Got my Princess Appraised, concerned or just OCD?

[DON HULIO]

I just got my princess engagement ring appraised by a local appraiser. I''''m slightly concerned about how it was handled however. During the appraisal it did not seem to offend me all that much, but afterwards I thought that it was a bit odd. During the appraisal, the jewler intentionally dropped the ring from about two or three inches above the counter. The ring landed on the glass counter and made a clanging noise. I had the ring box right in fron of him, but it was like he did not even see it, or he did not care. I put it back in the ring box as he went to get a higher magnification loupe...he came back and took it out of the ring box, examined it for a moment, and then as if to clean it off, he rubbed the table of the diamond against his shirt, but not lightly, with some force, as if he was trying to bend a prong or something. Anyway, afterwards, I spoke with some of my friends and asked their opinions. One said not to worry, it is a diamond...that the appraiser was probably just trying to make sure that the diamond was securely mounted by dropping is like he did and the he meant no harm. As for rubbig it like he did, why with such a forceful rub??? I thouroughly examined the diamond and the ring as well as possible with the naked eye afterwards, and it does not appeat to be chipped or dammaged or bent, but nonetheless...I treat the ring delicately, and I''''m sure he would not have done it with any of his personal inventory, so why would he have done it with mine? Any opinions or replies are much appreciated. Thanks

 

[Jennifer5973]

I can understand how you feel--I know I'd be taken aback if I saw someone manhandled my ring like that, but my gut tells me that he was just a little bit sloppy, which is no excuse to be sure.

I am always amazed whenever my own jeweler handles jewelry...I am soooo careful and they just grab and pull...I think the jewelry is a lot tougher than we thing anyway

. Also, I don't think anyone would think that rubbing a ring against the body/shirt would ever bend metal...he was probably tyring to get lint off. I wouldn't worry. Did you inspect the ring closely while you were still at the appraiser's? That would have been the time to do it.

 

[diamondsrock]

dropping a ring intentionally on a glass counter sounds odd. I''ve never seen anyone do that. I had an appraisal and that wasn''t done. I honestly don''t know why anyone would do that.
Usually they clean the diamond before the appraisal ( I think ) so I''m not sure what he was trying to rub off on his shirt. Seems strange in general to treat jewelry that way.

 

[hlmr]

Okay.....I'm no expert but that is just weird!! I don't understand the purpose in that and I question his credibility in performing such an odd and possibly damaging to a diamond test.

Heather

 

[DiamondExpert]

Dropping the ring MUST have been an accident = klutz

Wiping the stone on his shirt is pretty low class - I''m surprised he didn''t have a diamond cloth at hand = disorganized

The remaining question is did he pay as little attention to the rest of your appraisal?

 

[DON HULIO]

To be honest, the diamond is a 1.01 carat, D, VS2 (GIA CERT), with only one inclusion table side up, and two table side down, so he had to get a 20X loupe to identify these. The appraisal only took about fifteen minutes. I had the certification right in front of him, he read it, looked for the GIA laser inscripted ID number, he was only able to see the last three numbers, looked for the inclusions, said that he was having a hard time focusing, but assured me that based on his seeing the last three numbers on the ring and matching them up with the numbers on the certification that it was indeed the dimond that was represented on the certification. He said that it was a very nice stone, went in the back and came out with a book in hand. He looked up the diamond in the book and said that he will appraise it at $7700. He filled out an appraisal sheet, wrote in the color, cut, carat, and clarity, had me print my name and address on the sheet, said that he would mail me the official document, and then to my surprise, he charged me ten bucks. So, I guess now my question is...what did I really pay for...I went to get it appraised so that I could get it insured, so that I could take it overseas to propose to my BELLE up in the Eiffel Tower in Paris France. Anyway, should I seek a second opinion...I just want to do the right thing. From what I have read on PS about apraisals, others have gotten much more elaborate appraisals, including sarin and gem scope photos, light leakage, etc...Thanks.

