Don’t Wait Until Its Too Late to Discover That Your Jewelry is Underinsured

You are at a time in your life where your family has amassed or inherited a valuable collection of jewelry. However, that special wedding set you bought and insured 20 years ago for $5K is now probably worth $40K. If you lose a piece, the insured value may not even make a dent in replacing it. If it’s been a while since you had your jewelry appraised and reinsured, now is the time. And, Wharton & Power Insurance can help.

Theft, fire, or just something slipping off while golfing or enjoying the beach, are just some of the ways we see our clients losing their valuable jewelry. Regular homeowners insurance only goes so far in covering that loss. If your policy does not cover specific jewelry pieces, such as blanket coverage of $1,000, you are quite underinsured. Even if a set value schedule was developed years ago with an agreed upon value, you could lose in a new claim. The U.S. has seen an inflationary period for gold and silver, increasing the value of jewelry and other valuables. For most of our clients, the emotional attachment that comes with jewelry means losing it is a big deal. It is usually replaced with something just as special, which becomes a large expense when the piece is underinsured.

This loss is a big deal to insurance providers as well! A big-ticket claim means their investigative process kicks in, with interviews etc. to ensure the loss is valid. Recent appraisals help everyone out by streamlining the process. If you are insured correctly, then you are paying a premium equal to the loss, so the insurance company is more inclined to give you the appropriate value.

One the other side of this spectrum, Wharton & Power Insurance has a client who recently took the time to review her large collection of jewelry and its coverage. She realized that many small pieces were on the schedule that could be covered as a whole under her regular homeowners insurance that covered $5K worth of jewelry. Taking those pieces off her separate policy reduced her premium while providing appropriate coverage.

Here at Wharton & Power Insurance, most of our clients have valuable jewelry that may not have been appraised in a while. So, to provide better service, we created a partnership with Dana Friedman, owner of Petite G Jeweler in Indianapolis. To get you started on your way to adequate coverage of your special pieces, our firm will cover the appraisal cost of one piece of jewelry at Petite G. Then we can help you decide how best to appropriately insure your valuables while keeping premiums manageable.

For more information on this program, send us an email or give us a call at 317.663.4138.