Lost Your Engagement Ring? Here’s What to do Next.

Let’s face it. A lifetime is a long time. People are living longer thanks to modern healthcare. The idea that you’re supposed to keep track of a tiny and very expensive piece of jewelry that you wear daily for the next fifty-plus years is daunting, to say the least. A lifetime is ample time for something to go wrong, and if Murphy’s law is any indicator, it will. So if you lost your engagement ring, or are simply terrified by the concept that you could lose your engagement ring at some point in the future and thinking maybe you should just get CZ instead, take a deep breath. Here’s what to do next. After all, when was the last time you held onto something forever?

No. 1 — TRY TO FIND IT

This one’s so obvious it’s like the pot calling the kettle black. While there’s some chance a passerby will have found it, statistically speaking it’s likely the ring is where you left, dropped down the garbage disposal or left on the bathroom counter at home or at work.

Think about just before you lost your engagement ring and retrace your steps backward from there. Rings are small, and they tend to be hiding in plain sight.

No. 2 — GET HELP

If you’re like this woman who dropped her ring down the subway grate, you know exactly where you lost it, but it’s impossible to reach. Thankfully, if you’re in a public space, chances are there is someone whose job it is to help people like you out of situations like this. If you’re at a hotel, start with the front desk concierge. You’re not the first person who’s lost their engagement ring, and you won’t be the last.

No. 3 — CALL THE RING FINDERS

The Ring Finders specialize in finding rings. Sound too good to be true? This global band of heros has located more than 5,500 missing rings and $7.5 million in jewelry with the help of a metal detector. From the beach to underwater searches, these guys are experts at finding anything.

No. 4 — FILE AN INSURANCE CLAIM

If you purchased insurance, this is the moment you’ve been waiting for. Your time has come. Pull up that appraisal, dust off that phone number, and let them know your ring’s been lost ASAP and that you’ve come to collect on your premiums. If you do find the ring, you can cancel the claim, no harm, no foul.

While you should cross-check with the insurance company before you start making up a story about how your ring was stolen (or maybe it was) here’s how these play out. Spoiler – in almost all scenarios the emotional cost of losing your ring is greater than the monetary cost. Here are some of the most commonly covered scenarios.

You lost your engagement ring

I know this sounds like it was your fault (and it probably was), but it’s OK because it’s covered.

Someone stole your engagement ring

Before you start blaming yourself for going with a 3.0 carat ring, relax, it’s covered. Life happens, people steal things, and thanks to insurance, you can replace it.

Your engagement ring broke

The garbage disposal ate it. Your husband ran over it. You got in a bike accident. Things happen. Prongs bend and pavé can fall out. In these unfortunate scenarios, your insurance company and Frank Darling has you covered.

It’s just gone

Jewelry disappears every day for various reasons because it’s small and metallic and reflective and sometimes you don’t put things back where you should when you come home late at night after a long day at work or, er. happy hour. That’s OK. Take a breath and thank yourself that you’re insured

Vacation happened

This clause tends to vary on a policy by policy basis, and if you’re a traveler at heart, you’ll want to be sure to read the fine print. There’s a myriad of reasons rings get lost on vacation so while you could leave them at home in favor of a replica ring, you can take the risk knowing your insurance company has your back.

Whether or not you’re lost your engagement ring, or are simply planning on walking around with an $8k rock poised atop your finger, the potential to lose your engagement ring is a risk all lovers of sparkly things must face.

As we’ve learned, there’s an impressive and slightly terrifying catalog of mistakes that can occur between now and forever, regardless of how much you’ve adulted to how responsible you are, and while you might not want to pay for it now, trust us, your future self will thank you.