 

[Kaleigh]

I think it may be wise to seek another appraiser. Usually when you get a stone appraised you don''t show them your cert. After all you are seeking an independent opinion of the stone and want to see if everything matches up so to speak. I don''t know of any appraiser that charges $10. It just seems weird to me. And yes when they are going to appraise the stone they usually clean it by steaming it or other methods besides rubbing it against their shirt. I hope you get the answers you are looking for, but this guy is a little out of my comfort zone???

 

[Richard Sherwood]

Ten bucks?

I dunno, it might work for insurance, especially combined with the GIA report.....but ten bucks?

Was he a gemologist?

If you''re looking for a more comprehensive report by an independent gemologist you might consider having someone else take a look at it. I''d be a little leery of an appraiser who values his time spent on a one carat diamond at ten bucks.

Did he take any pictures? Measure the stone? Check the color? Fluorescence?

Ten bucks?

 

[denverappraiser]

Date: 5/31/2005 8:37:58 PM
Author: DON HULIO
To be honest, the diamond is a 1.01 carat, D, VS2 (GIA CERT), with only one inclusion table side up, and two table side down, so he had to get a 20X loupe to identify these. The appraisal only took about fifteen minutes. I had the certification right in front of him, he read it, looked for the GIA laser inscripted ID number, he was only able to see the last three numbers, looked for the inclusions, said that he was having a hard time focusing, but assured me that based on his seeing the last three numbers on the ring and matching them up with the numbers on the certification that it was indeed the dimond that was represented on the certification. He said that it was a very nice stone, went in the back and came out with a book in hand. He looked up the diamond in the book and said that he will appraise it at $7700. He filled out an appraisal sheet, wrote in the color, cut, carat, and clarity, had me print my name and address on the sheet, said that he would mail me the official document, and then to my surprise, he charged me ten bucks. So, I guess now my question is...what did I really pay for...I went to get it appraised so that I could get it insured, so that I could take it overseas to propose to my BELLE up in the Eiffel Tower in Paris France. Anyway, should I seek a second opinion...I just want to do the right thing. From what I have read on PS about apraisals, others have gotten much more elaborate appraisals, including sarin and gem scope photos, light leakage, etc...Thanks.

What did you pay for? This really is the meat of the question. I''m confident that your insurance company will accept this for purposes of binding an insurance policy but you will probably be better served using the GIA report and the receipt from the selling jeweler. If what you expected was to get reasonable documentation of your purchase so that your insurance would policy protect you (instead of the insurance company) or something that would be useful for making a shopping decision, I think you wasted your 10 bucks.

For what it''s worth, I think it''s much more likely that the drop test will damage his glass counter than your diamond ring.

Neil Beaty
GG(GIA) ISA NAJA
Independent Appraisals in Denver

 

[hoorray]

Sounds completely off to me, but I guess the question now is what are you trying to get out of the appraisal? If you just need validation for insurance, you got it assuming you are comfortable with the value and the details that he listed. Most insurance companies will replace rather than refund, so you want to make sure that you get a comparable stone, and that you are not overpaying for the premium. Thus there must be enough details listed (like sarin information and an idealscope picture) that they know what level of light preformance it has. If he doubled the amount that you paid, you will simply pay higher insurance premiums to replace the stone for much less than what you policy states so IMO the $$ amount should be slightly higher than what you paid to give you a pad, but not significantly increase the premium.

If you are looking for more information about the stone -- especially if you are considering whether you keep it or not, I would rush out to someone well accredited and have it redone. Since it is set already, they are somewhat limited in what they can do, but most can still do a good job. Interview them about what they will do and for what price before committing to an appointment.

And...like Rich says... TEN dollars?

