Replacement vs. Retail
Replacement vs. retail/appraisal value is such a frequently asked question that we had to commit a whole section to answering this specific question.
Please take the time read this whole section as it will help you understand the whole claim process.
There are two common ways of insuring your jewellery, 1. Cover all your jewellery under an “umbrella policy”, for the sake of this explanation we will say 6000.00 dollars for all jewellery unspecified and 2. Specify an amount on the any one single piece and pay a premium on it, commonly referred to as an insurance rider. Understanding that no matter what way you decide to insure your jewellery the insurance company is always only going to replace like for like. If you have been paying a rider on a 14 karat yellow gold band, the insurance company will pay to replace a 14 karat yellow gold band....no more.....no less.
Your insurance payout amount is based on item insured not the value of the item.
The problem consumers run into is whether they have paid a rider on a specific piece or just opted for the umbrella insurance, 9 times out of ten the cost to replace the “lost” item is a lot lower that the original purchase amount or the appraised amount. To understand why this is we need to understand what the definition of an “appraisal or valuation” is. Jeweller’s vigilance of Canada www.jewellersvigilance.ca defines it as:
DEFINITION OF APPRAISEL
An expert unbiased opinion as to identity, composition, qualities and values, usually embodied in an appraisal document which is the official record of the appraisal. An appraisal should also include a detailed description of the item using internationally recognized terminology and grading systems.
JEWELLERY INSURANCE APPRAISAL DEFINITION
A jewellery appraisal for insurance is a comprehensive description supporting an estimate of the value to be used as the basis upon which insurance premiums will be set and should be the basis of establishing the replacement value and limit of claim settlement at the time of an insured loss.
Appraisals are opinions, nothing more, as for the value, they are opinions as well. Appraisals are generally overinflated price guidelines to compensate for the large mark ups on the jewellery.
In a nut shell the mark up on jewellery can be up to 200%, appraisals are opinions to justify the price you just paid and our prices are lower on replacement because that is what you should have paid in the first place.
When you settle your claim with Executive Diamond Services we guarantee we will replace your item like for the like for the price you were quoted. If want to take the opportunity to upgrade your jewellery you will still benefit from our insurance pricing.
