Jewelers' block insurance
An all-risks policy covering the stock of jewelers, fine jewelers and gem dealers, in store, in safes, in transit, on consignment with other traders and at trade shows; a historic London market specialty.
A jeweler's stock concentrates considerable value in a small volume, easy to carry off and to sell. This stock is constantly moving: it goes from workshop to store, is entrusted to other traders for sale or appraisal, travels to trade shows, is shown to clients outside the shop. The so-called jewelers' block policy, a London market specialty since the nineteenth century, covers these goods on an all-risks basis, everywhere and at every stage, subject to specific exclusions and conditions. The main losses are armed robbery, burglary, fraud and deception, for example switching stones during a showing, and theft while sales representatives travel. Underwriting is highly technical: certified safe grades, connected alarm systems, limits per location, per trip and per person, requirements that goods remain under direct supervision outside the safe, conditions for trade shows. Breaching one of these conditions at the time of loss, a bag left in a car, a safe left open during the day, is the most common cause of declinature. The market is concentrated, because few underwriters master the value of stones, trade practices and the techniques of specialized thieves at the same time.
Textbook case: a diamond dealer travels to a trade show with a 3 million euro collection. While he is having lunch, his case, left under the stand table, disappears. The insurer declines cover: the policy required the goods to remain at all times under the direct supervision of a named person.
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