 

[Jennifer5973]

Date: 5/31/2005 8:37:58 PM
Author: DON HULIO
To be honest, the diamond is a 1.01 carat, D, VS2 (GIA CERT), with only one inclusion table side up, and two table side down, so he had to get a 20X loupe to identify these. The appraisal only took about fifteen minutes. I had the certification right in front of him, he read it, looked for the GIA laser inscripted ID number, he was only able to see the last three numbers, looked for the inclusions, said that he was having a hard time focusing, but assured me that based on his seeing the last three numbers on the ring and matching them up with the numbers on the certification that it was indeed the dimond that was represented on the certification. He said that it was a very nice stone, went in the back and came out with a book in hand. He looked up the diamond in the book and said that he will appraise it at $7700. He filled out an appraisal sheet, wrote in the color, cut, carat, and clarity, had me print my name and address on the sheet, said that he would mail me the official document, and then to my surprise, he charged me ten bucks. So, I guess now my question is...what did I really pay for...I went to get it appraised so that I could get it insured, so that I could take it overseas to propose to my BELLE up in the Eiffel Tower in Paris France. Anyway, should I seek a second opinion...I just want to do the right thing. From what I have read on PS about apraisals, others have gotten much more elaborate appraisals, including sarin and gem scope photos, light leakage, etc...Thanks.

Like others have suggested, if you are looking for a quality appraisal, you should go elsehwere. If you''re concerned about damage to yoru ring, it''s probably fine.

 

[RockDoc]

A 20x loupe?

He didn''t have a scope?


Me thinks you should take off his shoes and see if his feet are webbed!

Mishandling the ring like that? Certainly he isn''t of the level you should seeking advice and counsel from.

$10.00.... ??????????????

Sorry to be cynical, but you DO get what you pay for !

How long did he spend with you, and did he issue you a report? If so, scan and post it here.

Rockdoc

 

[DON HULIO]

Thanks for all of the responses, this confirms my doubts. So what does a reasonable apprasial cost these days? It would be nice to get pictures, sarin report, light leakage assessments, etc, etc. Also, I was told by the appraiser to bring in the cert...I''m not sure if he was a certified gemologist, but I got his business card and he was the store owner...for what that is worth. Maybe it would say that he was a gemologist on his business card, but it does not, so I guess that I can assume he is not. Ok, so I have until June 30th when I leave to go overseas, I called around today and got some more apprasial prices. One woman told me that her shop charges $75.00 and hour, but that if I wanted to do it in person, they charge $125.00 and hour. I certainly do not want to leave the stone out of my sight, I dont want to risk the old switcheroo...and forgive me if I do not trust, but I worked hard for this diamond, and I dont want any funny business....guess I should''nt have gone to the guy that I did then...hee hee! But are those prices more realistic?

 

[aphisiglovessae]

I just had an appraisal done by the most recommended and highly trusted jeweler in town (supposedly). They are GIA gemologists and they do most of the custom work for all the rich ladies in town. They charged me 45 dollars. I didn''t watch him the whole time, but I didn''t see my appraiser mishandle the diamond at all. As a matter of fact, in my presence he treated it with more care than I do. He also noticed that the jeweler who set the diamond didn''t finish the prongs properly, and had one of his on-site jewelers fix it really quick for free. He also said that I need to have the appraisal renewed every 3 to 4 years and he would do it for free as well. Very nice guy and seemed very knowledgable. The appraisal wasn''t as high as my last one from the jeweler who set the diamond, but he did make it a little more detailed. There was no idealscope, firescope, or anything like that on it, but I have all that stuff from Rockdoc when we had it sent to him before we purchased it. He did however, write the dimensions of the diamond and other specs. I hope that the GIA certificate, two appraisals, and the information Rockdoc provided is good enough to get insurance..? Anyone know a good Chubb dealer close to Pensacola?

 

[Golden Oak]

Date: 6/1/2005 12:00:36 AM
Author: DON HULIO
I certainly do not want to leave the stone out of my sight, I dont want to risk the old switcheroo...and forgive me if I do not trust, but I worked hard for this diamond, and I dont want any funny business...

