Rolex · valuation under Article 7:960 DCC · wearing and safe clause
Insuring a Rolex
With Rolex the problem is not the movement but the saleability: a watch everyone recognises and that can be sold anywhere straight away is stolen differently and valued differently.
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In brief
Rolex is the make that appears most often on a valuables insurance, and there is one reason for that: the second-hand market is deep and liquid. A stolen example is sold on within a day, including abroad. So the risk here is not falling down the stairs but targeted theft, in the street, at a pavement cafe or on arriving home. Home contents insurance barely covers that away from the home, and covers loss nowhere.
The second peculiarity is how the value moves. With sought-after references the market value moves out of step with the original purchase price, and a valuation report a few years old then no longer matches what replacement costs. So have a new valuation carried out when the valuation period ends and have the report drawn up as intended in Article 7:960 of the Dutch Civil Code; only then is the amount fixed for the term of the policy.
The third point is identification. A Rolex can be traced unambiguously by its reference and serial number, which helps with the police report, with registration in stolen-property registers and with showing that the watch existed. Record those numbers together with the purchase invoice, the warranty card and photographs of the case, bracelet and clasp, and keep that file away from the home.
The structure of the cover in three parts, with an overview per situation below.
The essentials
Comprehensive worldwide
Loss, theft and damage, wherever you are.
Loss and disappearance
Theft from the wrist
Damage from falls and knocks
The basis of value
Valuation
A recognised valuer records the value, usually for three to five years.
Article 7:960 of the Dutch Civil Code
No market value
Revaluation on expiry
Where things go wrong
Clauses
Provisions that determine when you are covered.
Wearing and safe clause
Alarm with a monitoring centre
Reporting a theft to the police
What is covered
Situation
Valuables
Home contents
A Rolex lost on holiday
Yes
No
Stolen from the wrist in the street
Yes
No
Theft at home during a burglary
Yes
Sometimes
Damage through your own doing
Yes
No
Not in the safe when it should have been
No
No
Wear and loss of value
No
No
This overview is general in nature and is not personal advice. What is actually covered, including exclusions, limits and the excess, is set out in the policy conditions and the insurance card (verzekeringskaart) of the insurer; you receive both before you take out cover. Taking out cover without advice? Then read what execution only means for you.
Where things go wrong in practice
Four points that make the difference between a policy that pays out and one that does not.
Recognisability makes you a target, not your carelessness
Anyone wearing a Rolex is wearing a make that can be recognised from a distance. Insurers know that and translate it into wearing and safe clauses: above a certain amount the watch is in the safe when you are not wearing it, sometimes with an alarm connected to a monitoring centre. That is not small print but the heart of the theft cover, and it is the most common reason why a claim is refused.
An out-of-date valuation costs you the difference
A valuation within the meaning of Article 7:960 of the Dutch Civil Code binds the insurer to the amount established for as long as the report is valid. If it expires and the loss happens after that, you fall back on market value and the argument becomes what the watch is worth now. With a make whose market value moves, having a new valuation carried out in time is the difference between replacing and paying in.
The serial number and the file determine whether you can claim anything
After a loss or theft the first question is which watch it was exactly and what it was worth. Without an invoice, warranty card and serial number that becomes a reconstruction after the event. Photograph the case, dial, bracelet and clasp and keep everything digitally away from the home, so that it does not disappear along with the watch after a burglary or fire. Report theft to the police at once; that report is a condition under Article 7:941 of the Dutch Civil Code.
What is not covered
A fall in the value of the reference is not damage and is paid nowhere. Wear of the bracelet, clasp and glass goes with use. Theft while the watch was outside the safe when the clause required it to be inside is excluded. And a repair outside the authorised network with non-original parts depresses the valuation amount. The difference that creates is not an insured loss but your own choice.
The wearing and safe clause is binding
Rolex is the make most often stolen from the wrist; insurers work here with wearing and safe clauses. Above a certain amount it almost always applies that the watch is in the safe when you are not wearing it, sometimes with a requirement for an alarm connected to a monitoring centre. After a theft that is the first thing you will be asked about, and it is the most common reason for refusal.
Document it at purchase
Servicing by an authorised service centre maintains the value. A non-original repair depresses the valuation amount. Also keep the invoice, the box, the papers and the serial number, and photograph everything. After a loss the first question is whether the watch existed and what it was worth; keep that file digitally and not only at home.
What does your premium depend on?
Agreed value. The main basis of calculation. With this make that value moves faster than with most others.
Reference and version. Steel sports models and precious metal versions are assessed differently for their attractiveness to thieves.
How often it is worn. Daily wear in town or while travelling weighs more heavily than a watch that mainly stays at home.
Security at home. Safe grade, burglary protection and an alarm connected to a monitoring centre determine whether the safe clause is workable.
Area of cover. The Netherlands, Europe or worldwide; outside Europe theft figures and the prospect of recovery weigh more heavily.
Excess. A higher excess per event brings the premium down but increases your share of a loss.
Insurers weigh these details differently. That is where your saving is.
How we arrange it
You request a quoteWe take stock of your situation, your risk and your wishes.
We compareseveral insurers, on premium as well as conditions.
You receive a proposalWith an explanation of the differences and the exclusions.
We arrange the switchIncluding cancellation, so there is no gap in cover.
Customers rate our service on four aspects: personal service, service delivery, availability and the outcome. The reviews are collected and published by NH1816 and come from customers who have actually taken out a policy with Finass Advies B.V. or reported a claim.
Is my Rolex not already covered on my home contents insurance?
At home often up to a low sub-limit for jewellery and watches, away from home almost never, and loss is not covered anywhere. With this make it is precisely away from the home that the loss arises. A valuables policy is comprehensive, applies worldwide and covers loss and unexplained disappearance as well; that last point is the decisive difference between the two policies.
How often do I need a new valuation?
A valuation report is usually valid for three to five years. With Rolex that period is also relevant in practice, because the market value of sought-after references can shift within it. Have the report renewed before the expiry date: if the loss happens after it expires, you fall back on market value and lose the protection of Article 7:960 of the Dutch Civil Code.
What if the watch is snatched from my wrist?
That is theft with violence and is in principle covered on a valuables policy, provided you were wearing the watch as the policy allows. Report it to the police at once and notify the insurer as soon as possible; Article 7:941 of the Dutch Civil Code requires immediate notification. Pass on the serial number, so that the watch can be entered in the stolen-property registers.
May I have the watch serviced wherever I like?
You may, but it has consequences. Servicing by an authorised service centre with original parts maintains the valuation amount; replaced dials, aftermarket parts or an over-polished case depress that value. It becomes visible at a later revaluation, and the difference in value that this creates is not an insured loss.
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Within Art on home contents or valuables insurance
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