Purchase Preparation – Seller, Appraiser, Insurance, Designer

[Appreciative-of-expertise]

Thank you, all, for your help with educating me on diamonds and assisting me with the purchase of a 3ct Princess center stone.

1)I now seek your guidance regarding how to coordinate the appraisal of the stone, the movement between the seller, appraiser, setting designer and back to me, the purchaser. What are the general logistics?

2)I also seek your guidance regarding insurance; ie, when should it be purchased, any specific areas of coverage (Stone chipping-during mounting, etc)?

3)Are there any specific terms and conditions that I should address in the sales contract?, the Appraiser’s contract?, the Setting designer’s contract?

This is starting to become much more exciting as we start to make the last lap of the race!!!! I can’t thank you enough for the help!

 

[valeria101]

Just some suggestion for starters. These are all things that have been addressed in older posts, but rather piece-meal: this is the first thread I know of bringing all together. I truly hope it gets long and thorough for this reason.

Do you want to *see* the stone before it gets into the ring? Do you want the diamond appraised and insured or rather the entire ring? As far as I know insurance on the stone does not cover potential damage during setting... but here I hope someone could come with more detailed knowledge (your insurer is probably the best to ask beyond all).

If both answers are NO, the route:

seller -> setter (designer) -> appraiser -> buyer

looks like the shortest. On the way, you'd get the appraisal report and deal with insurance.

Contracts ? never wrote one with my jeweler: he'd probably have a hart attack at the sound of the word. Hope someone else can help with that part.

 

[Appreciative-of-expertise]

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Do you want to *see* the stone before it gets into the ring? Do you want the diamond appraised and insured or rather the entire ring? As far as I know insurance on the stone does not cover potential damage during setting... but here I hope someone could come with more detailed knowledge (your insurer is probably the best to ask beyond all).
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YES! - I want to see the stone. I want to be able to "play" with it and be able to look at it through magnification prior to a setting being attached. I can't wait to see it under different light conditions.


One appraiser mentioned to me that the consumer could insure for setting chippage but the appraiser could not. I was also planning to insure the setting given that it, too, will have been a significant expenditure. Are there special policies out there?
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If both answers are NO, the route:


seller -> setter (designer) -> appraiser -> buyer looks like the shortest. On the way, you'd get the appraisal report and deal with insurance
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My desire is more : Seller ->Buyer->appraiser (stone verification) ->designer (Setter) --> appraiser -->buyer
Should the stone be insured prior to leaving the seller's location similar to purchasing a new automobile?


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Contracts ? never wrote one with my jeweler: he'd probably have a hart attack at the sound of the word. Hope someone else can help with that part.
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I'm seeking advise regarding language (terms and conditions) that should be included in the "purchase agreement", "Statement of Work" for the designer and the Appraisal Request." It makes me a little nervous to have that much money floating around that involve multiple parties. I'm hoping that there are some general guidelines to factor into each agreement. Are there???

Thanks!!

 

[hoorray]

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On 2/2/2004 9:27:08 AM Appreciative-of-expertise wrote:


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Do you want to *see* the stone before it gets into the ring?
YES! - I want to see the stone. I want to be able to 'play' with it and be able to look at it through magnification prior to a setting being attached. I can't wait to see it under different light conditions.

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Another route you could take if you are worried about getting all of this done within your return window, is to pick an appraiser who is local to you, and make an appointment to review the loose stone together. That way you can see the stone loose; you can probably examine it under their microscope, and you get the benefit of their expertise live during the evaluation. Then you can have it set and returned to the appraiser for a final review and the insurance appraisal of the finished ring.

 

[pqcollectibles]

If I am correct, you've chosen a diamond from Good Old Gold. GOG has clearly stated policies listed on their website and they are extremely reputable. IMHO, advertised policies would consitute a "legally binding contract" of sorts. These are the things we will and will not do for a customer. If you need, for example, an extended preview period, this would have to be addressed with GOG in advance.

As far as dealing with Mark Morrell, quoted from his website:

"Can I be sure that I'll get my stone(s) back and not someone else's by mistake?
Yes.

We have some procedures in place that will insure that no mistakes are made in returning customer's stones when their jewel has been completed and stones have been set. First, we're very careful about such things. Second and very important is that ... We only accept items of any value from accredited appraisers or verifiable dealers. We do not accept any stones or jewelry directly from consumers. Please make note of this.

For the peace of mind of all concerned parties, we insist that you have your valuable items, such as diamonds and gemstones, evaluated for authenticity and condition by an accredited appraiser prior to sending us anything. If you are working with a dealer of diamonds or gemstones, we will typically accept shipments directly from that dealer. Nothing should be shipped to us directly by any consumer.

We will ship your finished goods back to the dealer or appraiser for verification of authenticity and condition before you receive them. "

The MM website says he works with 2 appraisers, but will consider others after investigation of their credentials. That may be an issue you wish to investigate more thoroughly in advance. You may decide to use a MM approved appraiser or ship the diamond back to GOG for submission.

After you preview the diamond in person and decide it's a keeper, you then go to an approved, agreed upon appraiser. After the appraiser evaluates the diamond, the appraiser can ship your diamond to MM. The finished ring will be shipped back to the appraiser. Or,.... You can preview the diamond, have it evaluated by an appraiser, and ship the stone back to GOG. GOG will submit the diamond to MM and MM will ship the completed ring back to GOG. Either way, you will need a fair market value of the completed ring for insurance purposes.

Other than the statement quoted above in FAQ's on MM's website, I did not find written policies. Any contracts or written guantees you feel you need from MM should be negotiated in advance.

As far as insurance, some carriers offer loose stone coverage, some don't. The diamond will be insured during shipping from place to place, so that is not a concern. You'll just have to check around with different carries for loose stone coverage. You can get chip and damage coverage as a part of your insurance on the completed ring. You might search previous Forum threads for info on insurance. It's been a heavily discussed topic in the past. Chubb and Jeweler's Mutual are 2 companies that come to mind. You can also check with your Homeowner's or Renter's insurance agent about a seperate rider as an attachment to your current policy.