Really, you think that it is worth jail time, lawsuits, destroyed reputation for the jeweler (in the trade and the community), and risk loosing everything he has, all to be risked for the opportunity to steal your little "1.01 carat, D, VS2 (GIA CERT)" that is laser inscribed so it is easily identified. I would suggest that you find a jeweler you feel you can trust, he/she is most likely a local business owner trying to make a living just like you are, learn a bit about your diamond so you can identify it yourself, if for some reason you think you have been "switcherooed", hell it is a VS2 with an inscription and I am sure that there are other attributes that easy to identify. However much you paid for that diamond it just a small % of the cash flow that runs in and out of their jewelry business on a monthly basis, and it was one of the lowest % margin item and it likely required the highest % time and effort spent with a customer to make the sale, mainly with the hope that they can develop a relationship with you so you might become a long term customer and they might have an opportunity to be your jeweler for future events like birthdays, xmas and anniversaries.

Just so you know for an example we charge more to when the customer requires an in person appraisal and it is not because of trust, btw 99% of all our customers just drop their pieces off, we give them a claim check and a date and they pick their stuff up. This is because we don''t sit around all day doing appraisals, it it requires scheduling time for our GG just to sit down with that client, rather than batching them up and doing all the work on all of the appraisal work at one time, which is much more time efficient.

We all have heard the story about the diamond being switched by the jeweler. At least once a month I hear some kind of a story from a customer about the mother of a friends, sisters mother-in-law who was shocked to find out that the diamond in her ring was not a real diamond and they convinced, that it was the last jeweler who swapped the family diamond when it was brought in 10 years earlier when it was resized. And since it the swap was done so many years ago they can''t prove that the prior jeweler swapped the diamond. It never seams to dawn on anyone that first, the story is most likely not true, and if it was some kind of diamond stimulant it was most likely that the original customers husband cheeped out thinking that he would never be caught. If switchroos were happing as much as the stories, we would need more prisons for all the jewelers. Nor do they realized what they are really saying to me and my staff is, forgive me but aren’t most of you guys thieves and are not to be trusted, just like you are doing when you say "forgive me if I do not trust, but I worked hard for this diamond, and I don’t want any funny business"

Go find a jeweler and/or appraiser you can develop a relationship and trust with, you will be much happier with out the stress that you are going to be ripped off all the time.

Regards,

Brian

 

[Mara]

We used an independent appraiser, she cost something like $125 for an hour and I think my stones took an hour and a half (1 ring and 2 earrings)...anyhow she came highly recommended and I left the diamonds with her and went shopping then came back...but originally she had my first diamond for weeks! Golden Oak makes a good point...if this is a reputable appraiser, they are not going to switch or bother your diamond, chances are my diamond is something tiny compared to the stuff she sees and what I have seen in her office!

Or we can take it locally up the street to Willow Glen and they will do a quickie eyeball thing for free (aka yes it's a diamond and yes it looks somewhat like I SI) and/or do a quickie workup appraisal for $75.00.

Really you should find someone you feel you can trust, maybe not some random jeweler but do a bit of research first, click on Independent Appraisers link up above and/or research anyone you find online, see what associations they belong to etc if you are very worried about someone stealing your stone.

 

[RockDoc]

Date: 6/1/2005 12:32:08 AM
Author: aphisiglovessae
I just had an appraisal done by the most recommended and highly trusted jeweler in town (supposedly). They are GIA gemologists and they do most of the custom work for all the rich ladies in town. They charged me 45 dollars. I didn''t watch him the whole time, but I didn''t see my appraiser mishandle the diamond at all. As a matter of fact, in my presence he treated it with more care than I do. He also noticed that the jeweler who set the diamond didn''t finish the prongs properly, and had one of his on-site jewelers fix it really quick for free. He also said that I need to have the appraisal renewed every 3 to 4 years and he would do it for free as well. Very nice guy and seemed very knowledgable. The appraisal wasn''t as high as my last one from the jeweler who set the diamond, but he did make it a little more detailed. There was no idealscope, firescope, or anything like that on it, but I have all that stuff from Rockdoc when we had it sent to him before we purchased it. He did however, write the dimensions of the diamond and other specs. I hope that the GIA certificate, two appraisals, and the information Rockdoc provided is good enough to get insurance..? Anyone know a good Chubb dealer close to Pensacola?

Dear Aphis..

