Make sure you have insured your engagement ring

If you are planning to buy an engagement ring this Valentine's Day, the last thing on your mind is insurance. However, before you put a dent in your savings, be sure to check that the ring is covered under your home contents insurance.

Engagement rings are an expensive purchase; Brits spend an average of £1,800 on an engagement ring so making sure you have adequate insurance cover is essential.

Mike Powell, Insight Analyst at Defaqto said: "Always check your home insurance cover as many policies have specific single item limits for valuables kept in the home. In fact, 34% of home contents policies available state that they have a valuables single item limit of £1,500 or less for items kept in the home. This means that you need to specify any ‘valuable' that is worth more than £1,500 to ensure that full cover is given".

Mr Powell added: "You should also consider the cover needed for outside of the home. Typically, most insurance providers will provide cover under ‘personal possessions' either on an unspecified or specified basis. This is usually provided as an optional extension, which will incur an additional cost."

If cover is required, you should also check whether your insurance provider has specific limits for unspecified items. For example, some state that you would not need to specify any item valued at £1,500 or less, but for items of a higher value, these would need to be specified on your policy, to ensure that full cover is given.

Mr Powell continued: "You should also check where cover is given. Generally most insurance providers cover your personal possessions anywhere in the world. There are however, some insurance providers who state that cover is only provided within the policy ‘geographical limits' and for a specific number of days anywhere in the world. For example, cover is only given for 60 days in anyone period of insurance for personal possessions taken anywhere in the world."

Quick checklist:

Does your home insurance have a single item limit?
Do you have cover for items outside the home?
Does your policy have specific limits for unspecified items?
Where are you covered?