While some spouses might disagree, a high-dollar addition to your jewelry box is always a worthy investment. And while years of practicing this line may have convinced spouses, it’s important we learn to treat our baubles as such. To understand how to be proper stewards of our jewelry — beyond regular wear — we chatted with Tierney Aldridge, a talented Personal Insurance Advisor for Volume 2’s Denver Agency.
Denver Agency, A Gallagher Company, specializes in high-net-worth personal insurance, offering a unique combination of experience, creativity, and empathy for a tailored risk management solution to families nationwide. And heirloom-quality jewelry pieces — whether they come in the form of engagement rings or gala-ready gemstones — fall under their expertise. Here, Tierney shares her wheelhouse.
Photo by Carl Schultz.
Keep it current. Insurance experts recommend you update jewelry appraisals every five years. This, Tierney explains, will protect against market fluctuations, allowing you to increase coverage for pieces that have appreciated. To help clients stay current, Denver Agency offers a rolodex of top-tier appraisers, many of whom provide their services in the comfort of your home and abide by the utmost confidentiality.
Know your options. When it comes to insuring jewelry -- or any high-value item -- families have options. These options, however, are dictated largely by the value of the insured items. For families insuring items valued at less than $25,000, a blanket limit policy suffices. As there is often a per-item limit noted on such policies, Tierney encourages families seeking to ensure more than $25,000 to investigate insuring items on a "schedule." This, Tierney explains, is when valuables are listed individually on your policy. For families who find this option daunting, Tierney recommends enlisting an appraiser equipped to help you create an inventory of your valuables — a meaningful resource for family estate planning.
Ensure wiggle room. Within the private client insurance industry, many insurance companies provide a little wiggle room, offering 150% of the replacement cost for items listed on a schedule. Tierney recommends insuring up to the appraised value of the item and taking heart that there is a little relief should the piece appreciate dramatically. Another reason to update appraisals consistently!
To request information on appraising and adequately insuring your valuables, reach out to Tierney Aldridge and Denver Agency here. And to learn more about this scouted insurance agency, read their member spotlight here.