Still get charged?

joeykoins

Hi guys, in one of my recent submissions, I paid for a Morgan to receive the VAM. Designation. Well, They didn't give me the VAM Designation. I paid the $18. Should they (our host) of still charged me?
Thanks

Hydrant

Why ask why? More than likely an honest mistake. It will all work out just fine.

bearcave

Ask them in email or call them.

TurtleCat

You might check that the VAM is on the master approved list. Someone else had a similar problem with a Peace dollar VAM that PCGS no longer recognizes. A call to customer support will be required. They may refund some of the money but they will charge even if they don’t look up anything.

jmlanzaf

Seems like a question for PCGS.

If they evaluated it and discovered it was not a recognized VAM (by them), they did provide the service.

From the PCGS website:

Will I be charged if my coin does not qualify for Variety Attribution?
In the event the coin does not qualify for a variety or is not a variety PCGS currently recognizes, PCGS will still charge a fee of $9 per coin. PCGS graders must examine the coin and research to determine whether or not a variety is appropriate. Thus the service is still provided. As a result, PCGS will only charge 50% of the original Variety Attribution fee.

MetroD

@TurtleCat said:
You might check that the VAM is on the master approved list. Someone else had a similar problem with a Peace dollar VAM that PCGS no longer recognizes. A call to customer support will be required. They may refund some of the money but they will charge even if they don’t look up anything.

"Will I be charged if my coin does not qualify for Variety Attribution?
In the event the coin does not qualify for a variety or is not a variety PCGS currently recognizes, PCGS will still charge a fee of $9 per coin. PCGS graders must examine the coin and research to determine whether or not a variety is appropriate. Thus the service is still provided. As a result, PCGS will only charge 50% of the original Variety Attribution fee.

Note: If requesting Variety Attribution on a Crossover and the coin does not cross, on Reconsideration and the coin does not upgrade, or requesting a Minimum Grade and the minimum grade is not met – in these instances, the variety fee will be $0."

Source, which includes a link to the PCGS recognized varieties for Morgans.

Jimnight

Good question!

dbldie55

I had the $9 charge on a recent submission of mine.

Hydrant

I should have added this to my previous post; I really don't know what the VAM designation means. I have a vague idea, but that's about all. Good luck, Joey Baby!

joeykoins

Thought I had the VAM 15?

The Doubled Ear

Their Pic

I'll take better pics of mine, later.

MetroD

@joeykoins said:
Thought I had the VAM 15?

The Doubled Ear

Their Pic

I'll take better pics of mine, later.

"What is a VAM?
VAM is an acronym for the authors of the Comprehensive Catalog and Encyclopedia of Morganand Peace Dollars, Leroy Van Allen and A. George Mallis. In their book, they identified and assigned a VAM number for each of the different die pairs used to strike Morgan and Peace dollars. In all there are over 3,000 different VAM numbers.

What VAMs does PCGS recognize?
PCGS will attribute 317 Morgan and 52 Peace dollar varieties. See the VAM Variety list.

Why not do all of the 3,000 VAMs?
Most of the VAMs are not significant and do not bring a premium over the common variety. The varieties that PCGS will do have been identified by variety collectors as worthy of specific recognition. They are listed in: The Top 100 Morgan Dollar Varieties: The VAM Keys; SSDC Official Guide to the Hot 50 Morgan Dollar Varieties; The Official Guide to the Top 50 Peace Dollars; The 1878 Morgan Dollar 8-TF Attribution Guide; The VAM book, Comprehensive Catalog and Encyclopedia of Morgan and Peace Dollars and The Official Guide to The Morgan Dollar Hit List 40.."
Source

The '1889 P VAM 15 Doubled Ear' does not appear to be one of the varieties recognized by PCGS. This is the case as it does not appear on the VAM Variety list.

"Will I be charged if my coin does not qualify for Variety Attribution?
In the event the coin [...] is not a variety PCGS currently recognizes, PCGS will still charge a fee of $9 per coin. PCGS graders must examine the coin and research to determine whether or not a variety is appropriate. Thus the service is still provided. As a result, PCGS will only charge 50% of the original Variety Attribution fee."
Source

joeykoins

@MetroD said:

In the event the coin [...] is not a variety PCGS currently recognizes, PCGS will still charge a fee of $9 per coin. PCGS graders must examine the coin and research to determine whether or not a variety is appropriate. Thus the service is still provided. As a result, PCGS will only charge 50% of the original Variety Attribution fee."
Source

Thanks. Yes, that's probably it? It's NOT an established PCGS variety. That still should make my final cost lower. Have to call PCGS or just wait for my bank statement.
This doesn't make my current submission look good. I sent a 2020 Salt River Bay quarter that clearly has a DDO. Variety Vista approved but Our Host? I can only hope they see it my way. Another $18 fee I paid for. We shall see. Fingers crossed.