Opinion - had to redo engagement ring, now costs more!

[mypak]

Hi all, was seeking your opinions:

Bought an engagement ring recently (around 2,900 for the ring), diamond is 2.13 cts, total cost around 32k

The ring was custom made (platinum)...upon inspection, it was not "perfect" and they admitted so also...the setting was not perfectly round therefore the prongs were uneven and it was noticeable to me.....I had them set it anyway b/c I was gonna propose on vacation....that is done but she notices the imperfections also...

we went back and they agreed to have a different person make the ring this time....so it''s done and we''re gonna see it on saturday but they said this person used "bigger" diamonds so it''s gonna cost 1,000 more to me! they claim they''re not making any money off this and are simply gonna pass the $ through

This does not sound right to me...their initial person didn''t do a good job in the first place, so they agreed to make a new one and use a different person this time....I (and they) obviously thought they''d make the same ring but apparently it is "better" and they did not know this "better" jeweler was gonna make it this way either

we obviously have to see it first but I think they should split the difference with me or something....how can they say they''ll make a new ring for us since the first one was not good then make a "new" one that is more expensive and make us pay the difference??!! at a minimun, they should agree to pay the appraisal cost of $100 since if we like the new ring, gotta get it looked at again since it''s basically a different, more expensive ring.......also why didn''t they use this "great" jeweler in the first place!

 

[diamondhunter10]

I agree, it sounds like they should split the difference at least. Did you buy it at a store or online. If you bought it at a store I would go up the chain of command to get a better resolution.(do the same for online) face to face is best.

also see the guarantees, specs, etc.

 

[Regular Guy]

Date: 11/16/2006 3:25:43 PM
Author:mypak
but they said this person used ''bigger'' diamonds so it''s gonna cost 1,000 more to me!

Did you have an agreement in place before the constructed ring #1?

If so, I think I''d just create a simple note to them in writing, where they have to respond to the question...on what basis did they understand they were authorized to increase the cost of materials in repairing the ring?

If you were loosey goosey on the price initially, this may not work. If not, I think they need to respond.

 

[mypak]

Date: 11/16/2006 3:33:37 PM
Author: diamondhunter10
I agree, it sounds like they should split the difference at least. Did you buy it at a store or online. If you bought it at a store I would go up the chain of command to get a better resolution.(do the same for online) face to face is best.

also see the guarantees, specs, etc.

bought in the jewelry district in downtown los angeles...there''s no chain of command, it''s just the owners.....they''re good people and meant well but this is ridiculous...i was surprised they quickly agreed to make a new ring....we''ll see what it looks like on saturday

 

[mypak]

Date: 11/16/2006 3:35:26 PM
Author: Regular Guy

Date: 11/16/2006 3:25:43 PM
Author:mypak
but they said this person used ''bigger'' diamonds so it''s gonna cost 1,000 more to me!

Did you have an agreement in place before the constructed ring #1?

If so, I think I''d just create a simple note to them in writing, where they have to respond to the question...on what basis did they understand they were authorized to increase the cost of materials in repairing the ring?

If you were loosey goosey on the price initially, this may not work. If not, I think they need to respond.

there was no agreement per se, they just had the specs of what we wanted...some of the diamonds on the ring on #1 were cracked/not great color per the appraiser so we did tell them to make sure they used bette diamonds this time ....

 

[dtnyc]

There are several issues here-
the ring was not perfect- you mentioned that the setting wasn''t perfectly round, uneven prongs etc.

Couldn''t they re-do or recreate the same setting and make it perfectly round w/ even prongs and not have to increase the side of the stones in the setting?

Did you approve the sizes of the stones in the origina imperfectl setting? Did they tell you- OK it''s going to have .75 or whatever in stones in the setting?

It sounds like they have designed you a whole new ring- they definitely should have consulted with you on the change/increase in the amount of diamonds in the setting and made sure you were OK with any increase in cost.

Are they using all of the stones that were in the original imperfect setting? Is there anyway that they could "pay" you for the stones that perhaps weren''t re-used?

 

[dtnyc]

Date: 11/16/2006 3:40:00 PM
Author: mypak

Date: 11/16/2006 3:35:26 PM
Author: Regular Guy

Date: 11/16/2006 3:25:43 PM
Author:mypak
but they said this person used ''bigger'' diamonds so it''s gonna cost 1,000 more to me!

Did you have an agreement in place before the constructed ring #1?

If so, I think I''d just create a simple note to them in writing, where they have to respond to the question...on what basis did they understand they were authorized to increase the cost of materials in repairing the ring?

