Do you need to have a separate jewelry insurance policy in place? The answer is an absolute yes. Although a great deal of people are under the false belief that their homeowners insurance policy or apartment insurance policy fully covers jewelry, it may actually fall a bit short. First and foremost, a typical homeowners insurance policy or apartment insurance policy does cover jewelry to a certain extent. That includes a loss that is caused by theft, vandalism or a natural disaster such as a fire or hurricane. However, the insurance policy may very well enforce a limit of up to $1,500 for the theft of jewelry including watches and precious stones.
That low limit may not cover your loss or even come close to covering your loss. So, why do the insurance companies set the limit so low? The bottom line is that it’s easy to have your jewelry stolen. Although you can increase your homeowners insurance or apartment insurance coverage limits in order to cover your jewelry it still may not be enough. A typical increase would provide you with coverage that limits your losses to $2,500 per piece of jewelry with a total of $5,000. If your stolen jewelry is worth more than that it means you’re out of luck.
The worst part is that most people find this out when it’s too late. That is exactly why you need either an insurance floater for jewelry or a stand-alone policy for jewelry in place. In essence, the floater policy supplements your homeowner’s coverage or your apartment coverage. It does cost a bit more than increasing the coverage limits on your homeowners insurance policy or apartment insurance policy, however the payout exceeds the $2,500 per piece and $5,000 total limits.
In addition, a floater policy will also cover accidental loss such as leaving your expensive watch behind in a hotel room or losing an expensive ring because you dropped it in the kitchen sink. Although a stand-alone jewelry insurance policy is similar to a floater jewelry insurance policy it goes one step further. In essence, a stand-alone jewelry insurance policy covers expensive repairs such as a chip in a diamond ring or damage to an expensive luxury watch. As a rule of thumb, the coverage for a stand-alone jewelry insurance policy typically costs from 1% to 2% of the value of the jewelry.
That means a $10,000 piece of jewelry will typically cost anywhere from $100 to $200 per year to insure. That is certainly a small price to pay for all of that financial protection.
If you own jewelry, especially expensive jewelry you need to ensure that you have the proper jewelry insurance policy in place. Please consult with a professional insurance agent that can answer your questions about all insurance related topics. It is important to fully understand exactly what you are buying when it comes to insurance policies. If you have any questions, please call (508) 831-0133 to contact an associate at Zawada Insurance. We are happy to walk you through the details of your insurance policies and explain your coverage options.
We look forward to helping you with all of your personal and or business related insurance needs now and in the future.