I saw your post and called Dave Stone. He is training an associate name Mike to handle the jewelry / engagement ring program.

He can get you covered without an appraisal ( under $ 25K) ... and the rate is $ 21.50 per thousand per year.
All you need for him is the receipt for the ring, and a copy of the lab report, and if you want to send copies of what I did - it''s not required for coverage, but can''t hurt to supply them.

800-473-6603

He is leaving today to go to Clearwater, but you can call Mike at his office and he''ll arrange to get you bound for coverage.

Of course, if I can be of any help - just let me know.

Rockdoc

 

[DON HULIO]

Well Golden Oak, I certainly did not mean to offend you or anyone else on this forum. I guess it was late last night and I was partially just talking out of my A*S. I would like to get another appraisal however, can you recomend anyone good in St. Louis, Missouri that is reputable and trustworthy???? Thanks in advance.

P.S. Sorry all that I could afford is a "little" 1.01 carat diamond...I still love it though.

 

[RockDoc]

Date: 6/1/2005 3:17:22 PM
Author: DON HULIO
Well Golden Oak, I certainly did not mean to offend you or anyone else on this forum. I guess it was late last night and I was partially just talking out of my A*S. I would like to get another appraisal however, can you recomend anyone good in St. Louis, Missouri that is reputable and trustworthy???? Thanks in advance.

P.S. Sorry all that I could afford is a ''little'' 1.01 carat diamond...I still love it though.

C.Y.A.

Not a thing wrong with that, In fact, that is prudent and wise to take that position.

To help you with feeling safe about a stone switch, you might want to have the stone laser inscribed, or gem printed. See www. gemprint.com for a local dealer to you. Probably cost about $ 50.00 for the gemprint registration, but many insurance companies give you a discount on the premium for having a Gemprint, so eventually it pays for itself in insurance premiums discounts.

As to selecting an appraiser find out a) the gemological credentials he has b) the appraisal credentials he has (valuation is "different" from gemology, and just being a gemologist doesn''t provide someone with valuation credentials). c) what equipment he has (Sarin proportion analysis equipment, GemPrint, Brilliance Scope, DIAMOND Color Master Stones, Colorimeter,SAS 2000, H&A Viewers, Gemological MICROSCOPE etc.) The more equipment the more thorough the analysis will be.

Ask to see a sample of their appraisal reports. If they are on one or two pages, keep searching. If they sell jewelry, as well as appraise you must weight that into the consideration in selecting an appraiser as well. INDEPENDENT APPRAISERS do not sell jewelry.

You could also check with www.ags.org, and search for American Gem Society members near you as well. Don''t be shy of asking lots of questions. Ask for a copy of their resume listing the experience, educational and credentials as well.

If there isn''t anyone local, strongly consider sending the diamond to someone who''s equipment, experience and educational credentials are of the level you expect.

Hope this helps.

Rockdoc

 

[Richard Sherwood]

Date: 6/1/2005 4:18:39 PM
Author: RockDoc

Not a thing wrong with that, In fact, that is prudent and wise to take that position.

I agree. There''s nothing wrong with being cautious with your property. A 1 carat D VS2 GIA cert stone is also nothing to sneeze at, although any size or quality diamond is precious to it''s owner that knows the history and sentimentality behind it.

 

[Golden Oak]

Date: 6/2/2005 11:08:56 PM
Author: Richard Sherwood

Date: 6/1/2005 4:18:39 PM
Author: RockDoc

Not a thing wrong with that, In fact, that is prudent and wise to take that position.

I agree. There's nothing wrong with being cautious with your property. A 1 carat D VS2 GIA cert stone is also nothing to sneeze at, although any size or quality diamond is precious to it's owner that knows the history and sentimentality behind it.

I would agree there is nothing wrong with being cautious, but to quote the original poster

"To be honest, the diamond is a 1.01 carat, D, VS2 (GIA CERT), with only one inclusion table side up, and two table side down ... GIA laser inscripted ID number ..."

