Inherited ring - mindblowing insurance valuation - wtf do I do?

[BitShellshocked]

Have namechanged for this and it's not a stealth boast. My mind is a bit scrambled and I'd appreciate the thoughts of the MN hivemind.

I was recently given a few bits of jewellery that had belonged to my grandmother. All v. nice pieces but as far as we knew worth maybe a couple of thousand altogether, max. Anyway, our house insurance is due for renewal so I took them to a local jewellers to get an up-to-date valuation, more out of curiosity than anything else.

3 of the 4 pieces come to around 8k altogether. Lovely surprise! The 4th has had an insurance valuation of 50 fucking K. My mind is completely blown by this and I'm honestly not sure what to do for the best. I had no idea.

The jeweller says that the insurance premiums are likely to be significant, possibly too much for me to afford easily! That amount of money would make a big difference to us if I sold - could give ds a big lump sum towards a deposit or pay off a good chunk of our mortgage. We've talked a lot recently about financial planning for retirement etc and this would really help.

My gut says I don't want to sell it, but am I being completely ridiculous if otherwise it's just going to sit in a safe, locked away? WWYD?

The best way to decide would be to take it to 3 jewellers and ask them what they’d pay for it.

I’m scraping by and I have an inherited 18th century antique that is so so so beautiful and I could never afford to replace it. I could really use the money from the sale of it to do some work on the house but instead I’m gritting my teeth and saving up slowly as once it’s gone, it’s gone. (And I might need to flog it when I’m 90 and can’t see it or earn or afford anything).

Not many camper van owners on here, I see 😁
You make priceless memories on every trip.

It’s not a capital gain; it’s inheritance.

not sure if its the same now but rule of thumb used to be insurance value is twice shop retail value, and scrap value is less.

Be aware that the insurance valuation could be considerably less than the price a jeweller would pay, you could look at auction but it will be around 20% fee.
Be very nice to have the extra cash.

I paid CGT after the sale of an item I inherited. It was technically a “chattel”.

The sale value of the item was much higher than the valuation given at probate.

I’d sell it without hesitation, but I’m not the least bit sentimental.

I would definitely sell it but then I'm not sentimental and not into expensive items. I do wonder how difficult it would be to sell though, is there much of a market out there for this kind of thing?

I'd sell and get the campervan! I'd much rather a descendant used my assets to have great family time rather than leave them in a drawer.

Men like the idea of campervans. The romance of the road and all that. In my experience, women prefer a world where you don't have to find a place to pump out sewage tanks every few days. I also prefer to shower without having to walk half a km across a site, and back afterwards. That probably categorises me as spoiled and entitled, or just lazy.

I’m a jewellery lover so am curious - what is it? A diamond ring? 💍

I think I would keep it but not tell anyone about the value of it you won't get anywhere near the price it is valued at. The insurance will be high if you do keep it though it must be lovely especially at that price.

I would sell the ring, I'm sure your Gran would not have minded.

I think I've got the point now about the sale value bring much lower than the insurance value now, people 😂

I'm not going to be posting a photo. It's still at the jewellers anyway. But this is MN, after all, and I can do without the thread filling up with posters telling me my grandmother's ring looks like something that fell out of a cracker and they wouldn't give me a fiver for it!

It's a 3 carat brilliant-cut diamond solitaire in a platinum setting. Apparently, it's a very good quality stone hence the 'value'. That's all I know - I genuinely believed it was costume jewellery beforehand so I probably don't deserve to wear it anyway 😂

I love my jewellery but I’d want my future grandchild/whoever gets it to either love wearing it or to sell it and put the money to use, whether it was to buy something they’d love and pass on or help with mortgage, big holiday etc. I’m sure your grandma would have felt the same.

I recently got some inheritance money from my grandma and I’ve bought a watch with it. I think of her everytime I look at it. You could name your campervan after your grandma 😂

What you actually get for it will be a lot less than the insurance valuation. I never sell stuff. You will get nothing like that amount.

This is what I'd do:

1. have a good photo taken of yourself wearing the ring.
2. Then sell it and buy something YOU want as a reminder of your grandma
3. The spend the rest on something for your family

You could consider buying a decent safe to keep it in for a while, and revisit selling it in the future. That should help with the insurance premiums (you could even ask your insurer's advice re what kind of safe to get).

It’s 3 carat natural diamond and good quality!!! The jewellers having you on there. The price for a loose diamond is c. £150k!!!

That would be freaking me out to leave that with the jeweller 😱😱😱

No such thing as a good photo of me @Jaxhog!

Unless there’s a drip feed that that this was your Grandmother’s favourite ring that she never took it off, and that she practically raised you and told you on her death bed she wanted you to wear the ring always… I can’t believe this is a dilemma 🤷‍♀️

Keep something cheap but meaningful to remember Gran by and sell the ring/s! Surely your Gran would rather you were closer to owning your own home outright or that her Great- Grandson had a step on the property ladder? As long as no- one fritters the money away on things that won’t accumulate similar value (like on a camper van or whatever), then a steady roof over your head is one of the best gifts parents or grandparents can give imo,- lucky you!

Less than that now.
My engagement ring is insured for about £8K. £2k resale value.

I was told that if you sell to a jeweller you'll get about 1/4 - 1/3 of the insurance cost.

I would definitely sell it but I would keep the money rather than give it to my child. He will inherit from you. If you still have a mortgage but are planning for retirement then you need every penny you can get.

I'd keep it especially if you have a single DD or DGD you could leave it too. Harder if you have 2 or more DD's. I love nice jewellery and diamond solitaires set in platinum are my favourite. I got one for my engagement ring but 1 CT not 3 CT like yours. I am very envious of you OP. Enjoy wearing it.

Can you have a replica made? Worth asking.