Leibish recently shared the story of Miriam Castellanos, who had lost her diamond ring while she was at the Costco gas station, Hawthorne. Miriam was devastated, but a good Samaritan from El Sugana spotted the shiny jewelry on the ground and reported it to the authorities. Police traced the diamond inscription number from GIA and traced it back to Miriam. She was ecstatic. So, there is no less room for miracles when your engagement ring is stolen.
All you need to do is follow the right steps when your diamond ring is stolen and it can be reclaimed easily. I myself have lost over dozens of jewelry and recovered almost 80% of it. I am not saying it’s easy, but its possible to find stolen goods, unlike lost jewelry, easily.
How can a Stolen Diamond Be Identified?
Finding your stolen engagement ring is easy if you know the specifics. More importantly, if your diamond has been appraised by GIA in the past, you have nothing to fear.
- X-Ray: When a diamond responds to X-ray it does so by using specific reflections that cannot be replicated. In short, the x-ray response of every diamond is unique.
- Laser: You can also beam a laser on the diamond to check how the diamond reacts. Akin to X-ray, laser response of a diamond is also unique, called the optical fingerprint of the diamond.
- High Magnification lens: When you use a magnification loupe of 10x, you will be able to see the inscription number. It is also archived in the GIA database, that makes it easy to look up who sent it for verification. From there, the owner of the diamond can be easily traced. You can check the diamond inscription with a loupe on the girdle of the diamond. Don’t what a girdle is? Check the anatomy of diamonds here.
Steps to Take when your Engagement ring is stolen
The engagement ring is the symbol of your marital agreement. It represents love to commitment and eternal love. Losing it can be perceived as a bad omen amongst many women, but when you think logically, everything happens for a bigger good. So, you might end up caring more for the ring once you find it again. Anyway, don’t worry. We have all gone through the misery of losing diamond rings. I have found it; so can you!
1. Umbrella Search Offline
The first option, which is traditional and not personally recommended is to go pawn shop to pawn shop sharing your diamond inscription details. This consumes time and energy without having a good success rate.
2. Umbrella search Online
Another way to find your stolen diamond ring from your home is by sharing your diamond details online. Ask your friends to share your story on Social Media and that will help prevent anyone from selling it online. You can also input your ring photos or crosscheck similar diamond ring ads auctioning on Craigslist or eBay too.
3. Call the Police
If your engagement ring was stolen than lost, the first mandatory thing to do is call the police. They will help you find the diamond by sharing the details of the diamond and ring to the entire jewelry industry. So if it turns out anywhere by a diamond ring thief, it will be spotted easily.
4. Inform the Insurer
Once you have the case details from the police, you can contact the insurer directly and process your claim for a stolen engagement ring.
Do you know what is your ring insured for? There are two types of insurance policies for diamond engagement rings- Cash Value and Replacement Price. The former calculates the depreciation of the ring and concludes a cash value for the lost diamond ring while replacement insurance provides the cost for a replacement ring exactly as the one you lost.
I recovered my lost diamond but the insurance money is already spent. What do I do?
Selling a diamond reported lost is a crime, no doubts. Let me explain a bit more.
Your diamond ring was lost and you consulted the insurer. They diligently paid you for the ring because it was a cash value policy. Sometime later, you find the original ring and now that you’ve spent the reimbursement, what are your options?
You need to send the ring to the insurer, right away. It is their property the moment they paid you. Do the same if you got a replacement ring and finally found the original.
Before you leave …
There are diamond ring finders today as agencies. Say you lost the ring on the beach, call these guys. But if your engagement ring was stolen, follow the above suggestions to the dots. You can also consult tips to properly store or insure the ring safely to prevent loss of property.
Read More Relevant Blog Posts Below
· Engagement Ring Insurance Review- How Much Should You Pay
· Tweaks to Clean and Maintain your Diamond Engagement Ring
· 10 Crucial Questions to Ask your Diamond Stone Appraiser