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The following article was published in the November 2014 issue of the Australian Financial Review, authored by the highly respected journalist Jaquie Hayes.
AFR: “So where’s the catch? You seem to be covering all the bases.”
Q Report: “There is none. It’s simple, we come from a jewellery background and we understand the problems and pitfalls with the general home insurance policy. We were determined to create a product that addresses each and every issue. What you see is what you get. The bottom line is it’s because we believe in protecting the things you love.”
Featured in the Australian Financial Review, November 2014.
Original author: Jacquie Hayes.
Download the article »
Especially if it’s the second time it’s happened. And especially if you happen to be in Disneyland, as I was, when I found my precious keepsake was gone. Again.
Never mind that it hadn’t been a great choice wearing such fine stones in an environment like that in the first place. I just knew that my household insurance wasn’t going to cover the loss. Some time ago, I used to have top-of-the-line prestige insurance that covered my jewellery when I was offshore for extended periods.
On changing cities and changing circumstances, somehow I shifted down a gear on the insurance front and now I was coming up seriously short.
On suffering such sadness in the Happiest Place on Earth, I resolved I would change my ways to protect myself against future foolish acts on my part.
But jewellery insurance is a tricky business, full of pitfalls and dangers, inflated premiums and potential disappointment at claim point that convince many people, myself included, not to bother going there. There’s a sense that it’s just not worth the risk. Funny how losing a big diamond (in platinum!) can change one’s point of view.
Sadly, insurance is not simple. So when a product comes across my desk that takes all the guesswork out of a policy and gives straightforward rules of engagement, I react in one of two ways: first, with suspicion (where’s the catch, right?); then with a glimmer of hope that my problem might be solved.
So it was, this week, when details of a jewellery insurance program called the Q Report came to my attention.
It purported to offer certainty and security in areas that matter to me that stock-standard high street jewellery insurers find hard to deliver on. Jewellery is emotional, which doesn’t fit well with claims departments, whose core aim is to save money. That’s why they’ll try to replace a piece of jewellery at the lowest possible price, often through a preferred supplier.
That can be problematic for those of us who have long-standing relationships with trusted artisans and jewel specialists. I’d want my guys to get the business, especially if they designed the initial piece.
Anyway, let’s get back to this issue of trying to maintain a semblance of glamour while travelling in places other than Disneyland. It’s natural to want to have a bit of your best sparkle on board. In fact, I’ve found that getting the bling on is an almost instant cure for jet lag. It adds to the anticipation and lifts the spirit as one prepares for a fantastic night out.
Q Report co-founder and third generation jeweller Rami Baron says it covers insured items any time, anywhere in the world apart from the usual war exclusion zones.
Portability insurance offered by generalist insurers tends to confine travel to within Australia and New Zealand, and often for up to 30 days only. The sublimits they include in those policies wouldn’t have covered a single-digit percentage of my earring.
If you need to expand on these limits, you might consider high-net-worth individual policies like a Chubb Masterpiece (they underwrite the Q Report), AIG private clients or Mansions. An alternative is stand-alone jewellery cover from broker-accessed Caitlin, a subsidiary or Lloyds of London, which offers unlimited cover up to $200 million.
Be aware that its premiums will include brokerage and state charges, with the bottom line determined by how jewellery is stored and how often it’s worn.
The Q Report ensures its client can go back to their original jeweller. And it insures each piece of jewellery for its purchase price.
If you paid $70,000 for a ring, you will get $70,000 back to replace it. In fact, it will be insured for even more.
Say, for example, that in the period since the ring was bought, the Australian dollar has dropped and the price of diamonds (which are generally priced in US dollars) has soared.
Come claim time, that might mean you could no longer replace the gem for the insured sum.
“So our policy has 125 per cent cover on all pieces and, at our discretion, we will call on that extra 25 per cent to make sure we really can put the client back into the same position they were in,” Baron says.
This highlights the importance of knowing what a piece of jewellery is worth at all times, especially if there are pink diamonds involved, the prices of which are prone to wild fluctuations.
The Q Report deals with this by annually revaluing each insured piece to reflect the current market rate, using a formula that captures all the components involved in making that piece of jewellery, such as materials and labour.
Anyone buying into this jewellery cover must send original documentation such as the receipt or a recent valuation certificate to Q Report, along with various photos including one featuring the work in front of a current newspaper to prove it exists now.
The premium is 2.5 per cent of the insured value, plus a one-off fee of
$115, which covers the production of a hardcover book detailing the cover. Earring-and-necklace sets count as one item for each book, as do wedding ring combinations. Otherwise, clients must pay for a book for each piece of jewellery. In case of a claim, a flat $100 excess applies.
As for my earrings, the father of my children offered to replace them both so insurance wasn’t eventually an issue.
But I doubt I’ll be a third-time lucky. It may be time to policy-up.
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