Insurance-Jewelers Mutual Vs. Chubb and Co.

[shazaam17]

Does anyone out there have a preference or reccommendation concerning Engagement Ring Insurance? My ring was appraised for $8900 (bought for $6000) by a company called Jewlery Judge (they are known for not inflating appraisals) so I did good....
They said Jewelers Mutual was good and had the brochures....where I live it costs $1.75 per $100 of the ring...that''s about $156 a year. Isn''t that a lot? I Have friends who pay $50 a year etc...but I don''t have homeowners or renters insurance(nor do I need it right now) so I only need an individual policy...
Thanks for your help...

 

[Binister]

Hi shazaam17,

I too am looking for engagement ring insurance and found Chubbs more than helpful. I live in the SF Bay Area and was quoted $304/year for $16,000 worth of coverage. The premium can vary by region. I opted to insure for the full appraisal cost of the ring instead of the purchased price. The best part of it is that instead of making you find a replacement ring (possibly at one of "their" jewelers) they will just cut you a check for the FULL amount of the coverage amount. There are some terms however so research is a good idea but their policy is by far the best I have seen so far. HTH.

 

[Ginaworld]

Hi Shazaam17,

As an independent insurance agent, I sell insurance for many different carriers and I really like to deal w/Chubb. I'm afraid I'm not terribly familiar Jewelers Mutual, though, so I can't speak for that company, but my experience with Chubb has always been spectacular; if I were in your situation (don't need/have homeowners/renters insurance), I'd certainly go w/Chubb. Good luck!

Gina

 

[justme]

Try this thread and/or do a search on insurance.


https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/help-from-state-farm-insurance-customers-jewelry-insurance.5198/

Justme

 

[shazaam17]

Thanks....with Jeweler's mutual I got a quote of $155/year....it doesn't include a cash payout...just a replacement...my appraiser at jewlery judge said she'd get the diamond replaced...

I called Chubb and their quote was $200 even...that includes a replacement or a cash out...so I can go get what I want....

what do you think for an appraisal of $8900...are the prices about right? Are their any otehr options I might have missed?

 

[Ginaworld]

Hi Shazaam17,

The only other option I'd recommend besides taking that Chubb policy is purchasing a renters policy & adding the ring on to that. I know you mentioned you don't need it, but if you've got an address & personal belongings, you should have some protection for it. Usually, it's less expensive to add jewelry to any homeowners/renters policy, so if you're concerned with the Chubb price, look in to that instead. Good luck.

G.

 

[Mara]

I'm going through this right now too. State Farm quoted us $220 for $16k of coverage and Chubb quoted us the same $304 that Binister got (we are in SF bayarea also). I am not sure I want to pay $300 a year for insurance though..it just seems like money out the door with little chance of recovery. The fiance says ...well why dont you just NOT lose the stuff? HA HA..yeah thanks smartie!

I like that Chubb cuts a check with no Q's asked and that their exceptions to the policy (war, nuclear attack, intentional harm, and one more that I can't remember) are very simple. SF would replace my stone, but that means that I get what they want me to have and that does not work for me. If you did alot of work to find your stone, chances are you don't want it replaced after the trauma of losing it or having it stolen by someone who doesn't have a connection to the choice like you do.

We may just get the ring insured and not the earrings, though of course if I do that OF COURSE I will lose one or both..its like Murphys Law of Not Getting Jewelry Insurance.

 

[greta2002]

Hi Gina,

Being an independent insurance agent, I am hoping that you would know the answer to the following question. We insured our with Farmer's Insurance as a floater to our home owner's policy. We were told that the ring could only be insured for the full amount indicated on the independent appraisal, but that in case of damage/loss/theft/ etc. (excluding intentional acts or acts of war) we would be reimbursed the total amount for which the ring was insured. We were sent all of the new paperwprk for the floater, but I could not find anything about how reimbursement is allocated. After reading all of the posts about insurance companies trying to "replace" a ring with something "similar" which will likely be a ring of lesser quality, I am a bit worried about my policy. Do you know anything about Farmer's Insurance or whether what they told me is accurate? I wish I had done more research ahead of time, I just thought it would be easy to add it to an existing policy. Any comments would be appreciated!

 

[Ginaworld]

Hi Mara,

I'm in complete agreement with you on the replacement issue; once I finally find this "perfect" stone I'm exhaustively searching for, I don't want to have to find it again! So if I had to argue w/an insurance company & research the issue all over again, on top of the trauma of losing my diamond, I probably wouldn't be the most even-tempered individual. And as an insurance agent, I can say that yes, it's very possible that you'll have to argue w/an insurance company to get what you want, however that has definitely NOT been my experience with Chubb. They are a good company and you certainly get what you pay for w/them; they're known as the "Mercedes" of insurance companies.

On another note, I recently decided to lower the amount of coverage I had on my diamond tennis bracelet, and you guessed it, lost the thing last week. Mara, please schedule your earrings!

G.

 

[Ginaworld]

Hi Greta2002,

Oops, sorry I didn't reply sooner as I didn't notice the questions you asked.

I don't sell Farmer's so I can't speak for their claims procedure, but I can tell you this from experience with other companies: Put your agent to work for you and ask him/her to get you a specifically worded copy of the contract regarding the replacement procedure or how they'll allocate the funds as you mentioned. Insurance is all about a contract and if you enter in to a contract, they should be able to provide you with all the wording.

For most insurance companies, it's standard procedure to require that any jewelry you insure is based on an appraised amount (which is so often higher than you paid for it) and will (usually) only replace based on what their replacement jeweler can do. If you've got a good company whose replacement jeweler can't replace it for what you scheduled it for, they'll simply cut you a check for that amount (that's what my carrier did on my lost tennis bracelet last week).

I'm a firm believer in scheduling jewelry on your homeowners policy (adding a floater, etc.), and I don't think you've made a mistake by doing so. Just make sure you get a copy in writing of how they'll replace a lost, damaged, stolen, etc., piece. And if you're not comfortable with that replacement procedure, you can always cancel the coverage at any time and you shouldn't be charged for any coverage you don't use (here in Michigan, standard insurance co's must refund any unused premium).

At the risk of sounding like a Chubb cheerleader, I'll again mention that their policy, while more expensive, is a fabulous contract. It's comforting that when you sell their product, you don't have to worry about using words that have absolute meanings!

I hope I've answered your questions in all that rambling, if not, let me know.

G.