Diamond Complaints

Diamond Complaints

Diamond Complaints

New Orleans Saint quarterback, Drew Breese, has officially filed for a bevy of diamond complaints.  According to the original diamond complaint, Brees and Brittany his wife, claim that the diamond dealer and jewelry store owner, one Vahid Moradi advertised and sold them color diamonds and jewelry as an investment.  Several diamond and jewelry purchases throughout a four-year period from 2012 to 2016 were part of the diamond complaints.  This also includes a Harry Winston Diamond Ring.  Breese is now suing over the value of more than $15 million in precious diamonds, jewelry, and gems.  The suit alleges Moradi defrauded them out of more than $6.7 million and seeks damages for that sum.

Value and Diamond Complaints

According to the original diamond complaints, in 2017 Brees had the diamonds appraised and was told that their worth is tremendously over market value.  Furthermore, the diamond complaints state that many of the diamonds appraise for up to 40 percent to several hundred percent markups.  Additionally, in the diamond complaint in an article published by the JCK Magazine, mentions that diamonds that Moradi had purchased and then marked up significantly to sell to Brees was a Harry Winston diamond ring.  Also, that Moradi had paid only $565,000 for the Harry Winston diamond ring at a Sotheby’s auction, only to sell it one month later to Brees for $1.6 million.  The JCK magazine is a  jewelry industry trade publication that reports on industry news.

Diamond Complaint and Over Valuing

In the lawsuit, Brees claims that the jeweler knowingly deceived Brees and his wife about the value of the precious diamonds.  Overall, according to Fox 5 San Diego, Brees had paid about $15 million for diamonds that were only valued at a lowly $6 million.  Thus, leading to a variety of diamond complaints.  Furthermore, throughout the court case, Moradi argued his right to make a profit on his jewelry and diamonds, adding that no one was coerced into making a purchase.  Additionally, he argues that and said his markups were not extreme.  However, the court did not accept the argument and Brees won four main causes of action: breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and two counts of fraud.

Diamond Complaints and Appeal

While the diamond complaints from Brees was ruled in his favor, Moradi's lawyer said he intends to file an appeal.  This case is very important for the jewelry industry for a bevy of reasons.  For example, Brees’case states that the jeweler was advising Brees on which diamonds to buy.  Therefore, according to the diamond complaint, Moradi went beyond the role as a traditional jeweler and was considered to be an investment advisor.  In that case, he had a duty to provide ethical advice.   The main issue for the diamond and jewelry industry is the precedent it sets. There are a variety of reputable retailer diamond dealers, retailers and brokers in the industry also advise their clients on which diamonds or jewelry to buy as a solid investment.
According to Roberto Chiapelloni, the owner of Manfredi Jewels in Greenwich, Connecticut says, "Using the word investment when selling a diamond puts you on a very shaky limb. We have no idea how the market for diamonds will go. We are selling something that will always have intrinsic value –but honestly, we can't predict the market.  In my humble opinion, it is unethical to sell a diamond as an investment because you can't guarantee its future value."  Misleading consumers will lead to diamond complaints.

Commodity and Diamond Value

Just like all other commodities diamonds have an up-and-down cycle.  Furthermore, with the introduction of lab-grown diamonds, the diamond market and their retail prices are being affected.  Additionally, Chiapelloni mentions that "when we sell a diamond, there is not one word about investment; it is a jewel that will give you a lifetime of pleasure and a retention of a good portion of its value."  One must question as to what real value is, and what appraisals are useful for.  Also, the case begs the validity of markups by jewelers.  Such as, “is there a cap and can a cap be enforced?”  Reducing secrecy will reduce people from making diamond complaints.

Diamond Complaints, Diamond Value

What is value?  The asking most honest jewelers will say that, subjective.  Again, leading to diamond complaints.  Appraisals exist for a host of reasons ranging from insurance purposes to wanting a "feel good" sense about the purchase.  Additionally, another reason is because of a desire to resell the piece of jewelry or the stone.  The end result of the appraisal is often a preface to the question, "what do you want the appraisal for?"  Appraisals vary, despite there being guidelines.

Diamond Markups and Retail Jewelry

As to markups, this is another subjective area. There is freedom for the jewelers to mark up any item and generally. Thus, leading to diamond complaints.  Also, a person knows walking into a store (or buying online) that a markup is there thanks to our capitalist system. While some brands or companies suggest a retail price, the jeweler can set the prices he wants.  "I am not suggesting that we set prices, but there has to be some rationale when doing so.

Retail and Diamond Markups

And customers have to do research and expect differences in pricing," says Chiapelloni. "The exact same GIA-certified diamond coming out of Tiffany, for example, or coming out of Manfredi, if you remove the blue box or the yellow box, they are the same diamond in quality and clarity and other facts. But Tiffany has bigger prestige than my store, so realistically they can charge more."  For example, one can expect that there will be an appeal.  Furthermore, this type of confusion can lead to diamond complaints. Adding that, this could be in the courts for another year.

Harry Winston Diamond Ring

According to the many diamond complaints filed against Moradi, eight items the Breeses bought over four years were in the diamond complaint that stands out.  Namely, a 22.26-carat Harry Winston diamond ring.  This Harry Winston Diamond Ring has a 3.01-carat pink diamond.  Also, they had purchased a 4.11-carat blue diamond.  

Chinese Diamond Woes

Due to the outbreak of the coronavirus the Chinese retail market is all but empty.  The entire country’s diamond bourses are eerily quiet.  Moreover, even importing rough diamonds has been experiencing trouble. For example, diamond dealers hope for a quick turn around once the virus is dealt with.  However, as of now, all they can do is try to manage the troublesome situation.  Rapport News interviewed Lin Qiang of the Shangai Diamond Exchange who said, "there is always a demand for diamonds in China, but currently consumers can’t go shopping, [as] hardly any shopping malls are open.  When the epidemic is over, the backlog of demand will be unleashed.”      
Harry Winston Diamond Ring A Harry Winston diamond ring is a major part of many diamond complaints against a diamond dealer. Also, many other diamonds were in question.
Diamond Complaints The value of diamonds is often subjective. Often leading to diamond complaints.
     

Links

Cuban Link Chains(Opens in a new browser tab) Diamond Studs in Los Angeles(Opens in a new browser tab) https://www.naturallycolored.com/diamond-education/blue-diamonds-wiki https://www.sothebys.com/en/articles/three-of-a-kind-larger-than-life-diamonds Diamond Consumers https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/watchdog/story/2019-06-10/sd-me-brees-diamonds Diamond Trading Diamond Marketing https://www.jckonline.com/editorial-article/facets-fine-jewelry-finds-new-digs/ https://www.jckonline.com/ https://www.jckonline.com/editorial-article/drew-brees-awarded-6-1-million/ Understanding Diamond Value

Links 2

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