Clients come to us after a cruise vacation to obtain insurance appraisals on the jewelry they purchased. This story almost NEVER has a happy ending! We will continue to document cases like the following…

Our client traded her diamond earrings with .80 ctw stones (SI) for 1.75 ctw diamond earrings (I-2). That’s right I-2/3. Remember I stands for Inclusion. A clarity grade of I-2/3 means the diamond is of industrial quality – not worthy of fine jewelry. But this is not the most painful issue.

In addition to surrendering her pretty earrings, she paid an additional price of $20,000 for the privilege of purchasing the larger, but inferior quality earrings. Yes, size does count, but quality should trump size in most diamond purchases.

Is it a crime if you GIVE your jewelry and money to a Pirate? Maybe it’s not illegal, but is sure is a shame!

How could we appraise low quality stones for their replacement value when the client overpaid by thousands of dollars – maybe even tens of thousands? This is a real dilemma for appraisers and insurance companies as well.

Have fun with the costume jewelry and souvenir purchases and enjoy the vacation. Put the money you save from the diamond purchase toward another holiday! But please beware when buying diamonds while on a cruise!