How to Document Jewellery, Watches, and Collections
Updated August 1, 2026
To document valuables, record each piece individually with clear photographs from several angles, any hallmarks or serial numbers, the purchase or appraisal value, and any certificates or receipts you hold. This matters more than for ordinary belongings because standard contents policies usually apply a sub-limit to categories like jewellery — often a few thousand in total regardless of what you own — so proving individual value is what makes scheduling them separately possible.
There is a gap in most home insurance policies that very few people know about until they need to claim. Your contents cover might run to tens of thousands, but buried in the small print is a sub-limit: a cap on how much the policy pays for jewellery, or watches, or collectibles, no matter how much you actually own. Documenting valuables properly is what lets you close that gap — and it is a different job from cataloguing the rest of the house.
The sub-limit problem
A typical contents policy pays out on your possessions up to a total limit — but applies much lower caps to specific categories. Jewellery is the classic example, often capped in the low thousands for everything you own combined, with a separate and smaller cap on any single item. Someone with a modest but real jewellery collection can be badly underinsured without ever knowing it. Cash, collections, and sometimes bicycles and fine art have their own limits too.
What closing the gap looks like
The usual fix is to schedule high-value items — listing them individually on the policy so they are covered for their own agreed value rather than lumped under the category cap. Insurers will generally want evidence: a description, photographs, and a valuation or receipt. That is the paperwork you cannot produce after a loss, which is why this is worth doing while everything is still in the drawer.
How to photograph a valuable item
- Several angles, in good light, against a plain background
- A close-up of any hallmark, engraving, maker's mark, or serial number
- Something for scale in at least one shot — a ruler or a coin
- Any distinguishing feature: a repair, an inclusion, a wear mark
- The certificate, receipt, or valuation photographed alongside the item
Record the details that identify it
For an ordinary item, a name and a value are enough. For a valuable one, you want what would let someone identify that exact piece: the maker and model, serial or reference numbers, metal and stone details for jewellery, dimensions, and provenance if you have any. If a stolen watch ever surfaces, the serial number is what connects it back to you.
Valuations go out of date
This is the part people miss. A valuation from a decade ago may bear no relationship to what a piece is worth today, and insurers may settle against an outdated figure. Gold prices move, collectible markets move, and a watch bought as an ordinary purchase can quietly appreciate. Reviewing valuations every few years — and updating your records when you do — keeps the cover honest.
Keep the evidence somewhere else
Certificates in the same drawer as the jewellery are not evidence of anything after a burglary or a fire. Photograph or scan every certificate, receipt, and valuation, and keep those copies somewhere that is not the house. This is the single cheapest thing on this list and the one most likely to matter.
Doing it with Stowly
Stowly lets you record each piece individually with photographs, serial numbers, and values, kept alongside the rest of your inventory rather than in a separate document you will lose. Every item takes photos on the free plan, and unlimited items are free. If you want the certificates and valuations attached to the item itself — and an insurance-ready PDF to send your insurer or broker when you schedule something — that comes with Plus, along with more photos per item.
Frequently asked questions
What is a sub-limit? A cap your policy applies to a specific category, such as jewellery, separate from and lower than your overall contents limit. Check your policy schedule — the figure is often much lower than people expect.
Do I need a professional valuation? For anything significant, usually yes — insurers generally want independent evidence of value for scheduled items, and your own estimate carries little weight at claim time.
How often should valuations be updated? Every few years for most things, and sooner in categories where prices have moved sharply. An outdated valuation can leave you settling for far less than the item is worth.