Headlines

$1.3B in Luxury Watches Stolen or Missing, Data Indicates

Rolex is the brand appearing most often in The Watch Register’s database.

Published

1 year ago

August 23, 2023

INSTORE Staff

Luxury watch thefts are on the rise, according to new data.

The Watch Register’s database includes about 80,000 missing timepieces, Bloomberg reports. The London-based company maintains “the world’s largest, most established, international database of lost, stolen and fake watches, containing data compiled over 30 years,” according to its website.

The total value of watches in the databases is about $1.3 billion, Bloomberg reports. Rolex is the brand appearing most often in the database, accounting for 44% of the watches registered as stolen or missing.

The database grew by more than 6,800 timepieces last year, Bloomberg reports. The was a 60% spike from the year before.

The increase corresponded with the rising values of second-hand luxury watches during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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