Jewellery insurance valuation too high?

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upfar
upfar Posts: 3 Newbie
edited 15 July 2018 at 12:03PM in Insurance & life assurance
I bought an engagement ring from a shop in Birmingham for £2100, and when it arrived it came with an insurance valuation from the jeweller. At first I thought great this will be useful to have in case I ever need to claim, but thought it sounded a little high. So I dutifully rang my insurance company to get it added to the contents insurance/personal possessions and query how much I should cover it for.


Unfortunately it turns out they can't insure the ring as their single item limit is £5000, and the valuation was at £6500! I now realise that this piece of paper is causing me more trouble than good and I'm having to take out standalone cover at considerable cost :(


I'm thinking of paying to get it properly assessed somewhere as although I understand the valuation is likely to be higher than what I paid, should it really be over 3 times the amount?! It just seems so silly as I assume the insurance company would likely only payout £2000 for a replacement even if I was paying the premium for £5000. What are other people's experiences of insurance valuations? I was expecting it to be around £3500 or something...

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  • Nearlyold
    Nearlyold Posts: 2,288 Forumite
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    Why would the same jeweller sell you the ring for £2100 when he values it at £6500?

    Was the ring in a "Sale"?

    Why do you need a valuation when you have only just bought the ring, surely the invoice/receipt would suffice as proof of the value/amount paid
  • dunstonh
    dunstonh Posts: 116,371 Forumite
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    Unfortunately it turns out they can't insure the ring as their single item limit is £5000, and the valuation was at £6500! I now realise that this piece of paper is causing me more trouble than good and I'm having to take out standalone cover at considerable cost

    Or you could use a broker instead of comparison sites. Comparison sites focus on the bulk market. Policies still exist people who do not fit the bulk market and often the prices nowadays are not a lot different.
    I am an Independent Financial Adviser (IFA). The comments I make are just my opinion and are for discussion purposes only. They are not financial advice and you should not treat them as such. If you feel an area discussed may be relevant to you, then please seek advice from an Independent Financial Adviser local to you.
  • jaybeetoo
    jaybeetoo Posts: 1,337 Forumite
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    Did you buy it from the Jewellry Quarter? I!!!8217;ve been given valuation certifcates above the sale price when I!!!8217;ve bought from there (though not such a big increase as you have).
  • upfar
    upfar Posts: 3 Newbie
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    Nearlyold wrote: »
    Why would the same jeweller sell you the ring for £2100 when he values it at £6500?

    Was the ring in a "Sale"?

    Why do you need a valuation when you have only just bought the ring, surely the invoice/receipt would suffice as proof of the value/amount paid


    No it was not in a sale, chose a mount & chose the diamond to be set so the replacement value should be close to what I paid really. I don't understand it either, but I believe they usually include an insurance valuation with larger purchases. I wish I hadn't mentioned it to the insurer now as honestly the jeweller could've written any value!


    dunstonh wrote: »
    Or you could use a broker instead of comparison sites. Comparison sites focus on the bulk market. Policies still exist people who do not fit the bulk market and often the prices nowadays are not a lot different.


    I'm with AXA directly, don't have any problems with their home insurance or price and I'm not up for renewal at the moment. My issue is that I don't think the ring needs to be insured for such a high sum and would've expected the insurer to have some common sense seeing as I have a purchase receipt.


    jaybeetoo wrote: »
    Did you buy it from the Jewellry Quarter? I!!!8217;ve been given valuation certifcates above the sale price when I!!!8217;ve bought from there (though not such a big increase as you have).


    Yes it was from the Jewellery Quarter. I'm wondering if I will get a more realistic valuation certificate from elsewhere, hopefully under 5000! It just seems too high.
  • Zorillo
    Zorillo Posts: 774 Forumite
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    edited 15 July 2018 at 2:53PM
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    It sounds a spurious valuation to me. I'd have it professionally valued elsewhere, and I hope it's at least £2100.
  • paddyandstumpy
    paddyandstumpy Posts: 1,486 Forumite
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    The RRP price for a ring will always be higher than the price for the parts.

    I had this when I had my fianc!es ring made, what the jeweller has valued the finished ring is more than double what I've paid for the diamond, the metal and his handiwork.

    We've got our policy with Aviva and they insured her ring without blinking, the value of hers is well in excess of your valuation so they will be fine with yours.
  • FutureGirl
    FutureGirl Posts: 1,252 Forumite
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    Why is it for the insurer to use 'common sense'? Its your policy. You chose what you want covered. If you don't want the ring insured for £6,500 then don't insure it for that much.

    If you have a single article limit of £5000, do you even need to list it separately? Surely if you damage / lose the ring it will cost you around the £2100 to replace, no?
  • upfar
    upfar Posts: 3 Newbie
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    FutureGirl wrote: »
    Why is it for the insurer to use 'common sense'? Its your policy. You chose what you want covered. If you don't want the ring insured for £6,500 then don't insure it for that much.

    If you have a single article limit of £5000, do you even need to list it separately? Surely if you damage / lose the ring it will cost you around the £2100 to replace, no?


    Ha if only that's how it worked, that's what I was trying to get across to them. AXA will have recorded the phone call, so if I were to do what you suggest and needed to make a claim in the future they would replay that phone call where I had stated it was 'worth' £6500 and say I was underinsured.
    In hindsight I should have never mentioned the valuation but it is done now. I did ring them again today to double check, and I even asked if I had it valued in future for under 5k would they be able to insure it (yes, but no discussion on the now). The whole thing is a farce they just pick and choose, no wonder people hate insurance companies.
  • eddddy
    eddddy Posts: 16,440 Forumite
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    It sounds like a sales gimmick from the seller to make you feel good about your purchase - "You've bought a ring worth £6500 for only £2100!".

    Take it with a big pinch of salt.

    If, for example, it's lost or stolen, the insurers won't pay you £6500 - they will pay you the replacement cost - £2100.

    So there's probably no point in declaring its value as £6500.


    FWIW, I know somebody who was in a similar position a few years back. The shop provided a valuation certificate for a ring at about twice the purchase price.

    The ring owner took it to an independent insurance valuer, who actually valued it at less than the owner paid (as opposed to twice what the owner paid).
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