Getting Engaged? Insure That Ring!

You’re getting engaged. Congrats!

This is a very exciting time in your life. Shopping for a ring. Setting up the perfect proposal that you’ll remember years later. Popping the big question. Amidst all this excitement, it’s easy to forget that you just bought a piece of jewellery that could be worth $3,000, $10,000, or even more.

Is Your Ring Covered Under Home Insurance?

The short answer is yes, but home insurance contents coverage usually has sub-limits of $1,000 or $2,000 for items like jewellery, cash, collectibles and fine art. That means that if you have a break-in, and they steal two paintings worth $25,000 each, a comic book collection worth $40,000, and a $12,000 engagement ring, the most you can claim for all of it combined is $1,000 or $2,000, as per the limit in your policy.

How Do I Protect the Full Value of My Engagement Ring?

Your home insurance policy has sub-limits for certain high-value items. If you want to insure something like an engagement ring for its full value, you need to add specific coverage for that item in the policy. In insurance speak, we call this “scheduling” an item. It will cost a little more, but for any item worth more than a couple thousand dollars, it’s well worth it.

In order to fully insure your ring, you need to do a few things first:

• Have the ring appraised – Some jewellers offer a free appraisal. If not, it shouldn’t cost more than $200. It’s well worth it, and your insurer won’t schedule the ring without an appraisal from a certified gemologist. The appraisal value will likely be quite a bit higher than what you paid. That’s normal.
• Give the ring – If the giver and the receiver live together, it’s easy enough to schedule the ring under your joint home, condo or tenants policy. If you still live apart, for maximum protection, the ring should be insured under the policy where it resides. So if you buy a ring to give to your beloved, but it will be in your apartment for a month first, you really should schedule it under your policy, then remove it and schedule it under his/her policy once they have the ring.
• Have a home, condo or tenants policy – The easiest and cheapest way to insure your ring is as part of your existing tenants, home or condo policy. There are specialty insurers that will sell you standalone insurance for your jewellery, but that will cost you more.

When Should I Buy Insurance for My Engagement Ring?

The fact is that just like a car, you really want insurance the second you take possession of such a valuable item. If you have home insurance already, then most jewellers will allow you to get your ring appraised before you actually pick it up. If that’s the case, then as soon as you have the appraisal, you can call your insurance broker or insurer to schedule the ring on your policy, and you can pick it up, safe in the knowledge that you are covered from the start.

When you give the ring, make sure to let your broker know that the ring is now someone else’s property. If you live together, that’s all you have to do. If you don’t, then the ring will have to be scheduled under his/her policy right away.

How Much is this Gonna Cost Me?

When it comes to home insurance, there are myriad factors that are considered in determining your premium. To give you a rough idea, depending on where you live, your claims history and a bunch of other factors, you could potentially get a $5,000 engagement ring scheduled on your policy for as little as $80-$100 a year in additional premium. Give us a call if you have any questions, and one of our experienced home insurance experts will be happy to get you quotes on your ring or any other valuables you might have.

So We Hear You’re Getting Married…

Forgive us for making assumptions, but most people who get engaged also end up getting married somewhere down the line. Did you know that we also sell wedding insurance? Well now you do.

Your wedding is one of the most important days of your life, and in many cases, also one of the costliest. When you consider the cost of banquet halls, dresses, tuxes, food, flowers, DJs, photographers and everything else that goes into your big day, you want the peace of mind of knowing that it won’t all go to waste if your date has to be cancelled or postponed. Wedding insurance exists for this purpose, and premiums can start as low as $125.

…but let’s wait and see if he/she says yes first.

Thanks to Mitchell & Whale Insurance Broker and Account Manager Shane Rosenberg for his contribution to this article!

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Want to add to this story? Let us know in comments below! Mitchell & Whale is a fast-growing insurance brokerage in Ontario, striving to make insurance _not suck_ one customer at a time. Give us a call today to discuss any of your insurance needs at 1.800.731.2228.

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