Contents Claims Solved: The Case of the Swiss Watch

We have all heard the old adage “Time is money.” For this Contents Claims Solved, we may need to change that adage to “For some people, it takes a whole lot of money to keep time.”

A leading insurer consulted contents claims specialists on a claim regarding a very rare watch made by a renowned Swiss watchmaker. The carrier wrote an agreed value policy for $611,000 with a provision that it would cover any appreciation in value beyond the agreed amount if market conditions caused an increase in value. The watch was involved in a loss and the insured’s jeweler located a duplicate of the watch that had been pre-owned with a price of $750,000. The carrier needed to know if the $750,000 claim was reasonable and accurate.