Major Issue with Appraiser

[csullivan13]

I found a local appraiser through the PS resources page very near my house. I had her evaluate my stone prior to having it set. I paid $100 at the time and I received a hand written receipt and was told to come back when we were engaged to complete the info. Well, my fiance surprised me with the ring in a few short days.

I called the appraiser to schedule another appointment about 3 weeks after our initial meeting. I saw the document with my stone information just waiting for the setting info to be filled in. She said she would finish it up and I asked if she would mail it to me. She had my address typed right on it and said it would be no problem. Now it''s 4 weeks later, she hasn''t mailed the appraisal and will not answer the phone or return the numerous messages I''ve left.

I have no choice but to try and go to her house which is where the appraisal took place and see if I can catch her at home. Short of that, I have no idea what else to do. I checked BBB and there are no ratings at all. I''m very upset about this, it''s ruining the great experience I had till now with getting this ring. I don''t want to spend another $125 getting another appraisal and I''m so angry because now I can''t have it appraised with the stone loose which I believe is less accurate. I don''t want anyone to try and reset my ring which is an unusual bezel setting and I can''t go through sending it back to the designer. This is so upsetting!

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Can I contact the people who certified her and have her credentials yanked?

 

[denverappraiser]

I’m really sorry to hear of your difficulty. My understanding is that you have all of your merchandise and all you are missing is the appraisers report, correct?

I surely hope she’s OK and that she’s just delinquent in doing her paperwork.

How did you pay the $100? If it was by credit card, call your CC company and reverse the charge. This isn’t as permanent as it sounds but it’ll either kick her into action or end the deal with a refund.

What credentials does she advertise? A complaint down this channel will almost certainly get some attention but it may be a little on the slow side depending on who we’re talking about. Several of them do this sort of thing through a staff of volunteers and that’s never the best way to get top speed responses.

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