Buyer Beware at SEANS JEWELERS

[JanetB1]

I had originally had a friend in Aruba post this for me while I was there earlier this month, as I was having difficulty getting into my account. Apparently it created a problem, as it was not posted by me and I was not available to answer questions about the problem so the thread was removed. When I returned home, I put off reposting, as I was waiting to have the ring I purchased appraised so I could give a final, definitive report.

Here is the original post that was made and I have added the update after the appraisal below it:

Just to share with others our extremely bad experience we had
with Sean's Jewelers today.

My sister and I both went there and each of us bought blue diamond rings.
My sister picked up hers on Tuesday. After taking the ring
home, we noticed that there was a chip by the prong
of the ring's setting along with a fracture line leading to
the center of the ring.

My sister went back today to deal with getting a new
stone. I started having my doubts about the quality
of the jewelry there because a diamond is not easily
chipped and fractured like that.

I went to them today and asked to have my money
refunded and a trade back since I had not picked up
my ring at that point. My ring looked fine but I did not
want to take the chance of something happening to this ring
and was not feeling good about my purchase. I had
to wait about 30 minutes for Paul to talk to me.

Paul (Sean's brother formerly of Sean's Paul's Jewelers and
several other stores on the island) would not listen to me
and refused to return my trade in and credit back my
credit card for the ring. He said there were no refunds
end of story.

I tried to explain to him that the only thing he has is his
reputation and that I was not happy at all. He did not
seem to care and told me he would do an exchange. This
is not what I wanted since the integrity of his jewelry is in question.
So I had to come back 40 minutes later because he had not
sized the ring to fit my finger correctly.

Needless to say, I would not recommend to anyone looking
to buy jewelry in Aruba to go there. I certainly would not
go there again. I have bought a lot of jewelry in Aruba in
the past and have been very happy with my purchases.
This is not one of them. I am scared to even wear the ring
because something might happen to it.

UPDATE AFTER APPRAISAL:

OK - back from getting the appraisal and it turns out I was right to be concerned. To refresh everyone's memory, I traded in a ring I had paid $2100 for and Paul only gave me $1900 for it (I did not have the receipt with me and he claimed all their copies from the old store were gone). In addition to the $1900 he gave me for the traded in ring, I also paid $2100, making the ring a total of $4000 ($4200 if you count the $200 more I paid for the original ring).

The first thing the appraiser asked me was whether I was aware that the blue diamond had a fracture that had been filled. When I told her no, she said that should have been disclosed to me, as I could crack the stone if I were to put it in an ultra-sonic cleaner and that if I ever need work done on the ring (sizing, prong adjustment, etc.) that they will need to remove the stone first, as any heat or vibration can cause the stone to crack along the fracture. So I will always have to "baby" the stone. Paul never mentioned anything about this to me.

The appraisal came in at $4150 - at the store Paul had originally said it would appraise for $6500, then quickly said "well, maybe $5500 to be safe". Of course, he never put anything in writing.

So I paid at total of $4200 for a ring that has a fractured diamond that has to be specially cared for and is only worth $4150.

End of story?? BUYER BEWARE AT SEAN JEWELERS!!!!!!!!!!!

[corona]

I'm sorry that you had those problems, but I'm wondering what kind of markup can be expected on jewelry. I was under the impression that stores mark up jewelry 100% and more. I'm not wanting to negate your problems (cracked stone, over stated appraisal, etc), but you possibly still got a good price. Did your appraiser tell you how much you might have paid US retail for the ring (that is, if you're in the US)?

[JanetB1]

No - she did not state what I would have paid - but in my experience (and I have bought pieces which exceed $10,000), an appraisal usually comes in at least 30-40% higher than what you pay, if you were not taken to the cleaners. Paying $4000 for a ring that appraises for only $150 more would be considered being taken to the cleaners. The appraiser did state that I got a raw deal when I told her how much I had paid for it.

[lizzardo]

From what I understand - the pricing is called triple keystone in
the jewelry business. Keystone means double your cost. Triple is three times your
cost.

