How To Safely Buy Diamonds On The Internet

This guide will not tell you which diamond to buyrecognized and respected.Some of the more
or how to select the right diamond for you. Thispopular and recognized laboratories can be found
guide will help you protect yourself on the internetat Independently Certified DiamondsA grading
when you find that magnificent gem that youcertificate should NEVER state a value. A true
must have.There are many horror storiesgrading certificate only states the characteristics
circulating about eBay and other online diamondof a diamond. It will never give an indication of the
purchases gone bad. Most of them are true! Thevalue of the diamond. Certificates stating value
chief reason why these unfortunate buyers wereare Valuation or Appraisal Certificates, not grading
conned was because they did not follow the firstcertificates. Be wary of sellers claiming to be
and most important rule for purchasing aselling 'Certified Diamonds' where the certificate
diamond:Rule 1 - GET EDUCATEDBuying astates a value.Valuers generally do not have
diamond can be a daunting task. There areaccess to the sophisticated equipment required to
volumes of information available on the internetgrade a diamond with the accuracy of a real
about the various characteristics of diamonds.grading laboratory. Valuers normally make and
Diamond retailers (online and bricks-and-mortar)educated assessment of the characteristics of
make various claims and use colourful terminologythe diamond. As I have illustrated above, a small
to impart to you the quality, authenticity andmistake, calling a diamond a VVS2 rather than a
beauty of the diamond they are trying to sell toVS1 could have a significant impact on the
you.Rule 1 does not state 'Become a diamondprice.Rule 3 - SET YOUR PRICEYou now have the
Expert.' Rule 1 states 'Get Educated.' This meanstools and the knowledge to determine a fair price
do a little bit of reading. Understand what factorsfor a diamond. Firstly, ignore all 'Valued At'
affect the price of a diamond. Understand howstatements.1. Would you accept a valuation from
you can be certain that those factors, as theyan estate agent selling you a house?2. Would you
relate to a diamond being shown to you, can besell a diamond for $3,000 if its true value was
checked, verified or substantiated. Understand$10,000?See my point?Once you have found a
what sellers are really saying when they statecertified stone that you would like to purchase,
'Top Quality VVS2-VS1' or 'Big Size 8-10 Points'Ashop around before making your purchase. There
great place to start your reading is our Diamondare numerous online diamond retailers selling
Buying Guide.Do a Google search for 'Diamondcertified diamonds. The best way to determine a
Buyers Guide.' You will get many results, withfair price is to search their databases for similarly
most guides giving you similar information, so dograded stones. The results you get from these
not waste your time reading all of them. Justonline retailers should give you a very good
make sure you understand the 4 C's and howindication of the true online retail value for the
they can affect t the price of a diamond. Get adiamond.I must just stop here to clarify my
feel for the terminology related to diamonds.Tostatement above: 'true online retail value.' It is
illustrate this point, let us look at the effect ofimportant to note that, in the current
clarity on a diamond's price. Take a 1 Carat, Gmarketplace, online diamond retailers are selling
Colour diamond with an Excellent proportion gradediamonds significantly cheaper than traditional
and an Excellent make. Now compare a VVS2bricks-and-mortar retailers. It is important to
stone to a VS1 stone. At the time of writing, theverify your price based on internet retailer prices
VS1 stone could be purchased from a particularand not traditional jewellers. Again, make sure you
internet retailer for AU$12,043.38 while the VVS2are only searching certified diamonds.Rule 4 -
stone is available at the same merchant forMAKE YOUR PURCHASE - SAFELYWhen you
AU$13,582.76, almost a 13% difference in price!complete your purchase ensure you request a
So if a seller is advertising a VVS2-VS1 stone,'Diamond Validation Escrow' method of payment.
wouldn't you like to know what the exact clarityThis service combines a traditional escrow
actually is? I would.Having a little bit of knowledgetransaction and a verification service where the
will help you identify potential false claims.Thisdiamond is assessed by a recognised diamond
brings me directly to Rule 2Rule 2 - BUYgrading laboratory to ensure it matches the
CERTIFIEDAny seller can claim that their diamondseller's description.When using this service, you will
is a VVS2 stone rather than a VS1. It is simple;make your payment to Escrow Australia who will
remove a V and change the 1 to a 2, but howhold your funds in Escrow. The seller will then
that seller substantiate the claim? That is thesend the stone to Gemex who check the
important question. A diamond grading certificatediamond and verify that it is the stone described
from an internationally recognized and endorsedby the grading certificate. Only when the diamond
diamond grading laboratory is the only documenthas been verified, does your payment get
that can accurately confirm a diamonds quality isreleased to the seller. At the same time the stone
as claimed.When buying a stone, find out if itis delivered directly from Gemex to you. If the
comes with a grading certificate. Also find outstone does not check out, your funds are
which laboratory has issued the certificate. Thenreturned to you and the stone is returned to the
make sure the issuing laboratory is internationallymerchant.