Frauduland Diamond Grading?

[RockHugger]

I live in a tiny town and a woman woman has a GIA GD opened a store recently. She owns some other store some 200 miles away.
I went in there to check it out, and of course looked at her loose diamonds. She handed me one, .6ct. Looked to have very good cut and polish, but it had 4 or 5 .5mm feathers coming out of the girdle in different places. I asked "is this an SI2"? And she said NO! It's a VS1. I asked for the price and she said $2300.

I looked for a few more seconds then asked to look at a cushion too. The cushion was 1 ct and had a noticeable yellow tinge and a decent size pit and feather on the table of the stone. It could see it wo the loupe. It was K-ish- and an i1. I asked her what the stats were and she said G, VS2. Price was 6500.

After looking around some more, I said thank you, and left.

Ok....so I can understand different eyes seeing different things, and grading being off slightly. But I can't help but think she is trying to scam uneducated (about diamonds) people in a tiny town. We are the ONLY trained people within 200 miles, and I think she is taking advantage of that. Noone would question a GIA graduates diamond grading around here.

I don't sell many diamonds, and I don't have a local store, so it's not a competitive thing. But I hate seeing people ripped off like that, especially people who are very trusting, and mostly elderly.

What would you do in this situation?

 

[Circe]

Honestly, I don't think there's much you CAN do. If her customers have any sense, they'll insist on getting the stones certified: if not, well ... caveat emptor. Just think about all the people who buy maul diamonds. If any of your clients ask directly, you can give your honest opinion, but anything beyond that, I think you'd be courting charges for either libel or slander, given that it *is* a subjective field ....

 

[RockHugger]

Well I would never talk bad about her store to anyone I'm not close with. My husband and my mother are the only two who have heard me rant about it lol. I'm not that type. I was just wondering if the GIA actually cares if graduates are conducting business like this. People trust us because of the title, and she is using the GIA name to rip people off.

Sadly, a lot of people here don't even have the Internet. So they rely on information given to them from the store.

 

[yssie]

Sadly - it's not fraudulent so long as she is not claiming that the GIA laboratory has issued a report stating evaluation of XYZ for this stone... People do often have more faith in the word of a GG, or a GG's appraisal, than they should

 

[RockHugger]

Well that stinks.

 

[betty6333]

Try only looking at diamonds that are laser inscribed with the GIA or AGS number on the side. If there is no paperwork with it from GIA or AGS, remember that the info they claim is from some one trying to sell you something.

I have had too many people who are certified also give me lines of crap. I just don't trust them anymore. I am not saying all sales people are liars... I am saying if you want to spend your money on a nice stone... get one that is laser inscribed from a reputable grading company. It will save you stress in the long run, ESP when it comes to comparing prices between stones.

 

[Rockdiamond]

I know it was a typo Rock- but that is funny- like you live in Fraudland...hehehe

These points can't be stressed enough-
1) only rely on GIA or AGSL grading
2) If a seller is attempting to pass off stones with lesser lab reports- and not explaining that the report is not considered valid by the trade, it's a HUGE red flag. Also important is that there's nothing wrong with a stone simply because it has a non GIA report- but the grade should be viewed sceptically.

With regard to laser inscription: Most diamonds with GIA reports do not have the inscription.
If a consumer is comfortable with the seller, and they are offering GIA graded stones that are not inscribed, it's by no means a rad flag.
Furthermore, the inscription itself should not be relied upon to a greater degree that the reputation of the seller. The reason is that laser inscriptions are inexpensive, so make sure you're buying from a reputable dealer.

 

[RockHugger]

Lol! Sorry for the typo! I am on an IPad, and sometimes it makes up its own words and fills it in as i'm typing. Frauduland is a new one, lol!

Great tips though!

 

[iota15]

As subjective as the grading process might be, it's not lax enough to be THAT far off. There is still some type of objective, internationally recognize standard for what a VS1 or I1 should be. Movement's allowed within that band, but a stone with multiple eye visible inclusions claimed to be a "VS2" or "VS1"??? That's a gross misrepresentation and should be illegal, if it's not.

Plus, G stones, regardless of the laxity should not have a visibly, discernably yellow tinge (or what you'd consider a K). I read enough here to know YOU would probably only be off by one or two grades at most. This is outrageous. Especially since she's warranting a better product than what she's selling.

It's like selling health food products filled with lard. Or a car dealer warranting that a truck is in "excellent" shape when he KNOWS it's on its last legs! Plus, since she's gone through some type of grading training, she should KNOW that these aren't even remotely accurate grades.

I'd consider reporting her - whether to the GIA institute where she obtained her GG, or to the BBB. Consumer protection legislation/boards in your state might also be interested. Let the interested authorities know and investigate her. I'd only worry about libel and slander if what you are saying is NOT TRUE. If it's true, I hope someone would report and protect my grandmother from this rip-off artist.

 

[megumic]

Can you report her to the Better Business Bureau?

 

[denverappraiser]

Although many jewelers grade things using the GIA grading scales, or at least attempt to, it's NOT required and those in Frauduland can and do do whatever they want. Start by voting with your feet and refusing to buy diamonds or anything else there.

A random story:

Several decades ago, we had a major retailer here in town who had invented his own grading scale that just happened to have the same acronyms as the GIA scale and a few of the other gemological buzzwords just for good measure. 'Very Special' 1 and 2, 'Super Ideal' 1 and 2, etc. Needless to say this did not match the GIA version of VS1 and 'ideal' wasn't even about cutting but they had a pretty good business goiong for many years with people who bought it. Eventually they passed it on to a new generation and the younger folks were embarassed enough by it that they changed their way of doing business. It wasn't pressure from the BBB or the FTC that brought them around, it was pressure from the customers. This game still happens in a big way. Look around for an SI3 and see how easy it is to find and I know a major diamond operation who STILL includes 'warped' and 'commercial' as important parts of their grading system.

 

[yssie]

Although many jewelers grade things using the GIA grading scales, or at least attempt to, it's NOT required and those in Frauduland can and do do whatever they want. Start by voting with your feet and refusing to buy diamonds or anything else there.

A random story:

Several decades ago, we had a major retailer here in town who had invented his own grading scale that just happened to have the same acronyms as the GIA scale and a few of the other gemological buzzwords just for good measure. 'Very Special' 1 and 2, 'Super Ideal' 1 and 2, etc. Needless to say this did not match the GIA version of VS1 and 'ideal' wasn't even about cutting but they had a pretty good business goiong for many years with people who bought it. Eventually they passed it on to a new generation and the younger folks were embarassed enough by it that they changed their way of doing business. It wasn't pressure from the BBB or the FTC that brought them around, it was pressure from the customers. This game still happens in a big way. Look around for an SI3 and see how easy it is to find and I know a major diamond operation who STILL includes 'warped' and 'commercial' as important parts of their grading system.

that's hilarious Super Ideal sounds way cooler than Very Special, what a way to move SIs..