A break-in at Paris Hilton's Los Angeles home has led to a New York lawsuit over 60,000 US dollars in borrowed gems.

A jeweller's insurer said the celebrity socialite simply held onto them after police gave them back to her.

Insurer Allianz Global sued Paris. Her spokeswoman said only costume jewellery was recovered by police.

The Munich-based insurer said jeweller Damiani lent Paris the gems in 2007. The lawsuit says the Damiani jewels were taken along with about two million US dollars worth of other jewels in the December 2008 burglary.

Police returned a Louis Vuitton bag full of jewellery to the reality TV star after making arrests in 2009. The suit says Paris then ignored Allianz' requests to return the Damiani gems.

Five people still face charges in the break-in.

Source: Press Release