#TrustedTransparency
It’s not just what we do. It’s who we are.

Diamond engagement ring set insured by BriteCo Jewelry Insurance
As Seen In…
brides
the-knot
forbes
the-wall-street-journal-united-states-business-company
yahoo

Hello and welcome to BriteCo’s truth in transparency.
We are here to help you understand what BriteCo is all about, as a company and as a culture.

Dustin Lemick

FROM OUR CEO

My name is Dustin and I’m one of the founders and the CEO of BriteCo.

If you’ve seen me on forums or in Facebook groups I am the consumer-facing image of the company, but I have an immense amount of help and talent with me.

There are four founders on our team. We are all deeply committed to the BriteCo business and culture.

Conor is our insurance wizard and fully credentialed actuary, Ben is our CTO and all things technology, and John is our Chief Marketing Officer, who is a savvy marketing veteran. We also work with dozens of developers, underwriters, claims adjusters, technology partners, designers, content creators, and more on our team. We all work really hard every single day to bring you the best product possible and your customers the best experience possible.

We’re extremely proud of our platform and our work.

BriteCo Founders: Ben Mautner, John Ortbal, Dustin Lemick, Conor Redmond

I knew there had to be a better way for jewelers to utilize technology to make their lives easier and their customers happier.

“I started this company out of frustration with the current appraisal and insurance process. It simply doesn’t work. I knew there had to be a better way for jewelers to utilize technology to make their lives easier and their customers happier. Hence we developed BriteCo, which is indeed a simpler, faster, easier, and more efficient way to do appraisals and for customers to purchase insurance.

I understand that this is a totally new and innovative concept so I wanted to dive a little deeper into who we are, how it works, and what we can offer you. Hopefully, after reading this you’ll have a crystal clear understanding of what we’re all about. If not, no worries! Just ask us. We’re more than happy to open up a dialogue and discuss any questions you may have.” Dustin Lemick, Co-Founder & CEO

Truth in Transparency

To know BriteCo is to trust BriteCo.

Full appraisal control and pricing transparency

Our jeweler partners have total control over the appraisal value and/or certificate of sale value. We provide handy pricing guides such as wholesale values, but our jeweler partners have full pricing control.

Licensed and approved to sell jewelry insurance in every state

This is exactly as it sounds. The Departments of Insurance (in every state) reviewed and approved BriteCo’s entire program.

No obligation or partnership exclusivity

Unlike some other jewelry insurance companies, BriteCo does not ask you to sign an exclusivity agreement to use our appraisal system. We are confident you’ll like our platform so much that you won’t want to use anything else.

Admitted insurance policies

BriteCo offers an admitted insurance policy and adheres to strict state-by-state insurance standards and requirements. There are other insurance policies out there that are called “non-admitted” policies that are not approved by state departments. See our complete list of state licenses below.

Comprehensive and bespoke insurance policies

Our jewelry policy was built from the ground up. This means that we took every care to develop one of the strongest policies in the industry. Yes, they cover loss, theft, mysterious disappearance, and damage. Yes, we will pay up to 125% of the appraised value to replace a customer’s item.

Smart pricing algorithms

Our wholesale and suggested appraisal values are calculated using hundreds of thousands of data pricing points. We have partnerships with established companies like IDEX, Polygon, IGS, and others to factor suggested values. Again, our appraisal pricing values are simply suggestions, and our jeweler partners have full control.

Replacement only policies

Our policies are replacement only policies. We work directly with our jeweler partners to replace these items. We do not have preferred networks and we do not send customers to anyone but the originating jeweler. Ultimately, the customer does have the final say about which jeweler they want to use to replace the item.

Best-in-class customer service

Please reach out to one of our BriteCo partners and ask about our customer service. Our reviews and testimonials speak for themselves.

We Are the Experts to Trust

Do we have industry expertise?
Hell yes!

Dustin Lemick, GG
Dustin is a third-generation jeweler with deep industry knowledge. Dustin is not only knowledgeable about the jewelry industry and pricing models; he’s also worked with insurance companies on claim replacements for over 13 years. Companies such as State Farm, Allstate, Farmers, Chubb, Pure, etc etc etc…Dustin also holds an insurance producers license in the state of Illinois.

Conor Redmond, FCAS
Conor is a fully credentialed actuary with over 12 years of insurance expertise. Before starting BriteCo, Conor worked for the American Property Casualty Insurance Association, as the lead actuarial analyst. APCIA is the primary national trade association for insurance companies. Conor also has experience across multiple carriers and lines of business in both reserving and pricing. I think it is safe to say he’s an insurance expert.

Claims
BriteCo also works with a premier claims administration company that was founded in 1996 who specializes in claims, claims management, and efficient claims adjustment. This gives BriteCo over 24 years of comprehensive claims experience. Want to hear more about claims? We will connect you with one of our jewelers who has experienced our claims process firsthand.

Trust us. We are jewelry insurance experts.

Is BriteCo just a regular old
insurance agency?

Nope! BriteCo is a program administrator. In other words, we are jewelry insurance experts. Insurance companies (Glencar and Hannover Re) contract with us to write policies on their behalf. These are bespoke custom policies built from the ground up by BriteCo. BriteCo works with Glencar and Hannover Re to underwrite every single policy. This is a unique business structure that a regular agency doesn’t have.

