Is any of this true???

[babydoll92196]

HI,
I am so happy I found this site. I was wondering what you think about this. I unfortunatley had my engagement ring stolen. It was a 3 stone ring in which the center diamond was .75 carat, j-k in color VS1, VG cut certified diamond. We are now in the position to upgrade. We placed a claim with the insurance co who told us in order to get the full value for the ring we had to use their jewler or he would give a value of the ring based on the appraisal. So we gave the guy a shot. He brought over 2 rings. One was 1.08 carats, G in color, S1 or so he said (it was not certified). The other .98 S1 G in color. He claimed that both of these diamonds were better then my original. Is that true?
It really doesn''t matter. We are looking for a 1 carat or a bit bigger VS1 D color etc. diamond. When we told him what we wanted he was hell bent on getting me to take the S1, claiming that we would be smarter to get a bigger S1 colorless diamond. He said that he bought his wife a VSS2 G 1.5 carat diamond years ago and if he could do it again he''d get her a bigger S1 with color D. Does any of this make sense to anyone??? Any input would be great. Thanks Heather.

 

[belle]

color/clarity don't make a diamond worse or better on their own. the cut makes all the difference in performance. you would have to know the cut quality of the two diamonds to determine which was 'better'.

 

[perry]

Babydoll (AKA Heather):

Welcome to Pricscope.

Unfortunately; I do not see how we can answer your questions related to "is any of this true"

Are the new diamonds better than your old ones? We don''t know what your old diamond was because you cannot give us enough information for us to even debate the issue. There are some great diamonds out there (and several standards of greatness) - but just giving us a size and clarity is not near enough information.

Would you be better off going to a more colorless SI diamond. Perhaps, but perhaps not - it depends on the diamond. I do wonder why the jeweler is pushing you that way. Perhaps they feel that the one is in fact a better diamond. Perhaps it is a diamond that has been in stock too long and they are trying to move it. We don''t know.

Can you hold of on the repalcement a week or so? That would give you time to learn about diamonds - and get a primer on the various issues about diamonds (start with the tuturial, I had to read it sevearl times).

As far as what diamond is best for you. Many variable - and in the end a personal choice as you wiegh the various factors on diamonds. No one here will begrude an eduated choice to sacrifice one aspect in order to get a larger diamond with another aspect that you personnaly value more. We all make such cholces - and there are people here who do get SI diamonds so they can get a bigger diamond for their money.

I will note that a focus on this site is educating people about the importance of cut quality - which is not directly reported by the older fashioned certification process (but some of the new certification processes do now take it into account).

Simply put - some diamonds are really well cut and have maximum light return (brillaince or fire). This represents only about 5% of the diamonds on the market - and in most cases the vendors who specilize in that type of diamond gobble up many of those stones. By and large the stones you see in your local jewelry store do not meet those standards (and may not even come close).

This does not mean that your local jeweler is not offering you some great diamonds. There are good local jewelers as well. I just suggest that you learn enough to understand what they are offereing.

A little education goes a long way here - and can often save you thousands - or let you get a bigger diamond.

As far as vendors to deal with: My personal favorites are NiceIce, Good Old Gold, and Winfields.

Other peopel will recommend other vendors - and that is fine. There are several other well respected jewelrs on this site (Whiteflash, Pearlmans, James Allen, etc).

Keep in mind - personal recomendations are only that. You need to make a judement on how much you trust those who are recommeding them. Look for patterns of recomendations and feel free to search for any vendor using the search feature. No one gets any benifits from recommending jewelrs (there are no kickbacks).

Best of luck with your replacement.

Perry

 

[Kaleigh]

I'm not liking his tactics. Cut cut and cut is key to a diamonds beauty. I'd read the tutorials on here and learn all you can about cut. Be informed, knowledge is everything, and in this case sounds like he is trying to push diamonds that may or may not be a good deal for you. Also you can get the info on the stones and post them here. We can help you, but will need crown and pavillion angles, a sarin, IS etc.... Let him know, you are informed. Good luck!!!

ETA: Many people here have gorgeous stones that are SI1's and SI2's. They are eye clean and represent a great value, but they are all extremely well cut.

 

[Mara]

i don''t know the stones he was showing you so i don''t know whats true or not...but a well-cut J SI stone to me is more valuable than a D IF if it''s not well-cut.

but having bought a VS1 then an SI1 and then an SI2 and now an SI1...i know that i would definitely not spend on VVS or VS clarity if the stone was well-cut and graded by a reputable lab. color is more personal, as it can be more visible to some, but clarity, if the stone is eye-clean and graded well, can be a great way to get a bigger stone and save $$.

focus on getting a well-cut quality stone...because that is what makes the diamond return light and sparkle like mad....you''ve come to the right place to learn. good luck!!

 

[C Smith]

I agree with the above. A well cut SI1 offers the most bang for the buck. It looks as clean as any VS to the naked eye and can be had without paying for something no-one can even see.

 

[denverappraiser]

As with all things insurance, the governing rules are what the policy says and this will change from policy to policy. When in doubt, read the policy.

Full value tends to be a somewhat deceptive term but what you’re describing is fairly typical insurance claims process. The insurance company has agreed to replace your missing ring with another of like kind and quality in the case of a loss. This would mean a 0.75 J-K VS1 as reported by whoever it was who ‘certified’ it or they must pay you in cash whatever it would cost them to do this. Not surprisingly, they drive a pretty hard bargain with the jewelers and they have referred you to a jeweler who has previously agreed to do work for them on a discount basis. Either way it will cost the company the same amount and this is what they consider to be the ‘full value’. It’s almost certainly NOT the same as the bottom line value on the appraisal that you presented when you originally wrote the policy. In yout upgrade, the jeweler is going to receive some money from your insurance company for the claim, and some from you for the difference. If you ask, the insurance company will be happy to tell you what the claims value is and they will pay this amount to the chosen jeweler, to you or to any other 3rd party you select. This information can be very helpful in deciding what your new diamond really costs. Shop wherever you want, the value of the insurance claim usually isn’t affected by this decision.
Neil Beaty
GG(GIA) ICGA(AGS) NAJA
Professional Appraisals in Denver

 

[Eva17]

Even though the certs don''t have all the information you need to clarify the cut of the stone, your original ring had a certificate. I wouldn''t consider a new stone without one. And still ask for the sarin, idealscope, etc....