Buy two return one?

[davepal]

Has anyone ever done this? I'm stuck between two stones. I've done everything I can do but I feel I need to see them in person. This is from one of the big online vendors with 30-day return policies. Is this frowned upon or no big deal to them to make a sale?

 

[antelope1]

Is putting a deposit on it to ship it to a local appraiser an option?

For example, GOG let us put a deposit on 2 diamonds this summer. We had them shipped to an appraiser, and viewed them at the appraiser's. We couldn't take delivery of either diamond until we had paid GOG in full for one of the diamonds, and the appraiser had verified the payment with GOG. We paid RT shipping on the diamond(s) that we did not buy. The deposit was refundable, and $500 per diamond + about $100 RT shipping (on about $16k declared value) + appraisal fees. As I said, the deposit was refundable, so all we lost was the $100 for RT shipping (overnight, massively insured) + appraisal fees. If you bought two and returned one, you would still have to pay the shipping in any case. All you're paying to not front the extra $10k (or whatever) is the appraisal fees!

Btw, this wasn't on their website -- GOG told me that this was an option when I called and asked. Perhaps your merchant has a similar policy that is not stated on their website?

 

[Karl_K]

talk to your vendor.
In some cases if it is a popular shape/color/clarity they may not be able to give you the whole 30 days with both diamonds but may be ok with a shorter period.
30 days is a long time to take a diamond off the market.
It is usually doable, the details just have to be worked out.

Having both sent to an appraiser is the other option.

 

[tonkatsu]

I've done this with both BN and JA. I was open about it with JA and they didn't seem to mind -- they just made sure I realized I would pay for return shipping. BN called me right before the order shipped to say the two diamonds didn't match, and wanted to make sure I wasn't trying to make a pair of earrings or something. I told the woman who called what I was doing, and she told me that it wasn't technically allowed, but that they usually were OK with it. Sure enough, on its terms and conditions page, it says:

Comparison Purchasing
To keep our prices low, we do not allow comparison purchasing. Comparison purchasing is the act of buying several items with the intent of keeping the one you like best and returning the remainder. This causes undue restocking and inventory overhead and can be very costly. To confirm the quality of a jewelry item, please contact one of our Diamond and Jewelry Consultants at [email protected] or 800-242-2728, and we would be happy to help you make your choice.

But they shipped both diamonds to me anyway, and I shipped both of them back. My sense is if it's a large company, it's OK, but if it's a smaller company with limited inventory, you probably want to clear it with them first. I definitely recommend doing it this way -- it makes such a difference and the diamond I ended up liking was one I almost didn't include because it seemed like the least attractive on paper/by the photos. $25-$40 to return a diamond is a cheap way to make sure you get a nice stone.

 

[tonkatsu]

By the way, in terms of the cash flow issues around buying multiple diamonds, I used a credit card where a statement had JUST came out, so I'd have about 60 days to get the diamonds, return the ones I didn't like, and have my account credited. (You get about 30 days until a new statement and the 30 days post-statement to pay, so 60 days total.) That's plenty of time, and you never have to pay for a stone you don't keep. This doesn't allow you to take advantage of discounts for cash payments, but it's an effective way to purchase multiple stones and then return some without having to pay (beyond the shipping charges). Again, I'm not sure every vendor allows this, and BN technically doesn't (although it allowed me to). JA seemed to be fine with it.

 

[davepal]

Cool, thanks for the tip. It would be from JA I'd be doing it from. Not sure yet if I'm going to go that route.

 

[tonkatsu]

I think for diamonds with more info and where the stats convey a lot of info about quality, you may not need to do it. (For example, for round brilliants, people on the board seem very adept at judging a rock based on info on the site.) For things like cushion cuts, you basically have to see the stone in person, so doing the "buy two" thing may be a good idea. I did cushion cuts, and I'm really glad I ordered multiple stones. (I ended up buying five! A bit expensive -- $150 or so in return shipping -- but totally worth it.)