Watch Advice

IWC Watch Insurance: Everything You Need to Know

Dustin Lemick

Author

Dustin Lemick

Published:

October 30th, 2025

IWC Watch Insurance

IWC Watch Insurance: Why It’s So Important to Have

IWC watch insurance is an absolute must-have for any watches purchased from this historic brand. Specialized policies can protect from theft, loss, and damage while repairing or replacing your timepiece at its full value, if needed.

watch

What You Will Learn

What Makes IWC Watches Special?

IWC watches, also known as IWC Schaffhausen, are known for their reliability, innovation, and technical sophistication. The Swiss company was founded in the 1860s, and since then, it has become known for its pilot and aviation models. 

Serious horological collectors often include IWC timepieces with their other collectible brands, such as Patek Philippe, Jaeger Lecoultre, or Audemars Piguet. And any serious horological collector would likewise be wise to protect their collection with the luxury watch insurance IWC watches need, as it goes above and beyond what you get with a warranty alone.

 

watchs

The IWC Warranty and How it Differs From IWC Timepiece Insurance

Many watch owners assume that they can rely on their watch warranty if they have any issues with their timepiece, but watch warranties — even from high-end, luxury brands such as IWC — have their limitations that make them inferior to a true IWC watch protection plan.

The IWC warranty allows you to have your piece repaired in the event of watch defects that can be traced back to the materials and manufacturing. So, if the watch just randomly stops working and it’s due to any internal mechanisms, your watch is covered and IWC will repair it for free. 

However, this warranty is only valid for two years and will be void if the serial number is no longer legible. 

A typical watch warranty will also not cover routine service, maintenance, and/or cleaning. (You’ll pay for any of those items out-of-pocket, with no refund).

watch stops working due to the following reasons

Why IWC Schaffhausen Watch Insurance Is the Best Choice

It’s clear to see how a warranty can leave you and your watch open to so many daily risks.

Luckily, insurance for IWC wristwatch purchases fills in the gaps. Specialized watch insurance protection, whether for single watches or an entire collection, will provide worldwide coverage if any of the following occur:

  • Theft
  • Loss
  • Mysterious disappearance
  • Accidental damage

If you’re traveling anywhere in the world and lose your watch, you’re covered. If your watch is stolen from your home, you’re covered. If you scratch, ding, or otherwise damage your watch and it’s your fault, you’re still covered.

Better yet, when you make a claim with a provider like BriteCo, you won’t pay a deductible, and BriteCo will cover the full costs for your watch repair or replacement.

claim with a provider like BriteCo,

What About Homeowners Insurance?

You may already have a homeowners or renters insurance policy that provides some coverage for your personal items like jewelry. However, it’s worth noting that these policies will not protect the full market value of those items.

Instead, after you pay your deductible, these policies will generally only provide up to $2,000 for personal items (and there’s no guarantee you’ll get that full amount). That means if you purchased an IWC watch for $8,000 and the watch is stolen from your home, you’re still left paying another $6,000 to replace the watch.

Additionally, it’s important to consider that homeowners and renters insurance policies only apply to damage or loss that occurs while you’re at home. If you lose your watch while traveling, your policy won’t protect you. 

As well, these kinds of policies don’t cover all damage, including accidental damage; instead, coverage is mostly limited to anything related to natural disasters and similar events noted in your overall policy.

As such, when it comes to your IWC watch coverage options, the best is always going to be specialized luxury watch insurance.

How to Insure IWC Watch Purchases

If you’re thinking, “I need to insure my IWC watch now,” the process couldn’t be easier.

To get an IWC watch insurance quote with a company like BriteCo, you’ll need to fill out a short quote request form, providing the necessary information regarding your watch and its value. You may need to get an appraisal as well.

From there, you’ll receive a quote for affordable IWC watch insurance within minutes. Typically, coverage is priced at about 1–5% of your watch’s total value, per year. So, if you paid $10,000 initially for your IWC watch, you can expect to pay $100–$500 per year for full, comprehensive protection.

Typically, coverage is priced at about 1–5% of your watch’s total value

BriteCo’s policies bundle both IWC watch theft protection and IWC watch accidental damage coverage, so that you never have to worry about your watch again.

Once you decide on a policy, you can choose to pay your premium on either a month-to-month or annual basis. If you choose the latter, you’ll get a discount. If you ever need to make a claim, doing so is equally easy and only requires filling out a claim report on the BriteCo website. Once processed, BriteCo will immediately begin working to get your watch repaired or replaced.

IWC Schaffhausen Watch Insurance FAQs

What Does Watch Insurance Cost?

You can expect a watch insurance policy to cost 1–5% of the item’s total value. So if you purchased a watch for $10,000, your coverage would cost $100–$500 per year.

What Does Watch Insurance Cover?

It depends on where you purchase your coverage. If the policy is through BriteCo, just about anything that might make you lose or damage your watch is covered. The only exceptions are any loss or damage that’s intentional, as well as loss or damage related to extreme circumstances such as military action.

What Kind of Watches Does BriteCo Cover?

BriteCo is a great way to insure IWC luxury timepieces, but it also covers all sorts of luxury and high-end watches from the major brands, including new, pre-owned, antique, and vintage watches. Additionally, BriteCo covers watch collections, too, not just individual watches.

When Should You Buy Watch Insurance?

For full, complete coverage, invest in a policy as soon as you purchase your new timepiece. But rest assured that if you currently own watches that aren’t covered, you can still get them insured today.

Is Watch Insurance Worth It?

Luxury watches are a major financial investment, and it’s a good idea to protect it. But there’s little protection via warranties or homeowners/renters insurance policies. Coupled with the many risks of theft, loss, or damage, watch insurance is very much worth it.

It’s Time to Consider BriteCo for Luxury Watch Insurance

If you’re looking for the best insurance for IWC watches, you can trust BriteCo to keep your timepiece covered in the event of accidental damage, theft, loss, and mysterious disappearance, no matter where in the world it happens.

Get your quick luxury watch insurance quote from BriteCo today!

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Dustin Lemick

Author

Dustin Lemick

Dustin Lemick is the Founder and CEO of BriteCo and a third-generation jeweler with over thirteen years of retail jewelry experience. He holds a Graduate Gemologist degree from the Gemological Institute of America (GIA) and has in-depth knowledge and expertise in appraisal systems, diamond and gemstone markets, retail pricing models, insurance replacement models, and jewelry quotation pricing systems.