Common Diamond Scams and How to Avoid Them

In the prestigious diamond industry, it's only natural that con artists will be lurking at every corner trying to scam you. Unfortunately, there are a lot of people affected by worldwide diamond scams – a phenomenon that actually has a simple explanation. This occurs due to the fact that people are often unknowledgeable of diamond jewelry, which could lead to easy pickings for con artists. The best way to avoid being a victim and to merely become a statistic is to be aware of the most common scams being executed nowadays and carefully follow the guidelines outlined in this article.

The following schemes are carried out in seemingly reliable diamond jewelry stores, and thus tend to sometimes go unnoticed by potential buyers. It is important to carefully read through these common schemes and educate yourself: 

• The Scam: Jewelers will often showcase their diamonds under a very bright light in order to encourage the shine and sparkle of the diamonds which would otherwise, under darker lighting, turn out to be completely different.

How to Avoid it: Simply ask the jeweler to test out the diamond under different and darker lighting, or better yet ask for a second opinion from someone close to you.

• The Scam: A tactic which is frequently carried out in diamond stores is use of false information. For instance, a jeweler could boast in a rare quality diamond sporting an exceptional "blue white" coloring, when in fact this type of color on a diamond actually denotes a lower quality stone. The widely used "blue-white" term refers to the fluorescence appearing in natural light, which contains ultraviolet wavelengths. This fluorescence actually makes a colorless diamond look somewhat milky in sunlight and hence decreases its value.

How to Avoid it: There is no greater weapon to tackle this particular scan than knowledge. Before you invest in such pricy diamond jewelry (or any purchases for that matter) always make sure that you've done plenty of prior research. Even if a jeweler still took you by surprise with an unfamiliar term, never be hasty in these sorts of purchases and take time to go back home and look it up before you continue.

• The Scam: Lastly and probably the worst minor scam is the cunningly deceptive use of the term Total Carat Weight (aka TCW). This TCW jewelry tag holds the overall weight information of the piece of jewelry you are looking to purchase, but what jewelers often tend to omit is the specific weight value of the center diamond separately. This means that you could easily be fooled into believing that the center diamond is much heavier, when in fact the value provided to you is combined with all the precious stones surrounding it. Jewelers know that this is crucial information that if left out could cause a hefty difference in the diamond's value: i.e. one large diamond is worth much more than 7 small diamonds that sum up to the same weight. 

How to Avoid it: Insist on getting in writing the specific weight and quality of the center stone by its own. If the jeweler declines in doing so, then it is clear that he does not have your best interests in mind and consider yourself lucky to have stepped out of this dodgy deal in time!

Although we listed only a few of the more popular common scams being carried out in today's diamond industry throughout the world, there are still many more one should be aware of before making his diamond jewelry purchase. People looking to deceive you are always thinking of new and innovative methods to do so, and that's why it's very important to keep an eye out for them. Having good awareness and knowledge of basic diamond education is key to avoid these types of scams.