Some opinions on whether I was being unreasonable? Long post...

[bookworm21]

Hi all, as some of you may recall, I had my 0.88 asscher reset into a custom setting with tapered baguettes on the side. The sales person and I discussed my budget and we agreed on an amount and carat weight of the side stones. She assured me that the quality of those stones will be equal to my asscher.

When I went to pick up the completed ring three weeks later, I noticed right away that one of the stones was either poorly cut or heavily included. When I looked at it under a loupe, I saw that it was mainly the cut that made it look so awful. It was supposed to be an F-G stone, but the color was noticeably yellow. There was also a polish line across the table that I later pointed out to their GIA gemologist, who agreed with me. (She was impressed that I recognized it for what it was. Thanks PS!)

I pointed out the inferior stone to the sales person when I picked up my ring, and she kind of poo-poohed me and said that I have eagle eyes, and that most people wouldn''t even notice it. Well, I said that I would be the main person who would be looking at it all the time, and I did notice it and it bothers me. She then said that the stone wasn''t included, but that it was most likely the reflection of the metal that the stone was set in.

I asked her to call in several more stones and have me look at them and approve them before purchasing. So I wait a month (all the jewelers and cutters were apparently on vacation around the same time in July), and she finally calls me to come in to look at two stones. I go in, she''s not at work, and I speak to the GIA certified gemologist they have on staff, and she looks at the stones with me. I pointed out that the new stones are not a perfect match, one was longer in length than the other, and she agreed. So she said that she will speak to the original sales person for me and they would try to match them up as best they can.

One week later, today, they called me in to look at another pair of stones that they called in. I went in, approved it, and was told that I had to pay an additional $265 for these stones. Now, the carat weight for these are .21, and the old ones in the ring are .14, but I didn''t feel that I should have to shell out that much to have them fix something that shouldn''t have happened in the first place.

I originally gave her a budget, which was $2000. She said sure, their jeweler can do it for that amount. The side stones will be an additional $250, which I approved, because I really wanted the ring to look nice. When I asked her to call in the new stones, she said that there will be an increase in cost, and I said fine, thinking that it would be around $100 or so, since there isn''t much leeway in size. When I balked at the price difference, she said that they are paying for the jeweler to fix the ring out of their own pocket and that I had to pay for the difference in carat weight for the stones. I disagreed and said that this has been a huge inconvenience for me, because I have to go out of my way into dowtown SF, find and pay for parking 3 different times. This doesn''t include the price of gas.

She insisted I had to pay the difference, saying that the reason why this had happened was because I gave her a low budget to work with. I said that a low budget doesn''t mean that you have to compromise the quality of the final piece. That''s when she got upset, and her voice and manner got a bit unctuous. Finally, I decided it wasn''t worth the hassle and offered to pay $250 with no tax for the difference. She reluctantly agreed.

So now the price of the reset is $2500. Please tell me whether I was being unreasonable by trying to insist that they should have taken responsibility for the difference in price. I just feel that if this was done correctly in the first place (by locating well-matched, well-cut stones), all this hassle could have been avoided.

Sorry for the long post.

 

[isaku5]

When I had my princess upgrade re-set, I wanted trillions and I actually visited 3 different vendors, 2 of whom brought in several pairs to choose from. Once DH and I had decided on which pair we wanted, only then did we go ahead and have them set.

Even though your baguettes were not large, I''m surprised your jeweller didn''t do the same for you. Did they even offer to bring in pairs of stones for you??

What would really make the whole episode worth it in my opinion is that you have lovely matching baguettes; however, if it were me, I would never go back to that place of business. They obviously don''t care about pleasing their clients.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

I agree. Is there someone higher up you can talk with (owner, GM?) They should replace the stone for free. Did you have the estimate or the quality you agreed on in writing? I think a business reputation is everything so if they see you as a threat they will bend over backwards to fix the problem.

 

[widget]

Hummph....well, at least you now know one jeweler NOT to give your future business to!

I don''t think you were being unreasonable at all! I think it''s perfectly reasonable to expect side bags to be clean, well cut and well matched....and to reject them if they aren''t!

I also think the notion of the customer coming in to "pre-approve" small sidestones...especially baguettes...is absurd. That''s the jewelers job.

I would have caved and paid too, just to settle the hassle...but I would have been mad.

