Safekeeping of Your Jewelry There are precautions you need to take when travelling with jewelry, as well as safeguarding your jewels at home. Taking preventative measures to minimize loss or theft of your jewelry is important.
your jewelry organized and protected. One thing to keep in mind when purchasing a travel case is how much jewelry and what type of jewelry you will be traveling with—there are so many different types available. You want to make sure you purchase the appropriate type. Again, minimal is always the best and safest policy.
If you are staying at a hotel, a wise idea would be to keep your jewelry in the hotel’s safety deposit box or in your room’s safe. It is also advisable to take copies of sales receipts, appraisal certificates or insurance papers as proof of ownership; by doing so you will avoid any potential problems with customs with regards to import taxes and customs declarations.
When you are retiring for the night, you can keep all your jewelry organized quite simply—slip your rings through your watch band and then close the clasp. At the same time, if your strap is made from leather, you can press your earrings through their holes.
When you purchase jewelry, store the receipt in a safe place, take pictures of each jewelry item and for the more expensive pieces, have an appraisal certificate.
It is very important that your jewelry is appraised by a certified appraiser. An appraisal certificate will outline all the details of the item, i.e. size of stone, karat of gold, weight, type of metal, unique features, current market value. It is also recommended to have the appraised pieces updated every 2-3 years because of the fluctuations in the gold market.
Imagine owning piece a piece of jewelry that was appraised several years ago with a replacement value of $2,000.00. Years pass and the value has increased to $4,500,00. Now if that piece is lost or stolen, and the appraisal is not current, the replacement value will be based on the $2,000.00 value.
A standard homeowner’s policy will provide a limited amount of coverage up to a specified dollar amount as stated in your homeowner’s policy. Some losses may not be covered and that is why it is advisable to purchase additional coverage, also known as a floater.
When purchasing the extra floater insurance, an updated appraisal certificate and pictures of your jewelry will be required so the insurance company has them on file. The floater would cover those pieces if they would be lost, stolen, or in some cases, if you lose a stone, they would be covered under this policy.
Insurance companies have their preferred jewelers, also know as their preferred vendors and will indemnify you to your exact state before your loss. So for example, your 1kt VS1 diamond will be replaced with a 1kt VS1 diamond.
If your ring was insured for $6,500.00, and the insurance company can have it replaced for $5,500, you have the option to have their jeweler replace your ring or you could choose to have your own jeweler replace your piece. In the latter case, the insurance company would pay you out, also known as cash-out on the
