Wedding Rings

Engagement Ring Insurance

Question:

I recently purchased an engagement ring for my long time girlfriend. The ring was appraised at $10,000.  My friends have been telling me horror stories about losing or breaking jewelry and having jewelry stolen.  This has prompted me to look for insurance for the ring.  I have no clue about insurance.  I don’t own a house and am just looking into renter’s insurance.  I have car insurance through my parents, but I don’t think auto insurance is what I’m looking for.  Can somebody recommend what type of insurance I should be getting that would cover loss, damage, theft.  THANKS! Jim

Response:

> I recently purchased an engagement ring for my long time girlfriend. > The ring was appraised at $10,000.  My friends have been telling me > horror stories about losing or breaking jewelry and having jewelry > stolen.  This has prompted me to look for insurance for the ring.  I > have no clue about insurance.  I don’t own a house and am just looking > into renter’s insurance.  I have car insurance through my parents, but > I don’t think auto insurance is what I’m looking for.  Can somebody > recommend what type of insurance I should be getting that would cover > loss, damage, theft.  THANKS! > Jim

When we got engaged, it was a simple matter to add a rider to cover the e-ring on my renter’s policy. It’s a good thing to have.  If you own a home, have a rider to cover the expensive bits (including, for example, computer equipment) from your homeowner’s insurance. You’re right, auto insurance is not what you’re looking for.  I don’t know how insurance works in countries other than the US, but it’s relatively simple to be covered against disasters. — aMAZon zeszutko at nycap.rr.com "It’s never too late to have a happy childhood."

Response:

> I recently purchased an engagement ring for my long time girlfriend. > The ring was appraised at $10,000.  My friends have been telling me > horror stories about losing or breaking jewelry and having jewelry > stolen.  This has prompted me to look for insurance for the ring.  I > have no clue about insurance.  I don’t own a house and am just looking > into renter’s insurance.  I have car insurance through my parents, but > I don’t think auto insurance is what I’m looking for.  Can somebody > recommend what type of insurance I should be getting that would cover > loss, damage, theft.  THANKS! > Jim

A rider on the renter’s or homeowner’s insurance would be appropriate. You didn’t mention if you live with your fiancee or not, but it should be on the policy for the place that she resides.

Response:

Most Renter’s Insurance place have riders you can get for specific jewelry items that are really expensive.  I use American Family and had one for a couple pieces that are over $1000. Most General policies specifically state there is a max on jewelry it’s good for unless you get the rider. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->I recently purchased an engagement ring for my long time girlfriend. >The ring was appraised at $10,000.  My friends have been telling me >horror stories about losing or breaking jewelry and having jewelry >stolen.  This has prompted me to look for insurance for the ring.  I >have no clue about insurance.  I don’t own a house and am just looking >into renter’s insurance.  I have car insurance through my parents, but >I don’t think auto insurance is what I’m looking for.  Can somebody >recommend what type of insurance I should be getting that would cover >loss, damage, theft.  THANKS! >Jim

Response:

> I recently purchased an engagement ring for my long time girlfriend. > The ring was appraised at $10,000.  My friends have been telling me > horror stories about losing or breaking jewelry and having jewelry > stolen.  This has prompted me to look for insurance for the ring.  I > have no clue about insurance.  I don’t own a house and am just looking > into renter’s insurance.  I have car insurance through my parents, but > I don’t think auto insurance is what I’m looking for.  Can somebody > recommend what type of insurance I should be getting that would cover > loss, damage, theft.  THANKS! > Jim

Hi Jim, Yes, a policy is definitely a good thing to have.  You will need to have a copy of a good appraisal… one based on fair market value by a certified appraiser, not just the store’s "appraisal" or receipt.  For a ring that price, the stone itself should have come with some type of certification beyond just the store’s own — for example, a GIA (Gemological Institute of America) cert, complete with a map of the diamond.  (I’m assuming it’s a diamond…. if another stone, then the same applies.) If the stone did NOT come with a cert, you may want to consider submitting it to GIA for independent cert.  This would not only reassure you that the stone’s value is indeed as represented by the store, but would also provide the basis for the appraisal you’ll need for insurance purposes. Many of the larger diamonds today also have laser inscribed serial number info on their girdle.  That would be important to note for the insurer, as well. The appraisal and any pertinent info about the ring, as well as a very good quality set of photographs of the ring should be kept in a firesafe place separate from the place where the ring usually is.  In other words, if you live in your parents’ house and you’re keeping the ring there too, the appraisal should be in a fire safe in your fiance’s parents’ house, or in a safety deposit box at the bank.  This is extra "insurance" that the critical information you need in order to prove your ownership of the ring and its value would not be destroyed in the same incident that destroyed the ring. You’re looking for "Personal Property Insurance."  Whether you rent or own or live with your parents will determine the nature of the policy, but you should definitely be looking for a REPLACEMENT VALUE policy, if it is at all within your budget.   Depreciated value policies may save you some premium $ up front, but when something happens and you have to replace your perfectly good 5-year-old TV under the policy, you’ll find out that you get $50 for it.  With a replacement-value policy, you’ll get enough to purchase a new TV comparable to the one you lost. Pretty much any insurance company has personal property insurance.  Price them and ask about the ride you’ll need to cover the ring.  Be sure to ask about exclusions and any "buy outs" for them (in some cases, you can buy out an exclusion for a certain type of circumstance through a slightly higher premium). Hope all this helps! Karen Goeller kgoeller at nolimitations dot com www.nolimitations.com Handcrafted and Unique Artisan Jewelry and Fine Wedding Bands

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Filed under: Diamond Wedding Ring