Prestigious HEARTS ON FIRE: does not honor guarantee, Montica.com non reputable retailer
I want to tell as many people I can before they purchase a diamond from Hearts on Fire about my terrible experience. I want them to know that they are paying $ 10,000.00 US more than an actual diamond price elsewhere because of retailer s profit and marketting of the company.
Yes, HOF are WOW if you don t know anything about diamonds, but let me tell you what happened to me... And THEY DO NOT HONOR THEIR 30 day GUARANTEE!!! In a reliability report that I read from BBB about HOF, it states the following as the " nature of business of Hearts on Fire":
"Hearts On Fire Company is a manufacturer of fine diamonds and diamond jewelry offered to the wholesale market. The company was established and incorporated in 1978 in Massachusetts. There are 100 employees. Mr. Glenn Rothman is the Chief Executive Officer of the company. Ms. Susan Rothman is the President and Mr. William Anderson is the Chief Financial Officer. Any questions or problems should be directed to the attention of Ms. Gailyc C. Sonia, the General Counsel. Company policy states, We offer a 100% money back guarantee to our retailer customers. Should an end consumer lose their diamond - or should the diamond be damaged due to defective workmanship or materials, we will warranty the product for up to one year from the date of purchase. The diamond will be replaced at no charge."
So here is my story:
Last year (july) on a trip to Miami with my family we went to Montica store (family we knew from El Salvador) and my husband got impulsive and bought me a 2.47 radiant H SI1 diamond. (over $ 15,000.00) The Montica owner had told me it was a "Lucida ring" for me to find out later on internet that it was a copy because the Lucida ring is from Tiffany.!!
After the purchase of the radiant I sent the GIA report by e-mail to a jeweler friend and he told me I had paid too much for this diamond.
At that time Montica was not a HOF retailer, but several months afterwards the owner let me know she was selling the most beautiful diamonds. She knew I was searching for the ultimate top of the line and I had been learning a little about diamonds, because I did not know anything before the purchase of the radiant. She told me about HOF and I decided for an upgrade. If she was offering upgrade with HOF I must assume that guarantee, etc applied. She never told me that upgrading would interfere with any guarantee at all at the end.
I wanted to upgrade especially to recuperate what I knew now I had overpaid for my radiant. I had read in the HOF site about beeing a tremendous diamond etc.
So after a couple of weeks trying to find the appropiate size, color and clarity that suited my budget I wire her more than $20,000.00 on february 17th for a HOF 2.20 ct set on HOF setting. The suggested retail price for this diamond by HOF was $45,000.00!!!
Due to families issues, before the 30 day guarantee expired I ask Montica to apply the 30 day guarantee and refund me my money. To my amazement she told me she could not, because it had been a special order, her guarantee only applied on her stock items and anyways her business was to sell diamonds, not reimburse them!!!??? I told her that it could not be a special order, that as a retailer she did not have large inventory diamonds from HOF in her store, that HOF had an inventory list where customer choose what suit them and of course she as a HOF retailer had to order them to HOF without being a special order. If there is 100 retailers for HOF, how can each have the inventory in stock from HOF?
Seeing no results with Montica, I called VP Peter Smith at HOF and send him an e-mail.in my conversation with him he told me that the guarantee had to be asked to the retailer. (Contradictory of what HOF advertises in their nature of business, that they offer a 100% money back guarantee to their retailer customers). Anyways I told him I had spoken to Montica but with no results and commented everything that was said to me. He told me if I had a problem flying AA airlines I could not go to Boieng for a claim!!! And he then told me that the HOF guarantee only applied on loose stone!!!???
To which I told him ironically: Then what, if a man wants to get engage, he has to give his fianc a loose diamond and hope the marriage take place (before 30 days) so he does not have to apply the HOF guarantee or if he has to apply for guarantee, his stone must be a loose stone??? How is his fianc suppose to wear her engagement ring?
By the way, the loose diamond I purchased at Montica was set on a HOF setting called TIMELESS BRIDAL and set by HOF!!! So no one else handled the diamond except them.
One week later I called back and spoke to the owner Susan R. She told me someone was going to call me back because she was in a meeting, and she mentioned this is not right.
This person called G. Strauss did call back and call Montica too.
Do you what to know what HOF, well Mr. Strauss offered me for a HOF listed at a $ 45,000.00 retail price. He offered me to send the diamond back to HOF and they would pay me $ 28,800.00!!! I told him I finally understood that the stone was worth $ 28,800.00 and the extra (more than $ 10,000.00) a customer was paying for the retailer and of course MARKETTING of their BRAND.!!! But what about their 100 % money back guarantee??? Of HOF and of Montica???
He asked to think about it, because no jeweler would give me even half of what he was offering and it was a super deal they were offering. He told me to call him back if I agreed, that I had his number!!!
I told him, don t worry I will never call you back, I will not consider that option but I would write to different protection bureaus and of course I would post in the Pricescope forum for people to know what a NON prestigious company HOF and Montica.com was. (losing more than$ 10,000.00 is a very small amount related in my story of what they are offering for a settlement to my situation with Montica compare to the profits HOF generates annually)
Terrible, isnt it???
If a company advertises "100 % money back guarantee", or "your purchase is risk free, unconditional money back guarantee", or as in their nature of business where HOF displays about themselves, "that they will refund 100% of their retail customers", then they should honor it, no matter what reasons a customer has.
Carole
Santa Ana
Costa Rica
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