This address aired Dateline 2005.
It’s aloof a able agglomeration of carbon, but absolutely a design is so abundant more. It’s about the best adored and allusive allotment of adornment bodies buy. Aftermost year, Americans spent an estimated $30 billion on diamonds.
But how can bodies be abiding of what they’re accepting for their money? Is there such a affair as "a deal" aback it comes to diamonds? A "Dateline" hidden camera analysis baldheaded secrets about how chunk are evaluated and sold.
It's all in the certificate All this begins with a agenda or affidavit that about comes with chunk aback you buy them. It shows the grade, the quality of the stone, and may additionally accommodate a dollar appraisal. Chunk that appear this way are frequently referred to as “certified.”
Jewelers say it’s a reliable way to buy a design because the certificates assure ambiguous shoppers about the diamond’s affection and value.
To accept the advice on those certificates, you charge to apperceive a little about how the experts brand diamonds.
It’s all about the four "C" s:
The certificates that spell out the four "C"s appear from complete labs. Jewelers acquiescently accord them to you aback you acquirement the diamond. And the certificates about accommodate dollar appraisals.
Posing as shoppers Two “Dateline” staffers airish as a brace attractive for an assurance ring. We bought bags of dollars account of chunk in several places— at New York’s design district, retail food and on the Internet.
At best of the stores, clerks acicular to the appraisement as affirmation that we were accepting a bargain.
For instance, we bought a design arena at Zales, the better adornment alternation in the nation. They said the arena we chose was on sale. It was affairs for $4,000, but the appraisement said the arena was absolutely account added than $5,000. (That would be a bargain!)
We additionally looked for a arena at Walmart, the country’s better retailer. For a arena with an acquainted amount of $3,300, we paid aloof beneath $2,000.
So why would they advertise it for so abundant beneath than the acquainted value? The agent told us it was because of Walmart’s retail ascendancy that we were accepting such a abundant price. That ability be allotment of it, but repeatedly, we concluded up advantageous essentially beneath than the acquainted values. It appeared we had adored bags of dollars, and had gotten some admirable stones.
At Zales, we alike got what the agent told us was a complete diamond. The bean was small, but we were told it was flawless. We paid $999 for the design ring, alike admitting its appraisement said it was account $1,275.
We now had a accumulation of chunk in our possession. In about every case we were told we got a abundant accord — and key were those appraisals.
But how do jewelers and gem labs appear up with those appraisals?
It afresh goes aback to those four “C”s of design grading. The appraisement is based on how the carat, cut, accuracy and blush of a design are judged.
Testing the labs But “Dateline” capital to see aloof how authentic and reliable design allocation absolutely is, so we did article no customer would do: We removed the stones from their settings and beatific them to four altered gemological labs.
Would the labs all adjudicator the 4 “C”s of our chunk the aforementioned way? Or alike bout the allocation certificates we got aback we bought the diamonds?
We enlisted the aid of Cap Beesley, adept gemologist and admiral of American Gemological Laboratories. He graded the chunk himself, accurate that the chunk we beatific out were the chunk we got back, and he helped us to accept the results.
And those after-effects afraid us: Some of the grades assorted decidedly from lab to lab — and in fact, except in one case, none of the chunk was graded the aforementioned by Beesley and the labs.
"Consumers basically accept that these grades are adamant in bean when, in actuality there is a aerial amount of subjectivity," says Beesley.
Consumers ability accept the certificates are 100 percent reliable, but apprehend the accomplished print. They say: “This address is not a guarantee” and “Gemstone allocation is not advised a science... after-effects of any assay performed may differ.”
We alike beatific the stones aback to the actual aforementioned labs that supplied the certificates that came with the chunk aback we bought them. And alike some of those after-effects assorted the additional time around.
How can that be?
Diamond allocation added abstract than it seems It turns out the industry allows for a allowance of absurdity aback it comes to allocation — it’s alleged “tolerance.” Best of the variances on our stones were aural that tolerance, but appraisals are based on grading, so those variations could absolutely affect the amount of a diamond.
A brand either way could be account a thousand dollars — or more. "It depends on the admeasurement of the bean and the affection level, so it can be substantial," says Beesley.
Remember that alleged “perfect” design we bought at Zales?
When we beatific the apart bean aback to the lab, and it came aback with a abundant lower brand on one of those 4 Cs, specifically, the clarity. It accordingly had a abundant lower appraisal. Aback we bought it our affidavit said it was account $1,275. Now the design was acquainted for hundreds of dollars less.
“I anticipate it’s apparently one of the added base things in our industry — appraisals acclimated as business tools,” says Don Palmieri, a chief affiliate of the American Society of Appraisers. “You get a aerial appraisal, you airing out cerebration you aloof got the aftermost abundant deal. But you aloof got apprenticed with that document.”
We asked Palmieri to analysis the appraisals that came with the diamonds. He said in best cases the appraisals were grossly inflated. “Those prices came from the bazaar imagination, I believe, of the banker and the laboratory,” he says.
Still, abounding retailers like to use those appraisement numbers as gospel. After all, it helps them accomplish the sale.
Palmieri says the acquainted amount should never be taken as an absolute. Alike the labs don’t affirmation to be accouterment annihilation added than an accomplished opinion.
Again, aloof apprehend the accomplished print, which has curve like: "appraisals are bona fide opinions..." and “these ethics are not for advance purposes, nor are they an endorsement of the amount you should pay."
Will this amount you money? Relying on any appraisement that’s essentially added than you paid could end up costing you money if you pay college premiums aback it’s time to insure.
Kelly McDermott paid $8,200 for her arena but was assertive it was absolutely account $15,000 based on an aggrandized appraisement from her jeweler. And so she paid the allowance premiums based on that affected $15,000 value.
But aback she absent the ring, the allowance aggregation said it would alter the arena or accord her a analysis for what it would amount them to alter it — $8,900.
“Five years, I’ve been advantageous these aggrandized premiums and it makes me angry, because I should accept the arena insured for what it’s worth,” she says.
Who's responsible: The retailers or the labs? The retailers we talked to told us they await on the able ability of the labs and referred us to them. The labs told us they strive for bendability and that the variances were about accustomed in the trade. (The lab that regraded the Zales design so abundant lower the additional time told us the architect ability accept accidentally switched the stone.)
“I can not allocution to how added bodies are appraising,” says Jerry Ehrenwald, admiral of International Gemological Institute. “Appraisers are evaluating at the actual akin for backup for the purposes of allowance coverage.”
Ehrenwald says he bases his appraisals on accustomed industry standards. But still he says, consumers shouldn’t await alone on the appraisement aback they assure jewelry: “If the applicant pays beneath money than the acquainted value, they should abide the sales cancellation to the allowance company.”
Ehrenwald says consumers would accept the limitations of allocation and appraisals if they spent added time account — and beneath time alert to the sales pitches.
“The address should be apprehend in its absoluteness so that the customer is not abased on what the sales being tells them. A sales being can say annihilation they want,” says Ehrenwald.
So how can you be abiding of a diamond’s worth? The best way is to analyze the design you appetite to buy with added chunk that accept agnate concrete characteristics, apprehend the accomplished book on allocation certificates and appraisals, and chase these words of acumen from an adjudicator himself: “That bean is account what the merchant awash it for,” says Palmieri. “If it was account more, the merchant wouldn’t advertise it for the amount they’re affairs it for.”
© 2013 MSNBC Interactive. Reprints
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