So Janet really got a bad deal. Despite the price, it ruined
her vacation and now she has a ring she can not wear for
fear it will crack.

I like to hear people coming back from vacation with a smile
and a song in their heart and well deserved vacation.

She had to go to the jeweler on several times, get really
bad service and now found out she got shafted!

[Andrea J.]

I hope that janet can rectify the horrendous situation with a ring that has a fracture.
The jeweler should have FIXED this situation day one.

You are right Lizzardo,several jewelry store visits....POOR CUSTOMER service......and a diamond that is fractured.

The jeweler imo, needs to make this right.

And yes, there will be those that will post of what a good/great place and what good/great experiences he/she has had at that place of business.

I caution all to keep it civil and to the point with no personal attacks.

[Randi]

It is not whether you got a good deal or not. It doesn't matter if she got what she paid for, she did not want a fractured diamond and would have either paid more for a non damaged ring or perhaps a smaller diamond to fit into her budget. It was for the jeweler to disclose everything truthfully and then the buyer makes the decision.

I had a similar situation with my engagement ring. DH purchased my engagement ring from a family member who was a jeweler. He only had a certain amount to spend. Ring didn't look right to me based on the appraisal so I took it elsewhere to get it verified. In the end I got the value of the diamond (in other words my DH paid what it was worth) but the stone was sloppily cut and all of the size was below the surface. A good diamond has its size in the width. I felt cheated and ripped off (especially from a relative). Given the choice we would have opted for a smaller stone but properly cut.

So, that is why it doesn't matter if Janet paid what the ring is worth that is not what she wanted!

[corona]

I just wanted to say that I never meant that Janet shouldn't be upset if she wasn't overcharged. I wanted to know if that was an overcharge based on the appraisal alone. I have a local jeweler I buy through and have never bought high end jewelry in Aruba, because I never knew if the prices were fair or not. So, since she had an appraisal in hand from someone she trusted, I wanted to know if the price charged was a fair price. I stated that the cracked/'repaired' stone and the over estimate of the appraised price, as well as the other issues were separate and understandably upsetting. I'm sorry if anyone thought I was inferring that price alone was the bottom line.

[JanetB1]

Corona - to put in in perspective, in the past I dealt with Gary at Noble Jewelers until he left and Nick sold me a diamond ring that was not the quality he stated it to be, at which point I terminated my dealings with them. When I was dealing with Gary, I bought a $10K diamond bracelet there which in the US appraised for $24K. They still made money on the piece and I was happy that I had gotten a good deal. I bought another bracelet which I paid $2150 for and it appraised for $4K - these are good deals - and result in returning customers and good word of mouth. Paying $4K for something that appraises for $4150 is not a good deal and results in unhappy customers and bad recommendations - fractured stone and other issues aside - if I wanted to pay full retail for jewelry, I'd be much better off buying it in the states, where I can address issues like fractured stones in person!

[corona]

That's exactly what I would think too, Janet. I would want an amazing deal in Aruba, so I wasn't sure if the deal itself, *not* including the added headaches which made even a good deal a bad situation, was worth it. However, after you explained that it wasn't even that great of a deal on price alone, and with the little I know about knowing a good quality piece from a shined up rock that only looks great under the jewelers lights, I'll stick with buying locally with a jeweler I trust. I'm better off to pay a bit more and to have the security that I'm getting what I'm expecting. I've been tempted to buy in the past, but now I'm glad I resisted.

[JanetB1]

UPDATE:

I finally did receive a reply to one of my emails. They asked me to send the ring to a place in LA and stated that they will replace the fracture-filled stone. I responded that it would cost quite a bit of money to do that and that I've already lost money on this ring. They replied that they would reimburse the shipping.

So the ring was shipped last week - almost $60 (UPS ground, insured, signature required). I emailed back that I had shipped the ring and gave the amount of the shipping and have not had a response yet.

When the ring is returned I will take it to be re-appraised. I will update again with the results of that appraisal and whether or not the shipping was reimbursed.