e-ring exchange issue

[Xenon]

I am having quite a disappointing experience and would love to hear what the Pricescope community has to say on this matter. Here is the (long) story:
Recently I purchased a ring from a brand-name boutique (I'd prefer not to name the brand but it is one of the expensive ones). I knew what carat range I wanted and I wanted the best quality for that size within my budget: D-F, VVS1-2, and Excellent cut. The sales associate was nice and helped me to find a loose diamond meeting my criteria (except the budget: I had to spend almost $5K on top of the originally planned $20K). I was determined to get a ring - there where only two weeks left until our trip to Europe, during which I am planning to propose in front of her family - so I said, "ok, lets do it". Then the SA found another loose diamond in the inventory, slightly bigger and marginally more expensive, and asked me if I would prefer that one. I asked whether, besides the carat and price, everything else was the same for the two diamonds. The sales associate said "yes'. So I purchased the bigger diamond. After all, my GF was with me in the boutique (trust me, I would not be able to select a ring without her).
8 days before the trip: The ring was made and delivered in three days. When I opened the certificate, I was very unpleasantly surprised: It was a Very Good Cut (not Excellent). So I called the boutique to voice my frustration and discuss potential exchange protocol (at this point I was not yet confident whether to keep or exchange it). Here is the boiled-down version of the conversation:
SA: "No, what you got it IS an excellent cut". I would like to believe that the SA genuinely though so and just never bothered to check the certificate.
Me: "No, it is on the certificate - Very Good Cut. Can you pls check your records?"
SA: "Ahhh, but you wanted a bigger diamond and we never checked the certificate for it".
Me: "What should I do if I want to exchange"
SA: "Let's not do anything right now. Let you fiancee fall in love with the ring. If she does not, we will take care of everything to make you happy" Btw, the SA knew about our upcoming trip and the time-lines.
7 days before the trip: I lost some sleep over this situation and next day was confident that I wanted to exchange it. I notified the SA by email asking to put the smaller diamond on hold for me and start processing it as soon as I return the one I got.
The SA replied along the lines of: "This is no problem. We will keep the ring for a few days to check it and then order the triple excellent cut to be created."
6 days before the trip: I returned the ring to the boutique and reminded about our time-line. Was told by the SA: "Holiday season is very busy. Do not have your hope high that we can do it on time". So I spoke to the boutique director. He assured "I will take care of this".
Today (4 days before the trip): I got a message from the boutique director, which basically said: "the smaller diamond you wanted is no longer available. in fact, there is only one ring/diamond that meets your specs but you will have to pay more"

I don't really have an option and I will pay. But what would you do?

 

[AprilBaby]

Looks to me like they want to stick you with the diamond you have. Sorry for your situation. I would return the whole mess and start over with another vendor.

 

[Xenon]

Looks to me like they want to stick you with the diamond you have. Sorry for your situation. I would return the whole mess and start over with another vendor.

Thanks for reply. Yes, keeping the diamond was their advice. However, I have already returned it to the boutique and taking it back is simply unacceptable for me at this point. There is no cash refund. Besides, we looked at several brands and really liked this ring design.

 

[Lula]

If you want to a) propose on your trip; and, b) stick with this setting from this boutique; and, c) you don't want "very good" cut (I wouldn't either for what you paid), then your only option is to try and get them to negotiate a bit on the price of the better cut diamond. But I wouldn't wait too long, or they are likely to tell you that that ring has sold, too.

ETA: The other thing I'd do is consider rings with slightly lower color and clarity grades, to see if they have other options in your price range with better cut. I'd compromise on color and clarity way before I'd compromise on cut.

 

[tweep0]

Wow... what a crappy situation. The boutique really screwed you. Out of spite, I would post the name of the boutique. Here's my advice:

If you really want to get engaged during your trip... you don't really have much choice. Stick with the ring. If they do have a return policy on paper... definitely take advantage of it! And I would definitly lower the color and clarity grade. You won't be able to tell the difference between a D and a H stone. And an eye clean VS2 or SI1 is just as beautiful as a VVS2 to the naked eye. By doing this, you'll be able to upgrade to an excellent cut and maybe even a bigger stone for a cheaper price.

How did they not know the cut of the diamond. Insane!!!

 

[yssie]

what are the numbers on this "VG" cut (I assume GIA grading?) ?


Some VGs will have less visible leakage than some EXs. This is because GIA evaluates cut by assigning ranges for the various proportions for each cut grade, but they don't factor in how the relationships between those proportions - how those proportions work together.. I would much rather a lucky VG than a leaky EX (though no EX cut is going to be ugly viewed with two eyes IRL, mind!), best to just make sure you aren't switching out a beauty before going through it all.