All of this is easily identifiable with the cert and with a 10x loop in less than 10 Sec. Even if you were very dishonest, what kind of idiot stick jeweler or appraiser would try to steal this diamond. Do you think this mythical crook is going to have a laser inscriber and it going to have the gia cert number zapped into the side of a CZ or moissanite?!? Then they are going to some how create an inclusion that follows the GIA Map, that would be impressive, if you can do that, steal the diamond and still make money that would be impressive? Get real.

If a crook is going to swap a diamond, it is the uncerted, undocumented, diamond that is most likely at risk, and as apprasiers you know that too. If you are that dumb of a jeweler, to risk your business and risk going to jail, you might get away with it for a while but you will get caught, just like the guy in Paw Paw MI http://www.professionaljeweler.com/archives/news/2005/050305story.html.

I get a little tired of the small % of people being very comfortable with the passive broad brush of jewelers being crooked. Sure it is my job to help devlop trust with our customers, but it would be nice if some people actual thought about what they were saying before they opened their mouths or keyboards. Just ask the potential jeweler for help verifying the stone to your cert if you are worried, if they can’t do that or wont, go somewhere else. Most of us are just hardworking honest people trying to make a living, just like you. There are crooks in every industry, guess what you have a diamond that is worth money, learn something about what you have and protect yourself. Then find a jeweler you can trust and be happy. Hell, with his diamond in 10 seconds and a loop you can make sure you are not being robbed, when is last time you took your car in for services and you could check for yourself that everything was on the up an up in 10 Sec and most likely your car cost more that this diamond?

Regards,

Brian

 

[RockDoc]

Dear Brian....


RE: The small percentage of jewelers that would switch stones..... and find a jeweler that you trust. Would a jeweler go to the trouble of duplicating a laser number?


I have to sort of disagree with this method.


I do agree however that 99% of the jewelers out there wouldn''t switch a stone - intentionally. But it does happen occasionally a) sometimes intentionally and b) sometimes by accident. To see how often this occurs, all one has to do is perform a search under the sites that post legal cases with diamond switching, there are lots of them, and those are only the cases that get on the public docket. Most folks don''t want to spend the money to hire an attorney and expert witness, so the majority that don''t have conclusive proof never get their day in court.

But I also will say that due to "consumer ignorance" many consumers accuse jewelers of switching when such is not the case.

A sort of shocking statistic I have noticed over the past few years is switching a stone not by a jeweler but by a family acquaintance. In my lectures here to the Bar Association for Family Law, I have informed the attorneys that when a Divorce Complaint is filed, that every diamond should be Gemprinted. I have seen several cases where there is some valuable items, that one party switches the stone, knowing that he/she isn''t going to get the item in the division of property. I looked at one such case, where it wasn''t discovered till several years after the settlement that the ex had switched the 4 carat engagement diamond for a CZ. Sad but it does happen.

Consumers on this forum have a little basis of education and informative directives to have a bit of knowledge of how to identify their stone. However the "average Joe" really doesn''t have much of a basis to really know how to identify their stone . Even if they do, providing conclusive proof for them is a nightmare.


My position is that the jeweler needs to educate the consumer and provide a positive way - so that the consumer has TRUST. Trusting a jeweler shouldn''t be made by "Blind Trust". I believe the jeweler has an obligation to put the consumer''s at ease with a proven, positive way of this.

The only method of doing this that holds up in Court is GEMPRINT. It only takes a minute or so to image the stone when taking it in, and with the new software is postively identifiable within another moment or so.

The Gemprint system costs about $ 8000.00 - which to me is a miniscule cost to protect one''s reputation. I just can''t understand why anyone taking in consumer property wouldn''t have one. Of course, I don''t understand either why some jewelers won''t invest in having a microscope either, or a gemological education. But many do.

When taking in someone else''s property I believe the burden of proof for the consumer is the responsibility of the jeweler to prove to the consumer, not the consumer''s burden to prove it.

Rockdoc

 

[Angel7]

DON-Be PROUD of your so called "little" ring!-Sounds great to me

There is nothing wrong with being paranoid with such an expensive purchase. It''s better to be safe than sorry!

