Help! Chipped Diamond

[Chicago3]

Help! I just noticed today that my cushion cut stone is chipped! I am so upset! I took it to two jewelers and each confirmed the chip. The chip is in a very odd space, below the table (from side angle) and close to one of the prongs. I have not banged the ring in anyway and I am not sure what could have caused this. I have a beautiful ring and have been more than neurotic about taking care of it! The report on the diamond shows no flaws. I have only had the stone for two months and both jewelers seemed to indicate that the jeweler who sold it is at fault. Does anyone have experience with this? How do we deal with the jeweler who sold the stone? How does insurance work in terms of getting a new diamond? Please advise! Any help is greatly appreciated as I am at a complete loss now that this has happened.

 

[Kaleigh]

Bumping this so the experts will chime in....

 

[denverappraiser]

Take a deep breath and call your insurer. Most of them have 800 numbers listed on their websites so that they’re easy to contact. Even if you don’t end up filing a claim this is a useful step because they can review with you the relevant parts of the policy and can confirm that this is, or is not, a covered loss. For most ‘standard’ insurance policies where you specifically listed the jewelry this will be a covered loss.

Claims handling procedures will vary from company to company and even state to state but this is always the place to start. There’s a pretty good chance that they will want to have it inspected by some expert who is working on their behalf to confirm the damage. When you bought your policy, you probably submitted an appraisal and they should have kept a copy. They’ll send this in to their replacement jeweler who will make an estimate to replace the stone based on the description in the appraisal. Some companies will let you go to pretty much any jeweler you like while others will require you to shop at one from a fairly short list. When it’s worked out what it is you’ve lost, and what it will cost the insurer to make you whole again, that’s the ‘value’ of the claim. With broken stones, there are generally two choices offered. First they can replace the stone in total and they get to keep the broken one and the second is where they repair the damage and pay you a settlement for the loss in value. The 3rd choice is where they pay you a cash settlement based on what it would cost them to do one of the above, the difference being who gets the salvage. This is the result of a negotiation between you and the adjuster or you and the replacement jeweler (who is working for the adjuster).

Proving that the diamond was somehow defective is unlikely from the start and a difficult task even if it’s true. Some jewelers have warranties that include coverage for this and it will be discussed in the paperwork that they gave you at the time of purchase. If you’re not sure, call them up and ask. I’ll warn you, most don’t and there’s a pretty good chance that the two jewelers you talked to don’t either. They’re just taking an opportunity to slam a competitor. Proving fault isn’t your issue. That’s the insurance company’s job if they can. They will pay you off and, if they think they have a case they will sue the jeweler. Either way it’s not your problem. If the jeweler will replace it, fine, let ‘em. If they won’t, let the insurance company do it. That’s what you’re paying them for.

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

 

[surfgirl]

Neil''s given some very good advice. In the meantime, can I ask...did you ever view your stone through a scope at the shop where you bought it? Or just a small loupe? Was the stone/ring ever appraised by someone other than the store? If so, they should have seen and noted it on your appraisal. Sometimes, an appraiser will remember a stone well so you might call your appraiser if you have one, and ask him to look at it again. See if it jogs his memory at all.

I have a similar issue with my wband so I know how you''re feeling. I just stopped by a jewelry store where I know one of the saleswomen, and she was going to clean my rings but she always checks the settings first under a scope. She did, and we found that several of my diamonds in my wband are loose, and two are chipped. I''ve no idea how that could happen as I''ve only worn the ring for 4 weeks total since I''ve been married and like you, I''m a fiend on being careful when my rings are on. So...''tis a mystery. All you can do is follow Neil''s advice. It''s the nature of the beast, unfortunately. No matter how careful we are, stuff happens. Please let us know what transpires either way...deep breaths...

 

[WorkingHardforSmallRewards]

the first thing I would do is just call up and ask as a normal customer about the stores warranties and diamond guarantees, mention chips and breaking of both prongs and diamonds and see what their policy is, then if it is good new work with them to get it fixed.

Can you tell us the name of the store? some businesses have their store policies online.

 

[Kaleigh]

Date: 10/19/2007 12:02:44 AM
Author: WorkingHardforSmallRewards
the first thing I would do is just call up and ask as a normal customer about the stores warranties and diamond guarantees, mention chips and breaking of both prongs and diamonds and see what their policy is, then if it is good new work with them to get it fixed.

Can you tell us the name of the store? some businesses have their store policies online.

Leave this one to the experts....

 

[WorkingHardforSmallRewards]

Date: 10/19/2007 12:07:49 AM
Author: Kaleigh

Date: 10/19/2007 12:02:44 AM

Author: WorkingHardforSmallRewards

the first thing I would do is just call up and ask as a normal customer about the stores warranties and diamond guarantees, mention chips and breaking of both prongs and diamonds and see what their policy is, then if it is good new work with them to get it fixed.


Can you tell us the name of the store? some businesses have their store policies online.

Leave this one to the experts....

It hardly takes an expert to say, "find out if the store will cover it free of charge first, some do" but a little reiteration on that point never hurt.

I am sorry, but that was just totally unnecessary and contributes nothing to what is no doubt a sensitive topic to the OPoster.