If you were loosey goosey on the price initially, this may not work. If not, I think they need to respond.

there was no agreement per se, they just had the specs of what we wanted...some of the diamonds on the ring on #1 were cracked/not great color per the appraiser so we did tell them to make sure they used bette diamonds this time ....

If you told them to use "better" diamonds didn''t you realize that they would probably cost more than the diamonds used in the original setting?

It sounds to me like they did what they thought you wanted- they upgraded the setting in everyway, so of course it''s going to cost more.

 

[mypak]

Date: 11/16/2006 3:41:42 PM
Author: dtnyc
There are several issues here-
the ring was not perfect- you mentioned that the setting wasn''t perfectly round, uneven prongs etc.

Couldn''t they re-do or recreate the same setting and make it perfectly round w/ even prongs and not have to increase the side of the stones in the setting?

Did you approve the sizes of the stones in the origina imperfectl setting? Did they tell you- OK it''s going to have .75 or whatever in stones in the setting?

It sounds like they have designed you a whole new ring- they definitely should have consulted with you on the change/increase in the amount of diamonds in the setting and made sure you were OK with any increase in cost.

Are they using all of the stones that were in the original imperfect setting? Is there anyway that they could ''pay'' you for the stones that perhaps weren''t re-used?

that''s what I thought, don''t need to increase the size of anything, just make sure the colors were good and weren''t cracked

I didn''t know what size diamonds they''d use on the original ring....there was a ring in their inventory already and we told them to base it on that with a few changes

yes, they basically had a different "better" jeweler create a brand new ring...

we are holding on the orig ring until we see the new one....

 

[mypak]

Date: 11/16/2006 3:46:03 PM
Author: dtnyc

Date: 11/16/2006 3:40:00 PM
Author: mypak

Date: 11/16/2006 3:35:26 PM
Author: Regular Guy

Date: 11/16/2006 3:25:43 PM
Author:mypak
but they said this person used ''bigger'' diamonds so it''s gonna cost 1,000 more to me!

Did you have an agreement in place before the constructed ring #1?

If so, I think I''d just create a simple note to them in writing, where they have to respond to the question...on what basis did they understand they were authorized to increase the cost of materials in repairing the ring?

If you were loosey goosey on the price initially, this may not work. If not, I think they need to respond.

there was no agreement per se, they just had the specs of what we wanted...some of the diamonds on the ring on #1 were cracked/not great color per the appraiser so we did tell them to make sure they used bette diamonds this time ....

If you told them to use ''better'' diamonds didn''t you realize that they would probably cost more than the diamonds used in the original setting?

It sounds to me like they did what they thought you wanted- they upgraded the setting in everyway, so of course it''s going to cost more.

true, we''ll just have to see what it looks like...

 

[phoenixgirl]

The ring cost $32k and they originally used cracked and "bad" color diamonds? Either the appraiser was overexaggerating or this does not sound like a quality establishment.

 

[mypak]

Date: 11/16/2006 6:26:05 PM
Author: phoenixgirl
The ring cost $32k and they originally used cracked and 'bad' color diamonds? Either the appraiser was overexaggerating or this does not sound like a quality establishment.

the problem was with the setting/ring which was 3k

the diamond itself was around 29k and that is fine (2.13 cts, excellent cut, E, VS2, GIA cert, etc.)

 

[swingirl]

$1000 for extra side stones sounds like a lot. What size were your original side stones or is it a lot of melee along the band? $1000 is quite a bit for them to have added to the cost when it was unauthorized. You need to get more details about why they couldn''t use the same size stones you originally had. Uncertified side stones are not that expensive.

Any pictures of the original?

 

[pyramid]

I know it is horrible to receive diamonds which as you describe are cracked, feather inclusions, but I would speak to the jeweller to find out the reason the diamonds are larger e.g. did they specify to the new maker what size melee were in the ring, as you say you still have the original, or did they just show him a sketch/picture of the ring.

 

[RockDoc]

I think one of the issues to consider here is the quality of the side diamonds, that they agreed to supply and that you agreed to purchase.

Normally a consumer would think the side diamonds would be of a matching quality in clarity, cut and color to the center diamonds.

If in the original agreement they told you they would match the quality of the center stone, and the diamonds were of a lower quality, then there is some basis for them not to charge you more to supply what they agreed to.

If this wasn''t discussed, then perhaps the additional charge is reasonably justifiable.

Guess we need to know a little more about what was promised to you originally.

Rockdoc

 

[winternight]

Hmmm. I would be very wary - why would you get such an amazing center stone only to have it cheaped by poor quality side stones? Unbelievable.

How are you paying? You can always do a credit card dispute.