 

[DON HULIO]

Thank you everyone for all of your replies. My question now is: with the certification and the $10.00 appraisal, I can get the diamond insured correct? I''ll be going to France at the end of this month...should I do another appraisal with photos, sarin report, etc, etc, before I leave for France, or can I wait until I get back...really I want the diamond insured so that I have proof with the certification and the appraisal that I did indeed purchase the diamond and setting here in the United States, so that when I/we have to go through Customs on the way back in we will not run into any snags along the way with customs agents questioning whether or not the ring was purchased in Europe or in the US. Anyway, either way I''ll likely get the second appraisal done, and when I do I''ll post pictures if anyone is interestd. Thanks again!

 

[DON HULIO]

Well, I just made an appointment with a REAL honest to goodness CGA appraiser. The woman I spoke with was very nice and she spend about a half an hour on the phone with me discussing my diamond. She said she charges a minimum of $100.00, that she does a detailed report complete with pictures, but she informed me that she does not have a sarin machine, and that in order to do that it would be necessary to send the dimond off, unmounted, to GIA to get it done. Also, she said that the sarin report is a way of replacing the certification, and that once the gem is certified, the sarin report is no longer necessary. Thoughts, comments.... Anyway, I''ll drop the diamond off Tuesday morning to get the appraisal done, and get it back by Wednesday morning. Otherwise, I think I''m good to go.

 

[RockDoc]

Date: 6/4/2005 10:50:49 AM
Author: DON HULIO
Thank you everyone for all of your replies. My question now is: with the certification and the $10.00 appraisal, I can get the diamond insured correct? I''ll be going to France at the end of this month...should I do another appraisal with photos, sarin report, etc, etc, before I leave for France, or can I wait until I get back...really I want the diamond insured so that I have proof with the certification and the appraisal that I did indeed purchase the diamond and setting here in the United States, so that when I/we have to go through Customs on the way back in we will not run into any snags along the way with customs agents questioning whether or not the ring was purchased in Europe or in the US. Anyway, either way I''ll likely get the second appraisal done, and when I do I''ll post pictures if anyone is interestd. Thanks again!

Dear Don

RE; Customs on the way back. THe most troublefree way to avoid a situation of having to pay duty on your return is to register any valuables with Customs before you leave. Check their website out for further info on this. I think you have to take the article to your local customs office and file a form listing things like expensive cameras, laptops, jewelry etc.

It also couldn''t hurt to take the sales receipt from a US seller to support your claim that it wasn''t purchased overseas.


As to your question about insurance coverage.... that would be dependent on the type of policy you intend to buy.
If your going to purchase replacement type insurance, in the event of a loss they would only replace what is described on the appraisal or other documentation you render to them when you insure it. So for this type of coverage MAKE SURE that the appraisal is exceptionally complete, accurate, supportable and detailed.

Hope this helps

Rockdoc

 

[RockDoc]

Date: 6/4/2005 12:02:10 PM
Author: DON HULIO
Well, I just made an appointment with a REAL honest to goodness CGA appraiser. The woman I spoke with was very nice and she spend about a half an hour on the phone with me discussing my diamond. She said she charges a minimum of $100.00, that she does a detailed report complete with pictures, but she informed me that she does not have a sarin machine, and that in order to do that it would be necessary to send the dimond off, unmounted, to GIA to get it done. Also, she said that the sarin report is a way of replacing the certification, and that once the gem is certified, the sarin report is no longer necessary. Thoughts, comments.... Anyway, I''ll drop the diamond off Tuesday morning to get the appraisal done, and get it back by Wednesday morning. Otherwise, I think I''m good to go.

I''d have to disagree with the opinion that a Sarin isn''t needed if you have a GIA report.

GIA just doesn''t list all the parameters that a COMPLETE Sarin report does. I am sort of surprised she didn''t suggest an AGS report being a CGA and member of AGS. AGS will finish the grading report in 5 days. GIA takes weeks.

Alternatively, you can have it done later on when you return if that doesn''t meet with your travel plans.

Rockdoc