Anyone who knows something about insurance claims, please reply...I''m preparing for a possible wors

[Daniela]

Hi, guys. My diamond hasn''t turned up yet (for the full story, see this thread):

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/i-need-moral-support-guys-shipping-disaster.15514/

The update is that it was heading back to me as of 7:29 Wednesday night, and according to Canada Post because it was being "returned to sender", it got filed into their regular mail pile (i.e. not Express and not trackable). They don''t know where it is. While this is very upsetting and disapointing and I''ve filed several complaints with Canada Post, it doesn''t solve the main problem: I''m without an engagement ring. The irony of the situation is that they refunded my shipping money and expected me to be happy. I said, "That''s a nice gesture, but I''d rather have my package."

I haven''t given up on it quite yet, and will continue to hope until the end of next week. But I want to know what I have to steel myself for if I have to make an insurance claim. I double-checked with my insurance agent before I mailed it and was assured that my ring is insured anywhere in the world whether or not I''m with it, and that I was free to ship it to my jeweller if I so chose.

But what I''m really worried about is going through the actual process of making a claim.

I have four main questions: Is it difficult?
Does it take forever?
Will my insurance premiums skyrocket afterwards? (Oh, God, I hope not.)
Does the replacement stone generally have to be the EXACT same colour, clarity, and carat weight right down to the last point? (Mine was a 1.013 H SI-1 H&A from GOG).

Please help answer any of the above questions if you have any experience in this kind of thing.

Daniela

 

[strmrdr]

It is hard to answer your questions because it really depends on the insurance company and the claims rep. that handles your claim.
I will try and answer them from my experence dealing with issurance companies in the computer field.

I have four main questions: Is it difficult?

It can be but unless the suspect fraud its fairly strait foward.
They will have a procedure to follow so just play the game.

Does it take forever?

couple weeks usualy

Will my insurance premiums skyrocket afterwards? (Oh, God, I hope not.)

It will go up how far depends on what other policies you have and how long you have been with that insurance company.
Often times your agent can get the increase decressed if he/she is willing to go to bat for you.


Does the replacement stone generally have to be the EXACT same colour, clarity, and carat weight right down to the last point? (Mine was a 1.013 H SI-1 H&A from GOG).

Usualy yes or better.
I hope you have the cut quality documented and can deminstrate what is special about your diamond or you will get a run of the mine diamond that just matches the basic specs.
Copies of all the test results and as much documentation as possible should be presented.
It is up to you to make your case to get as nice a diamond as you lost.
If the first offer isnt fair dont be afraid to reject it.

 

[icelady]

Daniela,

I am so sorry to hear about your ring, it has to be so frustrating.

As far as the insurance, if you have replacement coverage, the insurance company has to replace the stone with a like stone. So the more info they have on the stone the better. My insurance company explained that they will replace the stone with at least what is on your appraisal that is filed with them. So if you had a 1.25 carat RB G color SI1 diamond they have to replace it with the same or better, so if the only one they have access to is a 1.28 ct RB G, VS2 you could end up with a slightly larger or better color/clarity stone. If the stone that you lost is a H&A or ACA and it was appraised that way, they also have to replace to the same standard. If your appraisal does not reflect H&A or ACA then they do not.

I do not think it is very difficult to make the claim, especially if you have a local agent that can help guide you through the process. Unfortunately, it could take a while as the insurance company will want to make certian that it does not turn up before they pay out on it. Again, a local agent should be able to go to bat for you.

Your insurance premiums may go up since insurance companies are notorious for raising premiums after a claim is made.

I would not expect them to go to GOG to replace the stone, but you may be able to get them to pay you replacement value (which according to my insurance company will be way below what it would cost you to replace it since they said they can get a "good deal" when replacing stones).

When it comes to insurance companies you really have to be a bulldog, sink your teeth in, and don't let go until you have a fair deal!!

Hope this helps.

 

[fire&ice]

Agree with the rest.

What type of documentation was submitted with the initial insuring of the ring - i.e. - do they have Jon's print out w/ the detailed info, a detailed appraisal, or just the bare basics?

And, it's been my experience that the insurance companies do want to help. Your agent is usually in your corner - the good cop. The adjuster, the bad cop, is the one you may have to get tough with - nicely w/the help of your agent. I'm unsure about your premiums going up as they are scheduled items. I pay a separate premium for those items. Our house premiums did not go up when we had the break-in. That is my only personal experience w/ my ins. co.

Good luck. Sometimes these things work themself out. I'm sorry.

 

[WinkHPD]

I do a lot of insurance replacement work here in the states, so of course I can not speak for your company in Canada.

The way it works here is that someone like myself will receive a call and a fax from your adjuster and they will send us the information that you hve given them.

Without going back up to re read your info lets assume a 1.03 F-VS2 H&A cut.

My job is to find you a stone of at least 1.03cts F-VS2 and comparable H&A cut. If the stone happens to be 1.05 or a 1.03 F-VS1 I have never had the adjuster tell me "No," so long as you were happy and willing to accept the stone. Many times my clients want to upgrade either size or quality. In those cases we quote the insurance company the cost and the client then pays any thing over that cost.

The important thing is to make sure that your adjuster has ALL of the information needed to replace the stone in kind. (Equal in quality and value.) Your adjuster may try to send you to only "his" associated jewelers, but your local laws may allow you to require him to replace through the vendor of your choice, whom I would assume to be Jonathon. Most adjusters will not have a problem working with the jeweler of your choice, especially one like Jonathon who can guarantee that they will receive the same quality of diamond that you had originally so that you remain a satisfied camper.

As the song says "Communication is the answer to the question." The more you provide the better your chances of getting back a stone equal to or better than you lost.

Wink

 

[niceice]

Usually the insurance company is going to wait to pay the claim for a reasonable period of time to see whether a loss has actually occurred or whether the delivery of the package is simply delayed a bit. The reality being that you may or may not have actually incurred a loss and they're going to take their sweet time figuring that out, we hate to tell you this, but it can take weeks and even months for shipping claims to be sorted out which is why we ultimately feel that we bear the burden in the event that a shipping loss is incurred while we have a diamond in-transit, we're going to take "the hit" in the short term so that our client is not left holding the bag while we jump through the hoops with the insurance company... In this particular instance, the insurance covers the package and not the fact that you are being inconvenienced due to not having an engagement ring at your disposal, that is the cold hard reality and we hate to state the obvious... Unfortunately the insurance company is likely to feel that a sufficient period of time has not passed between the time you shipped the package and the time you are trying to file the claim, but keep on them because you don't want to let time slip by. We feel for you buddy, it's a real tough place to be