 

[Gypsy]

I'd want a full refund and wouldn't bother with anyone in that store. I'd call and ask for the name and number of the distric tmanager (if it is a chain store). Then I'd return the ring and dispute it with your credit card if they won't offer you a full refund for misrepresentation.

Threaten them with the BBB. Then take your money elsewhere.

 

[oldminer]

You were way too easy with them all along. Setting a budget and sticking to it would have gained you some respect. They really pushed you around and I can't blame you for being angry since you were such a nice and easy customer. Too easy, it would seem.

I think your fiance' would have equal respect for you if you stood up to a SA and would not accept a diamond above uyour limit to appease the SA and her. You are setting a bad tone for the future, I'm afraid.

I sure hope you can eventually make the exchange or get a refund from this place. When there is a "next time" no doubt you'll be better prepared to cover every single little detail of importance BEFORE you pay. It is very helpful not to be in a hurry to make an important purchase. Rarely doing these big deals rapidly works well. Best wishes.

 

[IceExplorer]

It seems you are left with 2 choices:

1) get your money back and propose with a temporary ring.
2) move forward with the diamond they chose for you.

You could also exercise option 2 and upgrade when you get back from your trip.

Hopefully, when your finished with the process you will come back and inform us all who you've been dealing with so no other people fall victim to their antics.

Taking 3 days to notify you a diamond you requested to be put on hold could be legitimate or intentional. In either case, it's not ideal for *YOU*. One of the only threats you have is to ask for you money back and start the whole process over, this time arming yourself with more time and knowledge.

Even if you do threaten them with the BBB or the internet, their excuse is going to be: He changed his mind.

Good luck. Keep us posted.

 

[Xenon]

what are the numbers on this "VG" cut (I assume GIA grading?) ?

I am no expert but the HCA number was not good at all, which reinforced my frustration and determination to exchange.

 

[Xenon]

You were way too easy with them all along. Setting a budget and sticking to it would have gained you some respect. They really pushed you around and I can't blame you for being angry since you were such a nice and easy customer. Too easy, it would seem.

I think your fiance' would have equal respect for you if you stood up to a SA and would not accept a diamond above uyour limit to appease the SA and her. You are setting a bad tone for the future, I'm afraid.

I sure hope you can eventually make the exchange or get a refund from this place. When there is a "next time" no doubt you'll be better prepared to cover every single little detail of importance BEFORE you pay. It is very helpful not to be in a hurry to make an important purchase. Rarely doing these big deals rapidly works well. Best wishes.

Agree, I was way too easy with them. My intent was to a quality ring and not stress about it. That is why I went with this well-known and rather high-end brand - to avoid gimmicks, get complete and honest information without having to ask. I am no expert in diamonds and was not planning to become one. I wanted to leave it up to professionals who get paid for it.

As for the budget, I expected that my preset limit of $20K might not sufficed for what I wanted. So I was prepared to spend up to $25K but, at the store, voiced $20K as my budget. I rejected several rings outside of this budget and I did try to negotiate on the final price. I mentioned going from 20 to 25K in the original post to show that I was not compromising on the quality and the SA should have seen it and not sell me, by mistake or not, a VG.

After all, what bothers me the most is how the exchange is being handled on their end.

 

[RockHugger]

Sadly, professionals in jewelry stores don't 'get paid' to teach you about diamonds and help you in that way. They are trained and paid to pull the most amount of money out of you before you leave that store. People who don't know much about diamonds are easy pick'ins because they can charge what ever they want and no one would know till it's too late.

I also had a run in recently at a no refunds store. Didn't end well. Say what you can and threaten BBB, and hope they care enough to refund you. The place I went to basically said 'i could care less'. If they won't, then just enjoy the ring for what it is, because there isn't really much recourse in less you have them saying it was an ex cut in writing or recorded.
Good luck!

 

[swingirl]

I am having quite a disappointing experience and would love to hear what the Pricescope community has to say on this matter. Here is the (long) story:
Recently I purchased a ring from a brand-name boutique (I'd prefer not to name the brand but it is one of the expensive ones).

Why not mention them? It helps everyone become aware of their practices and policies. That's the only way vendors with good policies thrive and vendors with poor practices do not.

 

[Envyme]

I am having quite a disappointing experience and would love to hear what the Pricescope community has to say on this matter. Here is the (long) story:
Recently I purchased a ring from a brand-name boutique (I'd prefer not to name the brand but it is one of the expensive ones).

Why not mention them? It helps everyone become aware of their practices and policies. That's the only way vendors with good policies thrive and vendors with poor practices do not.

I agree, I think it's helpful to know what company did this to you. Mentioning an employee name is different and I wouldn't expect that to be reviled.

