Is it time for you to get updated appraisals? (You may have to schedule it.)
Insurance coverage for your personal belongings should be equally important to you as coverage for your residence. However, your homeowners or rental policy may not give you the appropriate funds to fairly compensate you for items which were damaged, lost, or stolen in an occurrence.
Ideally, you should have new appraisals made and on record with your insurance company at least every three years. It is important to have your valuable items reappraised every few years, as values increase over time, and you will want to make sure you are insuring your property adequately. This holds true for pearls, gems, diamonds, antique jewelry, and more. This is because the true monetary value of any given jewelry piece or item can fluctuate at any given time.
The price of gold generally goes up when the stock market goes down. And if you invest in gold and silver and store it yourself, you’ll need to protect that investment by scheduling it on your homeowner’s policy with its full current appraised value. Some standard insurance policies will only limit coverage to $200 for gold and silver bars or coins.
This should also be done for any fine art, collections (such as coins, cards, or stamps), furs, sporting or golf equipment, bikes, cameras and electronics, antiques, or musical instruments you may own.
Usually, the insurance company will add them at the current appraised value as an endorsement onto your homeowner’s policy. Sometimes if you have a very valuable item, it can be put on a “floater” policy which provides more comprehensive coverage and allows for claims of accidental loss.
So if you have a Rolodex or an heirloom Timex from your Uncle Bob, reach out to us to find out how to best protect it.
