The Very Highest Quality Advice...
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New or Secondhand Jewellery | |
New or Secondhand Jewellery?
Some people will only buy second-hand jewellery, others only new. Who is right, and why?
Second-Hand Bargains
Logically, you would expect that second-hand jewellery would be cheaper than new, and mostly this will be true. However it would be rather stupid to assume that, just because something is second-hand, it must be cheaper, or a better deal, as some people blindly do. We have seen examples of people paying more for secondhand jewellery than they could have bought it for new, albeit at a discount price, simply because they had simply assumed that because they were buying it privately, and it was secondhand, then it must be a bargain. Unfortunately things just aren't that simple. On this page, we discuss some points to bear in mind which may help you to decide whether to buy new or secondhand.
Questions You Should Ask Yourself
- Do You Like It?
This might sound a ridiculous question, but you would be astounded at how many people buy a piece of jewellery that they do not like, either because they think it is cheap, sometimes expecting to be able to resell it for a profit.
- Would You Have Bought It New?
If the item you are thinking of buying is something you would not have bought new at full price, then you should think twice about why you are buying it now. The same thing applies to 'sale' bargains.
- Is The Item As Described?
Is it what you think it is? This probably applies particularly to private purchases, that is non-professional sellers, who may think they can get away with mis-description, or total lack of description. Even professionals, we notice, frequently exaggerate the weight of a diamond when selling.
- Is It Genuine?
Many private sellers appear to have no scruples about making totally fraudulent sales, selling for example CZ's as diamonds, or gold-plated chains as real gold, and claiming they did not know in the event that they are challenged.
- Is It Stolen?
Is the seller reputable and reliable? Can they show you receipts or past valuations to prove it is theirs to sell?
- Is It Smuggled?
Has the seller bought it outside the EU, and imported it illegally by failing to declare it for duty and VAT?
- Is There Any Guarantee?
Most new goods will have a guarantee, secondhand goods may have concealed wear and tear or badly repaired damage.
- Is There Any Valuation?
And if so, how accurate and reliable is the valuation? We have seen some ridiculous valuations, including some from TV shopping channels for new jewellery.
More Questions
We could probably add more questions to this list, and you can probably think of others yourself. Most of them are fairly obvious, commonsense, questions.
New Only!
There are a number of circumstances where most people would only buy new, and these include engagement rings and wedding rings. While there are people who would find a secondhand ring acceptable, most fiancées and brides would not. This might be different for a fine quality antique ring, but most women would not want a ring which was tainted by the possibility that it was unlucky for its previous owner, or the thought that she was not the first owner. For second-time brides, this sentiment may be different.
These new-only circumstances also help to explain why you should not be surprised to lose a high percentage of the original price if selling a ring.
See Also
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