With gold prices increasing by 50% in the last 12 months*, many items of jewellery across homes in the UK could be significantly underinsured.
If you have gold jewellery at home, it could be wise to pay to get it valued as it may be worth considerably more than when you last had someone put a price on it.
Your insurance company may have a limit on the amount they’ll pay out for any single item of jewellery as part of your contents insurance policy. For example, a gold ring you last had valued in the 1980’s could have rocketed in value from hundreds of pounds to thousands in today’s market.
The only way to get adequate insurance cover is to have your gold items valued by a professional, otherwise you’re either relying on an out of date valuation or complete guess work for your contents insurance.
Here are some things to think about when it comes to contents insurance and the rising value of gold jewellery.
- High gold prices are attractive for thieves
With the rise in gold prices being so well known, thieves are specifically targeting jewellery in people’s homes. If you’ve got gold items you haven’t had valued for some time, your contents insurance provider will only be able to pay out on the last valuation made, not current market value. This could potentially cost you hundreds or even thousands of pounds.
- You may want to sell the jewellery if it’s become more valuable
Another good reason to get regular valuations done on items of jewellery is that they may be so valuable you’ll want to sell them on. You might think your old gold bracelets lying in the drawer aren’t worth much, but getting them valued could result in a very pleasant surprise.
- You may not be able to fund a replacement
If there’s a very large difference between the last valuation you had done and the current market value of your jewellery, it could leave you out of pocket.
For example, if some items are stolen, your contents insurance policy might only pay a fraction of their current value. This will leave you having to fund the difference yourself if you want to replace the stolen items.
It’s advisable to get your jewellery regularly valued by an expert as the price of precious metals can fluctuate a great deal, as we’ve seen recently with gold, but also silver too.
*source: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-14766383
Author Bio: The Co-operative Insurance can save you money on your contents insurance, especially when you combine your policy with buildings insurance cover.