showing the appraiser your diamond''s certification

[davidson]

hey everyone,

i have a question about having a diamond appraised. is it common practice to show the appraiser your diamond''s certification before he takes a look at it? i have an appointment to see an appraiser this week and was asked to bring my diamond''s AGS certificate. i plan to do so, but am concerned that if i show him the certificate before the appraisal, it might influence how he rates the diamond. would it be considered bad form or disrespectful to deny showing him the certificate until after he grades the diamond himself? a cynical side of me is also afraid that instead of properly appraising the diamond, an unskilled appraiser may just parrot the certificate.

thanks for stopping by, any thoughts or comments would be appreciated.

take care all.

 

[newenglandgemlab]

Hi Davidson,

I always ask my clients to bring any paperwork with them but always grade without seeing the report first. This gives you an unbiased opinion of the grading. We go over the report(s) after my initial examination. I had one Saturday that the paperwork called an H and it was an L......I grade with an AGS approved diamond master set and backed my findings up with a colorimeter reading. Naturally it wasn''t an AGS report but it is all good info. I don''t want to be biased and I feel my clients are not paying me to rubber stamp their reports. Hope this helps, Cindy

 

[oldminer]

I allow either way. Some people want to confirm what they already have trust in. They show us paperwork and we do what we need to do to verify its authenticity and accuracy. Other people have doubts about grading in general and would much prefer to see how our grading matches the grading they already have from another lab or the vendor.

Since grading has a lot to do with expertise and opinion, there are times where we just don''t exactly match up to paperwork regardless of when we are shown it. It does not bother us to find we have a different grade than another grader or another lab. It is a large concern for the consumer and we know how to address those fears. Mostly, we address these issues by looking at the overall quality, light behavior and the price being asked versus the theoretical value. Nearly always, diamonds are sold at a competitive price based on the actual grade and cut quality of the diamond in spite of what a lab report may say. An ACTUAL GRADE is a somewhat elusive thing anyway. All experts think their grading is just about perfect. Of course, this is no more the case than any lab having a perfect grading record.

To be fair, there are a couple major labs which call grades very properly nearly all the time. There are other major labs which rarely call the grades as well. No lab could possibly survive giving harsher grades than the those which do a super job, so ONLY labs which grade weaker have an economic chance of making it in the marketplace. Its all very logical if one takes the time to think it through. Simply by struggling daily to match GIA grading, I have found it a very challenging job to get a larger share of trade work. There was a time back in 1981 that interest rates on bank CD''s was 15%. People loved it, and tended to forget how high the inflation rate was. Many people love grading papers with unexplainably high diamond grades even in the face of the reality that it means nothing when it isn''t accurate. Human nature has its strange quirks.

 

[denverappraiser]

I do the same as Cindy. I request clients to bring all paperwork with them to the appointment. This includes lab reports, warranty cards, even receipts and prior appraisals. When grading I’ll inspect the stone first, report my findings and then compare with the lab report. Among other things this allows the chance to determine that it’s the same stone and that it’s not been damaged since the lab or other appraiser saw it. If there is a discrepancy, I’ll then recheck my own tests to make sure I’m confident that it’s not a simple error and will then discuss with the client any and every variation as well as the ramifications.

In every case, the first part of each appraisal is a conversation with the client about what they are expecting to learn from the appointment and this conversation occurs before I look at any of the paperwork or even at the piece itself. This is an opportunity to express your concerns about getting an unbiased grading. No appraiser will be offended by this question, we get it a lot.

With a major lab, like GIA and AGS, the lab paperwork is part of the product, not just a description of it. You paid extra for that and a stone with GIA documentation is worth more than the exact same stone without the pedigree. For this reason, I not only reference the report, I include a copy of it in the body of mine.

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

 

[Modified Brilliant]

and I do the same as Cindy and Neil...

Jeff Averbook, G.G. (Graduate Gemologist since 1986)

www.metrojewelryappraisers.com

 

[davidson]

thanks a lot for the helpful replies, appraisers. i really appreciate it.


have a good one!

 

[oldminer]

The real issue is always that not everyone needs an independent opinion on their purchase, but that we can''t predict who will benefit from the help an expert third party can provide. There are numerous pitfalls for consumers, but many consumers have a trouble free experience wthout any assistance. I have seen many consumers very happy with a bad deal, but they were unaware of it. Ignorance is not where I want to be, but some people find it a place where they have the comfort level they seek.

 

[WorkingHardforSmallRewards]

so in a case where the actual grade was significantly off of the Lab report, would the insurance price be based on the price of the lab graded color or the appraisal color?

 

[oldminer]

Insurance VALUE is based on the true grade ONLY in Utopia. PRICE is often set by the represented grade, a mix of the represented and actual grade, or occasionally, when we visit Utopia, a grade which is correct despite major lab evidence to the contrary.

Insurance replacements are based on how much coverage you have paid for combined with the grade as it is represented on your appraisal report. If the appraisal report is a grade lower than the lab grade and there is sufficient coverage, in dollars, to provide a replacement at the lab grade, I have heard no insurance company make much fuss over a grade difference. Insurance providers know how the game is played. They compete with eachother for customer satisfaction and profits. Believe me, if they were losing money in this arrangement there would be new rules.