Jewellery and valuables

It is important for your clients to know that not having an up-to-date valuation can mean that, due to significant price fluctuations in the past few years, their jewellery insurance values could be too low… and in some cases too high!

An up-to-date valuation can help your client avoid financial loss in the case of a claim and can help them avoid having to either make up any cost difference or accept a lesser quality item. It’s also a great chance for the jewellery to be checked over for potential loose settings or necessary repair work. In many cases, it is also an opportunity to provide a far better description and more accurate details of the item than might be available from a purchase receipt or older valuation.

Moreover, the recent regulation of valuers through professional bodies such as the Institute of Registered Valuers means that the profession has turned around in the past five years to ensure a minimum level of expertise, accuracy, and detail from fully qualified valuers. A professional, fully detailed valuation makes it more likely for an insurer's loss adjuster to accept the claim and speed up the process for the client in the case of a loss/theft.

Another benefit of a professional valuation is that a valuer can confirm the authenticity of a gemstone and its certificates. We have seen a marked increase in the number of fake certificates that claim a gemstone is something that it is not - whether that is in relation to treatments, quality grades, or actual composition.

In many cases, items are insured at their purchase price – for example, an item such as an engagement ring that may have been purchased many years ago. Clients often do not keep on top of how the market and exchange rate fluctuations impact the price of jewellery, and are often unpleasantly surprised to find out that the cost of the ring is significantly more now for a like-for-like ring with equivalent quality gemstones. In addition to the sentimental impact, they now face being out of pocket, too.

Other areas where clients may be significantly underinsured are antique jewellery, branded vintage jewellery and vintage watches – areas of the market that have shown considerable growth in the past few years.

Diamonds have seen big fluctuations in price. Pay particular note if they were previously valued between 2015 and 2018, as they are very likely to be undervalued. Since then, the market has picked up and prices have increased, especially in the larger carat weights that most of your clients will likely own. If the valuation is old, then they may be even more undervalued, as one of the biggest hikes was seen between 2005 and 2010.

Gold price has seen an overall increase, and despite some small fluctuations, the general trend over the past 20 years has been up. Depending on when the previous valuation was done, the price of the jewellery item may have significantly increased.

Blue sapphires remain by far the best seller in the coloured gemstone market, with the finer grade sapphires such as Burmese and Ceylon continuing to increase dramatically in value. Only last year, this value increase was dramatic. At big auctions, the hammer price for natural unheated sapphires kept overtaking their auction estimates by 3-5 times!

Pieces from luxury jewellers such as Cartier, Bulgari, Chopard, Boodles, and Tiffany & Co., for example, increase yearly. It is an area in which a client’s current insurance replacement figure can quite quickly become insufficient. On the flip side, some branded pieces are discontinued, and it is an important conversation to have with the client on whether they would like to be insured for an equivalent piece from the second-hand market or for a completely different piece from a current collection that is similar in quality.

Vintage watches are still a very strong area of the market, and for truly unique and special vintage pieces, the prices have grown exponentially. 

This article is provided for information purposes and is general and educational in nature. Nothing constitutes legal advice. You are free to choose whether or not to use it, and it should not be considered a substitute for seeking professional legal help in specific circumstances. You acknowledge that over time, this article may become out of date and may not constitute best market practice.

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