Items Are Safe In Your Hotel Room Right? Think Again.
When you are traveling, your hotel room is meant to be your “home away from home,” and many people assume that their belongings are as safe in their hotel rooms as they would be at home. Unfortunately, this just isn’t true.
For many people, jewelry is among their most valuable possessions. Watches, rings and other precious items that you carry with you when traveling may hold precious memories for you, but they are simply attractive targets for thieves. What can you do if your jewelry goes missing from your hotel room?
Contact Authorities
- The minute you notice that your jewelry is gone, alert the hotel manager. Most hotels have tracking methods, such as cameras and electronic keys, that can tell them who entered your room at any time during your stay.
- File a report with the police in the area you are staying.
- Contact your insurance agent with the report number from the police report.
Hotel Liability Limits
How do you know if your jewelry will be covered against theft from your hotel room? You may initially think that the hotel is liable for your loss, especially if you took every precaution to keep your valuables safe. However, most hotels put a statement declaring the limitation of loss for stolen items somewhere in your room or on your receipt.
Often, you may only be eligible for a small fraction of the actual value of your stolen jewelry, due to the limited liability assumed by the hotel. If you are bringing jewelry with you, ask about the hotel’s policy on stolen items before you check in. You may be safer, and covered by a higher limit, if you check your jewelry into the main hotel safe rather than keeping it in your room.
If you do check your valuables into the hotel’s main safe, be sure to get a written receipt with the exact replacement value printed on it, to make sure you will be reimbursed that specific amount if something happens to your jewelry.
Your Home Insurance Policy
Don’t automatically assume that your jewelry will be covered under your home insurance policy when traveling, either. Most jewelry is worth more than your insurer will allow under a typical policy, so you need to know for sure whether it is protected by that policy before you ever leave home.
Consider purchasing a floater, or insurance add-on designed to add additional coverage for your high value items such as jewelry. You’ll want to have an up-to-date appraisal before you get the floater, so you can be sure that you get enough coverage to replace your jewelry if it is stolen.
Irreplaceable Items
Before traveling, you may simply want to ask yourself if it’s worth the risk of losing jewelry that has sentimental value. Just because you are reimbursed for the item doesn’t mean you can actually replace a family heirloom or other beloved item.
If you want to know more about covering your jewelry when you are traveling, contact us. We’re always happy to help with any questions about your insurance needs.
