Insurance & Savings Ombudsman: Tips to protect your jewellery

May 14 2015

“Precious jewellery can be stolen, lost or damaged,” says Karen Stevens, Insurance & Savings Ombudsman. “As last night’s Fair Go story highlighted, sometimes when things go wrong, people end up being very disappointed with the result of their insurance claim. In fact, in the 20 years we have provided a free service to consumers, we have dealt with literally thousands of complaints.”

The Insurance & Savings Ombudsman Scheme resolves complaints about insurance & financial services. “Unfortunately, if insurance claims are declined according to the terms of the policy, there isn’t a lot we can do to help,” says Karen. “So I urge people to always read their insurance policies to understand what they are covered for before they sign the application and, by doing so, agree to the policy’s terms.”

Karen says there are steps jewellery owners can take to avoid having problems with their insurance later, should they have to make a claim.

Top tips from the Insurance & Savings Ombudsman Scheme

1. Read your insurance policy carefully to see what is covered, and what limits your policy has for special items - often for jewellery, there will be an item limit (e.g. $2-3,000) and an event limit (e.g. $15,000)
2. Make sure you specify high value or special jewellery items on your insurance schedule
3. Get regular valuations for high value or special jewellery items - this might be a requirement of the policy
4. Keep receipts and valuations in a safe place, so you can prove purchase and/or ownership
5. Lock up or remove your jewellery during open homes or house renovations – you won’t be covered if someone “lawfully” on the property walks away with your precious items!
6. Notify the police immediately of any loss and get written confirmation to give to your insurer.

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