The Villena Treasure Has Been Stolen: Gold (Yours Too) Is Back in the Crosshairs

Do you keep jewellery at home and aren't sure whether it's properly declared on your insurance policy?

You've probably heard the news: at the end of August, the Villena Treasure was stolen — nearly ten kilograms of gold and silver with more than 3,000 years of history. Just one month earlier, four masked raiders made off with over 200 gold coins from a museum in Albacete. In under two minutes.

At Segurmar, an insurance brokerage in Marbella, this got us thinking about something much closer to home. Gold is at a historic high: in 2026 it has surpassed €4,700 per ounce. And when gold is worth that much, it attracts the attention of those who are most unwelcome.

Your grandmother's ring has a value worth protecting too

You don't need to be guarding an ancient treasure for this to affect you. Your grandmother's ring, your mother's wedding earrings, that special watch, your modest jewellery collection… These are objects with two kinds of value: financial, which can be calculated, and sentimental, which is priceless.

No insurance policy can recover the sentimental value. But the financial value is another matter. And it's well worth protecting properly.

What does your home insurance actually cover when it comes to jewellery?

Most home insurance policies include a limit for jewellery and valuables. This is typically around 10% of the contents — that is, everything inside your home: furniture, clothing, appliances and personal belongings — or with caps of between €3,000 and €6,000.

If your pieces are worth more than that limit, you would have to cover the difference yourself. And take note: most policies only cover theft within the home. If you lose something outside or it is snatched from you in the street, many policies will not respond.

Want to know exactly what yours covers? Our guide on what a home insurance policy covers explains everything plainly and simply.

The most common mistake: not having your jewellery declared

The issue isn't the cost of insuring a piece of jewellery — it's having it properly declared in the first place. If you suffer a claim — a burglary, a fire, a flood — and that item isn't documented in your policy, the insurer's loss adjuster has no basis on which to compensate you for it. As far as the insurance is concerned, it simply doesn't exist.

The first step is straightforward: keep receipts, take detailed photographs of your jewellery and, for particularly valuable pieces, ask a jeweller for a professional valuation. With that documentation, you can declare them correctly on your policy. This way, the sum insured — the maximum amount the insurer would pay out — accurately reflects what you actually own.

What if your jewellery is worth more than your home insurance covers?

For especially valuable pieces, there is a solution: declaring them as "artistic or high-value objects" or taking out specific cover that protects them both inside and outside the home, even when you travel. The additional benefit is that this type of cover updates the value over time — something particularly important when the price of gold keeps on rising.

On the Costa del Sol, where many families keep inherited jewellery or pieces acquired over the years, this is more common than it might seem. So too are residential burglaries, particularly during the holiday season. If you'd like to know more about that specific risk, we cover everything in this article on holiday burglaries and what your home insurance covers.

Where to start

Review your current policy. Check whether it includes a limit for jewellery and valuables. Verify whether that limit is sufficient for what you have at home. And if you have any doubts, we're here to help you review it with no obligation whatsoever.

Through our home insurance service, we work with leading insurers to tailor cover to what you actually own — not a standard figure that may fall well short.