QuestionI recently purchased a ring on the Internet. It arrived as gorgeous as described with the "14K" stamp on the inside. I went to an independent jeweler to have it sized and he said, "Sorry, I can't do it becase it's made of a base metal that has been plated gold". The seller is sticking with his story that it is solid 14K. What's your take on this, and in particular, don't sellers, distributors have to "live up to the stamping of 14K ? Thanks for your time.
AnswerHi, Margo. This is not your answer. I will write your answer this evening when I get home from work. In the meantime, if you have opportunity please use the follow-up and send a link to the seller if you have that. It will help me to see other items the seller is offering. Thanks and God Bless. See you later. Thomas.
-------follow-up to Margo--------------------------------------------
Margo, I will tell you how the law reads in the USA. A piece of jewelry does not have to be stamped with a karat mark but not to do so would be rather dumb for a manufacturer. One of the first things a person wants to know is what karat is the gold and they will look to see the stamped mark. In a nutshell, the law says this: If the metal quality stamp is placed onto a jewelry item, the maker must also place the makers mark near the quality mark. (This also applies to jewelry made of other precious metals besides gold.) In your case, the 14k is the quality mark.
The idea behind the law is that the maker must be accountable for the accuracy of the quality mark(14k). Requiring the maker mark if the item has a metal quality mark is similar to signing a check you have written, attesting to the check being what it says it is and valid. The maker mark is binding and if the item is not as stamped, the maker is accountable to the Feds. If the item is marked with a karat mark but the maker mark is NOT there, the item is marked illegally. If this is the case with your item, you have recourse to return the item and to complain to the web site if this site handles more than one seller and sellers are responsible to the site operators, such as would be the case with eBay.
Yes, legally they have to live up to the stamp and items should be stamped correctly with makers mark if the quality mark is present. The problem is legal pursuit. I would have the ring checked by another jeweler just for verification. Then, contact the seller and tell them that two independent tests have shown the item to be other than advertised. If that is the case, this is fraud. If the seller thinks the items are gold and in fact the items are plated, the seller is still responsible to you.
Margo, I do wish you the best in this and hope all is resolved fairly and with little trouble.
God Bless and Peace. Thomas.
