full payment prior to making custom piece?

[togal]

I'm second guessing myself. I recently commissioned a diamond bracelet from a local jeweller (not internet). I have purchased loose stones from this jeweller in the past (that's their primary business) but have never had anything made by them. I chose the diamonds and was satisifed with the price they quoted for both the stones and to make the piece, and said that I would go ahead with it. I asked how much of a deposit they wanted, and they told me that they only accept full-payment upfront via any of the major credit cards. I thought this was a bit odd, but thought if there was any problem, I always had the backing of the credit card company. I'm still waiting for the piece, which is supposed to be ready in the next week or so. Question: is it normal practice to pay for a piece in full prior to receiving it? I know that via interent, this would be the case, but I have never paid in full for a custom piece prior to receiving it before. Was this dumb of me to do? I'm concerned that they will not be as efficient, since they've already been paid.

 

[togal]

sorry...put this in the wrong forum....should be in Rocky Talky. Will contact forum admin to move it.

 

[Richard Sherwood]

I'm curious about this myself. Ordinarily I would expect a large deposit or half payment up front, but not the entire amount. It would seem you lose control of the transaction, removing incentive for an expedient completion.

Has anyone else had to pay in full up front? How did it work out, if so.

 

[Lynn B]

I've had several custom jobs done, from several different vendors (all via internet, though)... and each time, I have been asked to put 50% down, with balance due upon completion of the job. I feel this is fair -- and honestly, I don't think I'd be 100% comfortable with (or happy about

) paying the full 100% up front.

 

[Gypsy]

Date: 10/24/2007 8:40:05 PM
Author: Lynn B
I''ve had several custom jobs done, from several different vendors (all via internet, though)... and each time, I have been asked to put 50% down, with balance due upon completion of the job. I feel this is fair -- and honestly, I don''t think I''d be 100% comfortable with (or happy about

) paying the full 100% up front.

Ditto. I haven''t paid full up front either. Wouldn''t feel comfortable, even with CC dispute back up. Just me.

 

[denverappraiser]

Back when I did this sort of work I always charged a deposit that was sufficient to cover all of the materials required for the job. There would be a design fee up front and when the design was complete and we knew what materials would be required I would ask for the deposit. With some things this would turn out to be the majority of the cost and on others it would be not so much. It would just depend on the job. On pieces where the materials component was low, like things made out of silver or inexpensive stones, I would charge half of the estimate up front and the remainder COD.

Neil Beaty
GG(GIA) ICGA(AGS) NAJA
Professional Appraisals in Denver