There you have it and there it is. We are a completely open book.
#TrustedTransparency

Want to continue the conversation?
Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us.

Contact our CEO, Dustin Lemick
Direct: 312-809-9100 or [email protected]

Hopefully, this clears up any misinformation or false statements you may have read. Cheers!

8 Truths
about BriteCo

Myth 1

FALSE:
BriteCo doesn’t create “real” appraisals, they create insurance applications

TRUE:
An appraisal is the act or process of developing an opinion of value. The documents produced using BriteCo are just that, opinions of the value of jewelry and watches. Completely separate from the appraisal, is the insurance application, which asks questions relevant to the risk of insuring jewelry and watches. There is no obligation for your customers to apply for insurance using our program.

Myth 2

FALSE:
BriteCo doesn’t have accurate information for diamond and gemstone prices

TRUE:
Underlying BriteCo’s appraisal system are hundreds of thousands of diamond and gemstone values. BriteCo employs cutting edge predictive algorithms to ensure completeness and accuracy. BriteCo gathers data from a variety of public and private sources, including leading diamond trading platforms IDEX and Polygon.

Myth 3

FALSE:
The jeweler is selling insurance on behalf of the insurance provider.

TRUE:
Individuals can’t sell insurance in any state or US territory without a license. BriteCo has carefully crafted its program to separate the appraisal process from the insurance process, protecting the jeweler from assuming the role of the insurance agent. BriteCo handles all the responsibilities where an insurance producer’s license is required.

Myth 4

FALSE:
BriteCo doesn’t have any insurance industry experience.

TRUE:
BriteCo is the brainchild of individuals with deep experience in jewelry insurance and claims. The company was founded by a third-generation jeweler with over 13 years experience of managing his store’s claims with large national insurance carriers, and our CIO has over 12 years of insurance expertise. In fact, BriteCo’s origins stem from his frustrations dealing with those “experienced” companies. BriteCo also counts a fully credential property & casualty actuary with extensive experience in personal lines amongst its founders.

Myth 5

FALSE:
All you need is an insurance producer’s license or adjuster’s license to be an insurance “professional.”

TRUE:
Like any professional industry, it takes more than a 40 hour credentialing course and exam to become a subject matter expert. Insurance is a complicated industry with many moving parts. Like any business there are functions that pertain to marketing, sales, and customer service, but then there are industry unique components like underwriting, actuarial analysis, and claims. The insurance industry is also highly regulated on a state by state basis, so an insurance professional needs to balance both their technical experience and compliance knowledge. That’s why we have insurance professionals amongst the founders and partners who are deeply experienced in property and casualty insurance.

Myth 6

FALSE:
BriteCo is just another insurance agency.

TRUE:
BriteCo is more than another insurance agency. BriteCo’s structure is what’s known as a program administrator. The company works with an AM Best A+ rated insurance carrier to underwrite policies and service policyholders. All of our insurance rates, rules, and forms were customized by BriteCo to give you some of the best coverage in the industry. Unlike most personal lines agents, we only work with personal jewelry, so our partner jewelers and policyholders know they’re getting experts, not a personal lines generalist.

Myth 7

FALSE:
If BriteCo isn’t an insurance carrier, the coverage they provide isn’t as valuable or secure.

TRUE:
BriteCo and the policies we sell are strictly regulated by the departments of insurance in all 50 states (plus DC). The regulators have reviewed and approved our rates, rules and forms, and our license to sell insurance. BriteCo’s policies are backed by Glencar Insurance Company, an AM Best A+ rated carrier with offices in Chicago and New Jersey. Additionally, all policies are reinsured by Hannover Re (HVRRY).

Myth 8

FALSE:
BriteCo doesn’t really cover 125% of the appraised value.

TRUE:
BriteCo really does cover up to 125% of the appraised value to repair or replace your covered jewelry! It’s written in our policy and has been reviewed and approved by insurance regulators in every state.

BriteCo Licenses by State

State License #
Alabama 3000426890
Alaska 100168496
Arizona 3000426916
Arkansas 3000426892
California 0M48637
Colorado 588031
Connecticut 002617494
Delaware 3000427508
District Of Columbia 3000426918
Florida L104573
Georgia 202784
Hawaii 482848
Idaho 697805
Illinois 3000343555
Indiana 3392114
Iowa 1002330146
Kansas 364873811-0
State License #
Kentucky DOI-1018158
Louisiana 785946
Maine AGN320947
Maryland 3000426807
Massachusetts 2077394
Michigan 0117694
Minnesota 40606615
Mississippi 15034605
Missouri 8461418
Montana 3000426814
Nebraska 100301143
Nevada 3391602
New Hampshire 2419847
New Jersey 1688395
New Mexico 3000432439
New York PC-1543130
North Carolina 364873811
State License #
North Dakota 3000426822
Ohio 1219776
Oklahoma 3000428456
Oregon 3000435525
Pennsylvania 877560
Rhode Island 3000426840
South Carolina 3000426855
South Dakota 10021062
Tennessee 2421883
Texas 2362681
Utah 697818
Vermont 3392001
Virginia 144879
Washington 1001110
West Virginia 100287002
Wisconsin 3000426856
Wyoming 384777