How to Keep Jewelry Safe at Home & on Vacation
It’s that time of year in Gilbert where temperatures are staying above 100 and everyone is trying to get out of town! So whether you’re taking a quick trip or traveling for a few weeks, be sure to protect your valuable jewelry from theft while you are away. Hopefully no one is put in this position but jewelry is one of the top three items intruders look for during a break-in so here are some tips to keep your precious jewelry safe and sound.
Make Jewelry Difficult to Find in Your Home
According to law enforcement, summer has a higher rates of break-ins due to people vacationing. Unfortunately, the most reported item stolen is jewelry because it holds so much value and where do you think thieves look to find your jewelry? Over 95 percent of jewelry is reported taken from the bedroom! So first and foremost, you may want to rethink where you store your precious gems. Also, if you are out of town, do not let your house look empty and please don’t broadcast to the world that you’re leaving for your vacation on Facebook or other social media. It’s helpful to have a trusted neighbor or friend check on your home to pick up mail, newspapers, etc. and turn lights on and off. Now let’s get back to storing your jewelry safely and not in the bedroom. It may not be super convenient to keep your treasured gems in a different room but better to have them safely out of the way than not have them at all, right? If you have an actual safe that is bolted to the floor then of course, put your jewels inside. Otherwise, if you don’t want to spend the money on a safe or your jewelry collection isn’t extremely extensive, there are alternate options for safe keeping. Other places you could store valuable gems would be in a jewelry box in the kitchen cupboards, the laundry room or if you have little children, out of reach in their closets! A thief is looking to get in and out as quickly as possible with as much value as they can find so they usually don’t spend much time looking in those rooms. Another tip is to have a ‘decoy’ jewelry box in your bedroom with costume jewelry or pieces that you could live without if a robbery did occur. Please be sure that wherever you craftily decide to hide your jewelry that your necklaces and rings are stored properly to avoid scratches or tarnishing. Again, we sincerely hope you are never in this situation but we just want you to prepare as best you can to avoid losing sentimental and valuable jewelry.
Is Fine Jewelry Covered in Your Insurance Policy?
Being prepared for possible jewelry theft includes checking with your homeowner’s insurance to see what is covered in case an event does occur. Also, modifying your coverage or getting travel insurance if you plan to take valuable jewelry with you is an important step to take before leaving for vacation. A simple step you can take in the meantime is to photograph all of your fine jewelry and save the photos online so that you have documentation of all your jewelry pieces. This way if jewelry is lost or stolen, it will greatly help police as they try to locate your jewelry.
Traveling With Valuable Jewelry
If you can avoid traveling with fine jewelry, we recommend it! However, we understand there are special occasions that you want to wear your precious gems and especially honeymoons that you want to show off your beautiful diamond ring. So if you do travel with valuable jewelry here are some things to keep in mind. Keep it organized and all together! The best way to lose a piece of jewelry is to have it scattered about in your bag or in the hotel room at your destination. There are travel jewelry rolls that are very convenient to pack your jewelry in or a simple, more disguised way of organizing rings and earrings is by putting them in a plastic pill box. Never keep expensive jewelry in checked luggage, put it in your carry-on bag that goes with you on the plane because you never know what might happen if your bag is inspected or if your luggage is lost. Once you arrive at your hotel be sure to keep all of your jewelry together and check to see what type of secure storage they have. Either put it all in the in-room safe or if there isn’t one, in the security box at the front desk. This will help prevent loss or theft of your precious jewelry and an overall better vacation for the peace of mind that your valuables are safe.
We sincerely hope no one suffers the loss of their fine jewelry and by following some of these planning tips that you might be able to avoid jewelry theft at home and abroad. Jewelry can be so much more than precious gemstones because of the memories and family ties that are associated with them. It can be crushing if they are taken so please let us know if you have any questions or want to share a helpful jewelry travel tip on our Facebook page.
