Kay Jewelers
Bad service

I bought the engagement ring in June from Kay Jewelers in Appleton and in January we both decided to buy our wedding bands from Kay Jewelers in Wauwatosa at Mayfair Mall. When we bought the wedding bands we were told to wait a month before the wedding and then get the ring squared (to match my euro shank), put together, engraved and sized.in the meantime we moved to the Madison area and so on March 2, we brought the ring into the East Towne Mall in Madison, Wisconsin. We asked for these adjustments to be made.

On March 14, we got the rings back. The jewelers had broke the engagement band, that they were not suppose to size (to our knowledge), had off centered the rings when putting them together and had replaced the wedding band with a band that looked nothing like the band we had on the engagement band (they were suppose to match and we paid $500 for this adjustment). A lot of these mistakes we noticed after leaving the store and seeing the ring in the sunlight as the store has very poor lighting. We then came back to Kays and spoke to the store manager (Jeff) who saw the mistakes and stated they would replace both the bands with size 5 bands, put them together, and re-engrave. He also stated jokingly he hopes next time we pick up the rings we dont return with a knife. Obviously, this comment is not appropriate for any customer, especially a customer who had to have their engagement band replaced which previously held sentimental value. He also stated in a non-joking manner that he may not have our rings back to us before our wedding. This comment upset us very much. We brought the ring in a month and half before our wedding. When the mistake was made we should have had priority and been able to get the rings back in a more timely manner. We was so upset by the store managers unprofessionalism that we called March 15 just to make sure the correct things were going to be done with the ring and that they would not be put together. We declined having the rings put together due to the issues we had. We wanted to be able to see both rings separately and have them put together at a later date. The week of March 15 we called to voice our concerns about the customer service that we had received and was granted a $50 refund (did not request a refund).

Then March 29, we went to pick up the rings again. The engagement band was scratched and the engraving on the wedding band was not centered and started from the bottom of the ring and stopped on the top corner of the ring (in diagonally fashion). So after seeing this in better lightening, we once again returned to the store. They stated that they could fix the engraving and possibly be able to take off the scratch on the engagement band. At this time we did not want them to touch the engagement band fearing that a larger mistake would be made (and would not be able to have the rings ready for our wedding), but did let them fix the engraving.in the meantime we asked a store representative how they would re-engrave the ring, as we was worried that it might thin the band. She stated she did not know this so we called a corporate representative. At that time we had to wait on hold for 8 minutes just to hear from a corporate representative that we would have to ask the store that question and she could not answer that question for us.

On March 31, we got the wedding band back after calling to see if it was there. No one from the store was able to call to tell us it had returned. When we went to pick it up the engraving was finally done correctly, but we noticed that we could see the notches where they put the new band on and that it had unequally gold distribution (band is really thin in places). We told the representative that we picked up the rings from, that we would not sign the form stating that the work was done to our satisfaction. She stated that if we did not sign it we would not be able to have our bands which needed for my wedding. So being forced we signed the paperwork.

On March 31 my wife also called Kay corporate office about being charged for an engraving when it had to be done a total of 3 times. This gentleman told her that she was liar after she told him that we have had to drive to Kays six separate times, which I can assure is correct. After being called a liar she was so furious she hung up on this gentleman and decided to call again April 1. On the morning of April 1, she called again to explain my story in hopes of a good service recovery. This time that lady said that she could not transfer her to a supervisor that she had to talk to her. Then when she explained my story and stated that we should be refunded at least for the engraving she stated that the store stated that we did not pay for this even though on our receipt it states that we did. She went so far as to say that you do not believe what your customers tell you. Three hours later this woman called my wife back after finding out we did pay for the engraving and gave us a refund.

On April 1, I called to speak with the Jareds location that had handled the repairs to the rings and asked if these notches are repairable. They explained the process that would be required to fix it. He also stated that a good jeweler would be able to fix it and would not have caused the notches to appear in the first place. He also stated he would be very unhappy with that situation if it happened to him. On April 1, we went to the Jareds on the west side of Madison. The shop manager stated that the scratch was a seam and that it could not have been a size five band as we was told by the East Towne Kay. The shop manager also stated that she saw the notches on the wedding band. Chris stated that she would be in contact with the DM (district manager) because she wanted to get two new bands and cast them from molds and that when we returned from our wedding that these repairs could be made then.

On April 24, we started to work on the ring issues once again after returning from our Wedding/Honeymoon in St. Lucia. We called Jareds at 10:30 in the morning and spoke to a representative who said she needed to do some research on our case and get back to us.By 11:00 we still had not heard anything so I called to check on their progress. She stated she would now make us a priority and would back to us. At 11:30 she returned the call and told me that the shop manager will call us when the DM is in store. So nothing had been done and we are still are at the same point we were on April 1. We then decided since no progress had been made to take the rings to West Towne Kay and have the work done by someone different for peace of mind. The store manager at West Towne Kay is in agreement with us that the wedding band has notches where it was made to a euro shank and has an uneven amount of gold on the sides of the ring, and that the diamonds need to be placed in a new band. He stated that it would take a great goldsmith to salvage the ring. He stated that the seam could be easily fixed without replacing the engagement band.

Unfortunately, when my wife called to speak to him on April 26, he stated that he would not be able to work on the rings because he was told he could not by corporate and offered her no solutions. He even stated that the refund we were given was our solution ($36), which was never told to us. We rather give back $36 and have the rings fixed. Another note is that he stated that they had so many problems with Jareds in Madison, Wisconsin that their work now goes through another Jareds.

Overall, we still have no solution for the rings and we have exhausted our resources. We are left with a ring that every jeweler we have talked to has said is of very poor quality. If Kay Jewelers had there way, this is the ring my wife would wear for the rest of her life. This ring only reminds my wife and I of the horrible ongoing experience that we are having with Kay Jewelers. This has put a huge damper on our lives as newlyweds, which should be a joyous time. We just want the rings fixed appropriately after they were damaged by the goldsmith. We do not feel that this is too much to ask.

Company: Kay Jewelers
Country: USA

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