If it''s any consolation, I love love love your ring. (For those who don''t know, I got to see it IRL at the Bay Area GTG). It''s my ''poster'' child for what a perfect, balanced, well proportioned and classic asscher mounting should look like.

widget

 

[bookworm21]

Thanks Isabel for the quick response (and for having enough patience to slog through my post). I've already decided that I won't go back to them again, which is a shame, since I was initially extremely happy with them and their service.

Funny thing is, she never called me to look at the original pair of baguettes before they were set. She just chose them and sent it over to the jeweler without having me look at them. I guess that should have been a warning sign.

ETA: Oops, sorry, everyone posted before me here. Thanks again to everyone who had the patience to slog through that post. And thanks Widget for the compliment!

Tacori, I didn't request to speak to the owner or anything, mainly because there was nothing in writing that the baguettes had to be a certain quality. I assumed that it was implied, because she kept asking the specs of my stone.

Apparently, they didn't see me as enough of a threat? Perhaps because I'm so young and I've dressed really casually all the times I've been there. I obviously demonstrated my knowledge about diamonds, but it didn't seem as though they took that into account. I'm wondering if I should speak to the owner now.

 

[WinkHPD]

Strange. As a jeweler I am some times mystified at people''s actions. Why did they not just call a few suppliers and find another pair of baguettes that were the right size so they did not have to rework the mounting? It is not as if baguettes are hard to find in any given size range.

I can understand why they wanted you to pay for the extra diamond weight, the people involved are probably not authorized to do differently without you speaking to the owner or manager, but I fail completely to understand why the thought they needed to get bigger stones. very strange and possibly says something about their lack of good contacts in the trade.

Wink

 

[bookworm21]

That''s what I was thinking too, but I thought it would have been ok because they''ve been in business since the 1930s. The sales lady kept telling me that it was difficult to find stones that small, that most people didn''t cut them in that size. I''m beginning to really wonder how much of what she tells me is true. First, she tells me the inferior baguette looks the way it does because of the reflection of the metal that it''s set in, implying that the metal was finished properly. But when I spoke to their staff GIA gemologist, she said that it was because the stone was poorly cut, namely too shallow.

Should I ask to speak to the owner about this or just let it go at this point? I''m planning to never go there again.

 

[denverappraiser]

I see quite a few problems with this scenario that could have been avoided. At the risk of picking on you, some of this is partially your fault for following along but mostly it's the jeweler in the drivers seat here.

#1 The take in slip, or work order or whatever it was to describe the purchase didn’t specifically state sizes and grades on the baguettes and it should have. Almost always the person who is selecting the parts and the person making the ring are not the same as the one who you’re talking to and they will be relying on the written work order. It benefits both you and the jeweler to see to it that these are as detailed and specific as possible.

#2 The price should have been clearly established up front and put on the work order. You apparently thought the budget was carved in stone, they apparently thought it wasn’t. Either way is fine, but you should agree up front what the expectations are for both sides.

#3 As Wink points out, 0.14ct of baguettes is a pretty easy purchase with almost any set of clarity/color combinations that you want. Even in July. Something is fishy here. $265 for 0.07cts. ($3785/ct.) of baguettes is a pretty strong price since they are supposedly absorbing all of the labor. Something tells me you’re being charged for something else. This would be ok if everyone knew what was going on and you are paying for modification of the mounting to accommodate the bigger stones, an upgrade in the quality or some such thing but this doesn’t sound like this is what you’re being told.

#4 When it was determined that the original price was inadequate, they needed to go back to step #1 and quote you a new price, provide you with the new specs and get your agreement that this new plan will be acceptable. The $250 should not have been a surprise after you supposedly agreed to it. If the original deal was for a fixed price, they should have honored it.

#5 If a salesperson is unhappy with your proposed budget during a sale they have 3 reasonable options. They can persuade you to increase your budget to get what you want, they can offer you an alternative purchase that they CAN provide for your budget, or they can refuse your business. You have the option of accepting their proposal or shopping elsewhere. It’s completely unreasonable to promise the moon for a particular price, deliver less, and then blame it on the budget.

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

 

[oldminer]

It sounds like you are difficult but not unreasonable. The fact that you are an informed customer gives you the authority to be properly served since you would know the difference. SOmetimes the extra knowledge is a burden, but it is worth the trouble to get it right. You ended up with a compromise that costs both you and them some money. It isn''t all on you. I''d say it was a reasonable result.

I sure hope the end product pleases you.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

yes I would speak to the owner and not waste anymore time with this sales person.

 

[snlee]

I don''t think you''re being unreasonable. I would talk to the owner and tell them why you at dissatisfied.

BTW, I absolutely love your ring too!