Is another appraisal needed

[tada]

When you buy a diamond from WF, they supply with with an independent appraisal. Since the stones are GIA, I doubt the appraisal would show much different. But, for insurance purposes, will that appraisal suffice, or is another one paid for by me required?

 

[Richard Sherwood]

If your objective is to get a document which will work for insurance purposes, the appraisal which Whiteflash supplies will work fine.

 

[DMcD]

How much does the price vary from purchase price to appraisal price from somewhere like WF? Does anyone have any examples or ball park figures?

 

[Richard Sherwood]

Date: 8/7/2007 9:13:19 AM
Author: DMcD
How much does the price vary from purchase price to appraisal price from somewhere like WF? Does anyone have any examples or ball park figures?

A ball park figure that seems to be pretty common for well purchased internet stones is 30-35% over purchase price.

 

[DMcD]

Thanks, that is exactly what I was looking for.

 

[denverappraiser]

There are two primary reasons that people buy appraisal services on new purchases.

#1 is to provide information necessary for the shopping experience. This may include such simple tasks as matching the center stone to the one described on a lab report or it may involve grading stones, craftsmanship, cutting, light behavior or other details that may not have been provided by the seller. It also provides a ‘second opinion’ about what you’ve been told by the seller. Your need for this will depend on your relationship with the seller and on what they provide. The requirements to be comfortable with the deal are different for each individual.

#2 is to provide documentation that makes your insurance contract more valuable. A typical insurance policy costs between 1-3% of the declared value per year so over the expected lifetime this can turn out to be as expensive as the initial purchase.

Some deals go very smoothly, they answer any and all questions and the customers really feel that the dealer is their ally in the whole shopping process. Others are more cynical and want that second or even third opinion. Only you can decide if this is going to be helpful.

For the second, the insurance issue, it depends on what the dealer is providing. Frankly I do recommend getting an independent appraisal because it provides an independent witness of the condition of the item at the beginning of the policy and it allows for a final quality check on the workmanship issues by a 3rd party expert but the WF verification letter, the lab report(s), the receipt, and the numerous photographs they provide is really a pretty good document pack for most insurance needs and the fact that it''s included ''free'' as part of the original purchase is certainly an advantage. Meeting the minimum standards for the insurance company is easy. It’s you that should be picky.

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

 

[JohnQuixote]

It may be just a word, but we’re careful not to call our verification letter an appraisal.In many cases the document will help you secure insurance, but it should not be considered a substitute for a full third-party appraisal like Rich, Neil and the other PS appraisers provide (verification info

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