 

[Jenn5504]

I didn't have a chance to read all of the responses right now and I'm sure you've gotten some great advice, but I did want to share my experience with a similar situation. A chip in the girdle of my original princess cut stone was discovered by a jeweler earlier this year. I freaked and called my insurance company and it was actually a relatively painless process. My jewelry is on a personal articles policy with State Farm. I just had to take my ring to the insurance agent----a mile from my house---and that set into action a check being mailed to me which arrived within a couple of days---no deductible. And the check was with inflation. I don't know what sort of policy you have, but this is the very thing these are for. In my case they gave me the optiion of taking the stone out, and just giving me replacement value for that or taking the whole ring and giving me $ for all of it. I chose to start over. I know that replacing a stone is not always easy.........senimental value plus the effort of finding a new rock is tough.....please let us know how everythng goes!

 

[strmrdr]

Date: 10/19/2007 12:11:00 AM
Author: WorkingHardforSmallRewards

Date: 10/19/2007 12:07:49 AM
Author: Kaleigh

Date: 10/19/2007 12:02:44 AM

Author: WorkingHardforSmallRewards

the first thing I would do is just call up and ask as a normal customer about the stores warranties and diamond guarantees, mention chips and breaking of both prongs and diamonds and see what their policy is, then if it is good new work with them to get it fixed.


Can you tell us the name of the store? some businesses have their store policies online.

Leave this one to the experts....

It hardly takes an expert to say, 'find out if the store will cover it free of charge first, some do' but a little reiteration on that point never hurt.

I am sorry, but that was just totally unnecessary and contributes nothing to what is no doubt a sensitive topic to the OPoster.

Hey there, calm down. (note: iv been following the edits so some of this will address stuff not in this quote.)
These threads can sometimes get overly confusing and an answer from someone with a lot of experience dealing with it can give step by step instructions.
This is most likely going to be an insurance matter and having dealt with dozens of insurance companies over claims for clients it can be a real pita if someone doesn't know how it works.
We really do need is a journal article on these situations and diamond durability in general.
That way we have a peer reviewed expert source of information too send them too.

 

[Chicago3]

Thank you for all of your responses - they''re really appreciated! I''m extremely upset about this! I''ve heard so much about diamonds being indestructible and I never imagined mine would chip! It''s such a small chip that its virtually undetectable to the naked eye - unless you closely examine it (like I''m prone to do!) Under the loupe though it looks gigantic! Does anyone know what would cause such a chip to happen? I''ve been so careful and have not banged it at all. As I mentioned before, there were no known flaws to this diamond. We''re meeting with our insurer''s jeweler tomorrow to see what they can offer as a replacement. It''s so hard to think about having to replace the stone. Has anyone ever held onto their chipped diamond and chose not to replace it? I don''t want to have a damaged diamond, yet it''s hard to imagine finding another that I love so much! I will update again when I have some new (hopefully good) news to share.

 

[Lorelei]

So sorry this has happened. Your jeweller / appraiser will be the best person again to advise you - whether a repair is possible or even viable, if it is best left alone, or if you would be better off choosing a replacement. Let them offer their professional advice once they have seen the actual diamond. A diamond can chip more easily than you might think, sometimes folk don't remember anything happening to the stone, or an unlucky blow in just the right place can do it.

Best of luck and hang in there until you know exactly what you are dealing with! I do feel for you!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Whatever you do, do not settle for another stone that you do not love. They can call in more for you to see, and in the end, if they cannot find one that suits you, they will probably write you a check. Then we can help you find someone who specializes in cushions and you can get an outstanding one!

 

[Chicago3]

GREAT NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Wow! My diamond is PERFECT!! We just returned from the insurer''s jeweler where we had a wonderful experience! He scraped something off of the diamond and then cleaned it and it is 100% perfect!! He said what I thought was chip was actually just some substance that dried on the diamond and hardened to it. Its pretty amazing to me that it was just dirty but two jewelers thought there was a chip to it and that under a loupe it looked like a crater. I have no clue how something dried on the diamond - like I said before I am totally neurotic about it - I take it off when I''m putting on lotion, washing hands, doing my hair, anything! But I am SO SO SO happy that is all it was!!!! Thank you again for all of your kind words - I am so thankful that everything worked out, but its nice to know that I''ve got support if I need it! Knock on wood I have no more future issues! Best wishes to all!

 

[Kaleigh]

Date: 10/20/2007 5:18:16 PM
Author: Chicago3
GREAT NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Wow! My diamond is PERFECT!! We just returned from the insurer''s jeweler where we had a wonderful experience! He scraped something off of the diamond and then cleaned it and it is 100% perfect!! He said what I thought was chip was actually just some substance that dried on the diamond and hardened to it. Its pretty amazing to me that it was just dirty but two jewelers thought there was a chip to it and that under a loupe it looked like a crater. I have no clue how something dried on the diamond - like I said before I am totally neurotic about it - I take it off when I''m putting on lotion, washing hands, doing my hair, anything! But I am SO SO SO happy that is all it was!!!! Thank you again for all of your kind words - I am so thankful that everything worked out, but its nice to know that I''ve got support if I need it! Knock on wood I have no more future issues! Best wishes to all!

That''s great news!!! So happy for you, phew!!!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Wow, that''s great!!! And it makes one have very serious concerns about the jewelers who told you it was a chip!!!!