Jewelry Insurance & Appraisers in Victoria BC, Canada

[VictoriaBC&AD]

I just moved to Victoria, BC and I am looking into insuring my jewelry through Chubb. I have spoken to an agent of Chubb and I am happy to go ahead with it. The only problem is finding an appraiser. I was told that Chubb doesn't have a recommended appraiser here in Victoria, only in Vancouver. The agent says that I could find my own appraiser, any appraiser I am comfortable with but I've also read horror stories where that could be a problem in case I make a claim. It can be denied on grounds that the appraiser was not one recognized by the insurance company. Also, I would like the appraiser to work with my jewelry while I am present, I wouldn't like to leave it there which seems to be the common practice here in Victoria.
Has anyone had a similar experience? I would appreciate any recommendations or experiences you'd like to share about insurance and appraiser issues here in Victoria or in BC, Canada or anywhere else! Every bit of info will help me at this point, thanks!

 

[pixley]

Hi there,
ELV (Ernie Vaio) Jewelery Appraisal Labs does appraisals throughout Victoria and he works for many of the local jewellers who have him appraise stones and settings for them. My ring was made at Ian MacDonald Jewellery on View St., and the stone was appraised by ELV before setting and afterwards.

I'm not sure whether ELV is set up to let you be there during the appraisal process at his office, but you can call and see if that's possible. Van Isle Jewellers on Blanshard used to bring him in to do appraisal days once a month, so you can call them to see when his next appraisal day might be. To get the most out of your appraisal process, you may want to read Neil's post: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/getting-the-most-out-of-your-jewelry-appraisal.19367/.

Oops - forgot to mention. I love working with the guys at MacDonald Jewellery, who liaised with ELV on my behalf, but I've also spoken to Ernie over the phone and in person and have found him to be very personable and impartial. When I dealt with him a few years back, he was an independent appraiser - I don't know if that's changed since, but I prefer that appraisers be independent.

 

[VictoriaBC&AD]

Hi pixley,
Thank you for the great information. I will call ELV on Monday and go ahead with it if all is well.
Have a nice weekend!