I base a lot of my purchases off of reputation from sites like this. For ex, I did not buy a stone from the LA Jewelry mart because after coming on here I have found that I really don't know what I am getting unless I get ASET images and so on. A stone can be graded whatever it is but if the light return is poor or the stone has a lot of light leakage then I don't want it period - I wouldn't get this benefit from shopping at many other retailers. I found that WF, BGD, & other online vendors here are able to provide what I need to get me a stone that I will be happy with even though I pay a little more then I would in LA.

It does require you to do research, that is part of the whole purchase IMO. I need to be educated (not an expert) in diamonds in order to be able to purchase something I will be happy with. I also think being part of this forum is HUGE & plays a major role in making a diamond purchase I will be happy with. I am not saying if you don't come on here and get other opinions on x stone or that if you buy from a retail store then you won't be happy with what you bought BUT I get peace of mind - knowing exactly what I bought and getting opinions from other PSers who are here that know a lot more than I do. It's just really helpful.

I would be livid if I experienced all of what you have thus far. I am really sorry you had/have to go through this. One thing I would do is document everything that happened and convos you had with the employees of the store. Write it down. Should you have to get a lawyer involved then it really pays off having convos documented and date/aprox time listed with who said what. My Mom works in the court system and has shared this piece of advise with me. My bf had a situation with a Company he was working with and because I told him to keep records of all of his convos and time/date stamp them it really helped him win his case. Even if you don't need it it's wise to have. You aren't talking about 100 bucks here it's thousands - enough to buy a nice car!! If they aren't willing to make things right then I would take action! Sometimes a letter from a lawyer is all it takes to get the ball rolling

Anyways, I really hope they make things right with you. Did they put anywhere on your receipt or anything about the stone saying it was exc and not VG or Good? If it does say it then I would take that paper to them (make copies of everything first) and point out that they did not deliver what is written....regardless, I would go to my bank or cc company and file a dispute. If you don't have the merchandise and no $ then that has to be resolved & you need to get your money back. If you don't have an item you paid for you can dispute it and I am very confident you will get your $ back - one way or another.

Good luck with everything and keep us posted.

 

[Xenon]

Anyways, I really hope they make things right with you. Did they put anywhere on your receipt or anything about the stone saying it was exc and not VG or Good? If it does say it then I would take that paper to them (make copies of everything first) and point out that they did not deliver what is written....regardless, I would go to my bank or cc company and file a dispute. If you don't have the merchandise and no $ then that has to be resolved & you need to get your money back. If you don't have an item you paid for you can dispute it and I am very confident you will get your $ back - one way or another.

Good luck with everything and keep us posted.

Thanks for the advice. No, there was nothing about the specs on the receipt. For all I know, it might have been an honest mistake of the SA. However, I expected a seamless exchange considering the circumstances. Instead, the exchange experience I am having is extremely unpleasant. I understand they don't make commission on exchanges (well, they kinda do in my case) but how about the reputation???

 

[odeon790]

I'm not sure why you don't say where you made this purchase?

I am a little surprised they are giving you such a hard time, but honestly I am a lot more surprised that you spent almost $25k on a diamond and didn't look at the certificate before you bought it. In a perfect world you can trust the employees there and that they are honest and not going to make any mistakes....but i'd be looking at the diamond and certificate 50 times before I handed over 25K to anyone...including my mom!

 

[swingirl]

I also am very surprised that a "brand-name boutique" wouldn't show you the certificate and receipt without you asking. What "brand-name boutique" wants to tarnish their reputation with an unhappy customer who just plopped down $25K, a customer with money to spend on possible future purchases? Certainly not a vendor any of us want to use.

 

[CharmyPoo]

Like others, I would not have made such a significant purchase without seeing the certificate first. Heck - I would even get it independently appraised even after seeing the certificate. Suggest that you don't settle for a diamond you aren't in love with.

 

[LGK]

IF I were you, I'd be pushing *hard* for a refund. Go higher up the food chain there, and make a fuss. Their SA screwed you, and ruined your proposal plans. They will try to get you to settle for whatever they can get you to- it's up to you to advocate for yourself unfortunately. Be polite, factual, but firm. Don't let them push you around! Good lord, you spent a heck of a lot of money and got sold a bill of goods in return. Be the squeaky wheel- lame, but it does get results.

At worst, if you truly cannot get your money back and start somewhere else, then be prepared to wait a bit for them to get what you want in.

As far as the proposal goes, maybe get a lovely gemstone ring as a placeholder. If you know you're going to get an exact carat weight, you could propose with the setting you intend to use, then replace whatever placeholder stone is in it with the diamond when it comes in.

It sucks but unless you really assert yourself you probably are going to get the brush off- they've already tried. Don't let them!

My method is: be really polite, but firm and factual at first. You can always be more, um, forceful later if necessary but start with nice.