The value of lost or stolen watches over the past 12 months globally is nearly 2 Billion Dollars.
If you have had a watch stolen or misplaced/lost you are not alone. This is no longer an isolated issue, it is now a serious global problem that you need to be aware of.
In the United States, it seems the problem is not as big as it is in Europe, but it still happens often. Here in NYC, over the last few months gunmen on mopeds target people wearing Rolex watches and if you are foolish enough to not give up the watch you will be shot. It isn’t worth the risk. If you have a gun pointed at you, give up the watch. This happened at Phillipe restaurant in October 2023 last year. Literally hours after we finished dinner, 4 men jumped out of BMW and robbed everyone sitting at tables on the street of their watches. This was Madison Avenue, not the Bronx or Brooklyn. One man resisted, got shot in the leg and he still got his Rolex submariner taken while bleeding on the ground.
On June 19th, 2024 this scenario happened in front of Carbone’s restaurant and the moped thieves targeted a man wearing a Patek Phillipe. The West Village is an affluent and “safe” part of NYC. This occurred at 8:45PM, so it wasn’t in the wee hours of the morning. They pointed a gun to his chest and demanded the watch, he complied. No arrests have been made.
In Europe 2 months ago, a friend of mine was standing outside of the George V Hotel in Paris wearing a rose gold Patek Aquanaut. Moped thieves rolled up on him, hit him in the head with a small wooden bat and took the watch right off his wrist while he was dazed on the ground.
Enough horror stories. Let me give you some advice and pointers to prevent this from happening and what to do it you are unfortunate enough to have this happen to you.
Don’t wear your expensive watches or Jewelry when you travel to Europe. Sad situation, but that’s the world we live in. Leave your jewelry at home.
Insure your valuables. Get a blanket homeowner policy or some sort of jewelry insurance.
Keep your purchase invoices/receipts and document the serial numbers of all your watches. Taking some photos wouldn’t hurt either to show the insurance company or police should you need to file a claim.
File a police report. Without a report, no insurance company is going to reimburse you.
Finally, contact the manufacturer of your watch. Every major manufacturer (Rolex, AP, Patek Phillipe, etc.) have a stolen watch database. Submit your serial number and police report to the watch manufacturer. If that watch ever comes in for service, they will seize it and return it to you. Even if you get reimbursed by the insurance company, if years later your watch comes in for service you will get your watch returned to you and you will get to keep the money insurance paid you years earlier.
