Dealing with watch damage can be an absolute headache to deal with, and I personally know from a first-hand experience. A couple of years after I received my Panerai watch as an heirloom from my parents, its internal movement completely stopped working and my watch suddenly broke. I was more than mad at the whole situation.
However, after I implemented all the tactics I mentioned in this article, I helped my watch get fixed and back to how it was before. If you’re dealing with the same problem I went through, I believe that these steps can help you significantly in getting your timepiece repaired.
Read on to learn more about what to do when your watch suddenly breaks, and learn my personal story about what happened with my own timepiece.
1. Bring Your Watch To A Professional
Dealing with a broken watch can be super frustrating, and unless you’re a trained professional who knows how to safely service a watch and repair it, bringing your timepiece to a trained professional is the most efficient and effective way to fix your watch properly.
This is the first step I personally took to fix my broken watch. As soon as my Panerai Luminor Chronograph Daylight broke, my family and I went straight to a professional to get it fixed since we knew nothing about watch repair. We went to a store called “Gold Creations”, which is a professional watch servicing shop that I usually go to to get my watches serviced and it’s located in my local mall.
Not in the greatest mood, I handed my broken timepiece to the watch servicing specialist and he told me,
“I can fix your watch for you no problem. I will notify you once I finish.”
After he said this to me, I was so relieved that I took a deep breath. All of the pent-up anger and frustration that I was dealing with in this whole situation suddenly left me because I knew that my watch would be fine. This goes to show that bringing your watch to a trained specialist can help you keep a peace of mind.
Having trouble finding a place to get your timepiece fixed? I would recommend going on Google and typing, “Watch repair near me”, and a list of stores should pop up. From there, I would recommend choosing the highest-rated and best-reviewed store so you know that you are going to get your money’s worth and get your watch fixed.
However, if you have a really expensive timepiece that needs extra care and attention, another option available is that you can send it back to the watch manufacturer themselves. If you plan to do this and want to get
If you’ve ever wondered how often you should get your watch serviced, I got you covered. I wrote an in-depth article explaining how often you should get your watch serviced by a professional depending on the movement. If you want to check out this article, you can do so by clicking right here my friend.
I firmly believe that this step is the most important step in fixing your watch back to normal. As I found personally with my experience, I realized that a well-trained watch professional knows everything about properly fixing a watch, which means bringing your timepiece to one can help you get your timepiece in peak condition as well as alleviate all of the stress that comes with a broken watch.
2. Identify If Insurance Can Cover The Damage
Paying for a watch to get repaired by a professional can be pricy, but if you have insurance or watch insurance that can help you out and provide you the funds to get it repaired, then it can make your life so much easier. Paying money out of your own pocket can feel exhausting and frustrating because the damage to the watch could have been avoided, but if insurance can help you out with whatever you’re going through, it can make your world so much easier.
I personally experienced this when my Panerai broke. When I brought the timepiece to my watch professional who fixes up my watch, I had to pay money out of my own pocket because I did not have any watch insurance to cover the damages incurred on my timepiece. I was heartbroken because I knew that what happened to my watch could have been avoided, and I absolutely dreaded paying for the damages out of my savings.
If only I had watch insurance at the time. If I had watch insurance when my watch broke, they could have completely kept me covered for the expenses to fix my watch, which would have taken a lot of stress off of me.
If you’re considering getting your watch insured, I would recommend “Jewelers Mutual Group”. Recommended by “Investopedia”, Jewelers Mutual Group is an extremely reputable company and has been keeping luxury items insured for over a century (since 1913). Watch insurance can cost as low as 1% of the value of your watch, which is very reasonable, inexpensive, and worth it if you ask me.
But wait there’s more- insurance can also cover damages if your watch ever gets stolen as well. If you’ve ever wondered or want to educate yourself on what to do if your watch gets stolen, I have made a complete in-depth article just for you. To view this post, click here.
3. Know You Are Not Alone
It can seem devastating and mentally draining when your luxury watch breaks on you and you may feel like all hope is lost. However, always remember that there are millions of people around the world facing the same problem that you have, it’s part of the process of owning a watch, and you are not alone when it comes to a broken watch.
I faced this problem when my Panerai Luminor broke. I felt so saddened, angry, and upset and it completely ruined my entire week. I was in such a depressing mood, and it sadly rubbed off onto others around me. However, I realized that I am not the only one facing this problem, and there are plenty of watch owners who are going through the same situation as me.
If you look on “Reddit” or “WatchUSeek” today, which are two of my favorite public forums, you can see tons of threads talking about how their watch broke and what they’re doing to fix it. On top of that, there are so many users lifting others up to brighten up their day and remind them that they are not alone. So if you feel sad or depressed in dealing with a broken watch, I highly recommend looking at forums to see other’s stories so you know you are not alone.
I will provide you with links to my favorite forums to use:
- Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/
- WatchUSeek: https://www.watchuseek.com/
If you are someone who is dealing with a broken watch and is struggling with the situation mentally, I would recommend going to one or both of these forums to find other’s stories so you can feel that you are definitely not alone in this whole process.
4. Talk About Your Situation With Someone Close To You
Going through an experience with a broken watch is not only physically draining, but mentally draining as well. Having someone to talk to or vent to is a fantastic way to let off some steam if you’re angry at the situation like I was.
During the whole incident where my Panerai watch broke, I took a little bit of time out of my day to talk to my mom and explained my emotions and what I was going through to help me mentally. My mom is one of the closest people I know, and she helped reinsure me that everything was going to be just fine and it was just an accident.
After I had this conversation, I felt relieved and relaxed because I got the words and thoughts I had off of my chest. I really learned that accepting what happened with your timepiece is the fastest way to move on from the experience, which is why I recommend it so much.
Having trouble deciding who to talk to? I recommend going to the person you are the closest to. Whether it be a family member that you’re really close to or one of your best friends, picking someone to talk with about your broken watch can give you that reinsurance that you may really need.
Are you someone who doesn’t feel comfortable talking about your situation with someone else? If you are this person, I would also recommend writing down how you feel and what you want to say on a piece of paper. Similar to talking to someone, writing how you feel at the time on a piece of paper can really help you blow off some steam and relax a little bit.
5. Be Extra Careful With Your Watches In The Future
Being extra careful with your timepieces in the future is one of the key steps to learning and moving on from what happened with your broken watch. Taking better care of your watch helps reduce the chances of it ever happening again.
This step is exactly what I did when I got my Panerai back to me. After a watch professional helped me fix my timepiece back to normal, I became extra careful with the watch whenever I would wear it or store it away. I never wanted to deal with a broken watch again, so from now on, I always make sure that my watch is safe so that it greatly reduces the chances of it breaking again.
I especially keep my watch safe at night, since I don’t want to run the risk of losing my watch to a thief. However, if your watch is stolen and or if you want to educate yourself about whenever your watch gets stolen, I have made a complete and in-depth article explaining exactly what to do. You can visit the article by clicking here.
My Final Thoughts
Learning from my own experience, a broken watch can be annoying, aggravating, and emotionally draining. But If your watch is broken, taking these steps that I mentioned in this article can really help you get your watch back to its original condition and help you mentally and physically.
Part of the process of dealing with a broken watch is learning from the experience and taking action to prevent it from happening in the future, and also knowing that you’re not alone. People every single day are experiencing the exact same issue that you may have, so at the end of the day, just know that there are plenty of steps and ways to fix your broken watch.