Jewelry appraisal surprise cost

[boosami]

A friend of mine is an avid shopper at a nearby jewelry store. They know him by name, and he has been buying there for years. They have been asking him for the past several months if he wants an appraisal of his limited edition timepieces for insurance purposes. They have an appraiser in the store twice a month, and they had talked about scheduling an appointment probably half a dozen times before he decided to do it.

He scheduled the appointment and went in with his watches. The appraiser took them and did full appraisals over the course of an hour, which he spent talking with the sales staff. When it was finished, the appraiser handed him the watches and appraisal, and asked for payment. This was the first time anyone had mentioned a fee. $300 for appraisals he didn't even need in the first place. He paid the fee so he could get his watches back, but is upset obviously. He was so surprised by this whole incident that he left the store without raising a fuss at all.

Every service he has gotten (cleaning, battery replacement, refurbishing, repair, even replacement) has been free as he is such a good customer. He was never told upfront that this service had a cost. No sales person, manager, or anyone mentioned a fee until after the appraisal.

I told him to write a letter letting them know that they are failing to properly inform people and will lose customers. And there might be a chance he gets some money or credit back.

What would you do?

[rennigade]

I don't know if he should write a letter now. He should have said something up front when he was told it would cost $300. He should have told them there was no reason for him to get an appraisal and he only did it so the employees would stop bothering him.

Since they have been supplying with with free service, batteries, etc. for so long, I'm not sure if he has any leverage to gripe about the situation now.

This is a good lesson for everyone. Never assume anything. Get the facts up front and avoid situations like this.

[Ima saver]

Well, it could not hurt to write a letter. I think I would.

[Joan.of.the.Arch]

Hope he at least got the appraisals in writing, so that he has something useful for his $300. If he insures his stuff, he probably needs those appraisals anyway.

[mom-from-missouri]

At our jewerly store, an appraisal is free if the jewerly came from them. There is a fee if it came from somewhere else. A sign is posted with the fee. Years ago I worked in a jewerly store and it was the same way.

I'd write a letter.

[Fern]

Don't write a letter! It's too easy to ignore a letter! Call them on the phone or go back there in person to complain, i say.

[rob62521]

My philsophy is "You don't ask, you don't get." Write the letter or phone the manager...just be polite.

[poundwise]

In print or in person, not on the phone.

And in either case, it would include the phrase, "...you may be losing a good customer."

[disneysteve]

I'd have to say he made a mistake by paying the fee and leaving. The best time to complain would have been right then and there.

That said, it certainly can't hurt to go back and speak to the owner/manager and explain how upset he was to be blind-sided by the fee. The appraiser, or someone from the shop, absolutely should have explained the fee scale for the appraisal services before doing the work.

If for no other reason, he should complain so that other customers don't get ripped of in the same manner. If they did it to him, I'm sure they're doing it to lots of others.

[Bimmer]

It did not occur to him to ask if there was a charge for the service when they were hounding him about it? That is mistake number one.

That said, I can see where he is coming from given his loyalty to and previous treatment at the store. Maybe he was led to believe this was a perk for a great customer. Still, you have to ask about potential costs.

He needs to go back to the store and discuss it in person.