. it’s insured, you can relax. Time passes and you renew your home contents insurance year on year, but have you been keeping an eye on the value of your watch? A lot of people actually don’t; only to find out in the event of a claim that a watch that they thought was worth £15k would now be worth in the region of £25k. As a listed item on the policy, any payment made would be aligned with the formal valuation of that item. If you intended to use the insurance payout to replace the watch, you’ll be £10k short.
Of course watches are not the only items of jewellery that can increase in value. The price of gold in 2003 was $450 per ounce peaking in 2012 at $750 per ounce, and today the price is around $1,510 per ounce. If you have owned a gold item of jewellery during that time, your piece could be three times more valuable today solely due to the price of gold, let alone any other intrinsic value your piece might have.
This highlights to need to obtain frequent valuations.
For example, (values from a Doerr Valuations) :
- Van Cleef and Arpels. 18 carat yellow gold and mother o’pearl 20 motif Vintage Alhambra necklace:
- 2004 £6,210,
- 2012 £10,800,
- 2019 £13,700.
- Cartier 18 carat white gold, diamond and emerald Panther ring:
- 2003 £26,000
- 2010 £42,100
- 2019 £73,000
- Tiffany platinum an diamond ‘Victorian’ era studs:
- 2003 £3,100
- 2010 £4,925
- 2019 £8,225
Therefore if you do have items of jewellery or high end watches that you have not had valued within the last three years please do so, this will protect you if the unfortunate was to happen and ensure that you’re not left out of pocket and are able to replace your items should you need to claim.
We can recommend www.doerrvaluations.co.uk. They will value your items in the comfort of your own home thus avoiding the inconvenience and risk of taking your items to a jeweller. It is also important to get your clasps and settings checked. We would recommend you get these checked every 3 years also. This is often a requirement from your High Value Insurance provider.
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