Am I Wrong? GreatCollections Customer Service Woes
Morgandude1997
Posts: 35 ✭✭✭
I consigned some coins to Greatcollections at the FUN show back in January and I would just like to share my experience with the customer service provided by Andy and some of the other representatives at GC.
So I dropped off 24 coins for consignment at the Winter FUN show back in January roughly 9 months. I didn't want to share my experience until I gave them some time to try to resolve this situation, but now I've tried and figured I would like to get some other opinions on if I'm in the wrong or not.
All of my consigned coins were listed April 24th except for 1 which showed that it was not sent to CAC but was rather sent to PCGS to be reholdered
So I'm curious, because the coin has a truview already and was in a newer generation PCGS holder when I dropped it off with no damage to the holder. I call up customer service and they tell me yes the coin was sent to be reholdered must have been something wrong with the current holder. I told them when I dropped it off with the GC representative there was no issues and the holder was fine, the customer service representative tells me they will look more into it and talk to Andy try to get him to give me a call about it when they find out why. - No communication from them, then the coin is back, gets sent to CAC (not sure why it was a sub $100 coin and not cost effective in my opinion to get sent to CAC), but they are the ones who decide and so it is listed then sells.
I'm waiting for the 30 days until the consignment settles because this coin was sold on a different date and will have a separate check all together. Well, 35 days out I give them a call about it and they tell me there will not be a check because after the CAC fee, reholder fee, and other auction fees, there is nothing left to pay. I tell them that that shouldn't be correct because I believe the reholder and resubmission costs should be covered by GC due to the fact that the coin was damaged either by them or while in their possession. I mean if Barrett-Jackson damages a car in transport are they going to pass on repair costs to the consignor?
Then they tell me ok we will cover the cost this time and send you out a check for this coin with the reholder and resubmission fees added back in - August 2022.
The check never came and in the meantime I had another consignment settle, but I noticed an "adjustment" (charge from reholder fee taken out of my next check settlement) due to the balance from the previous issue. I called and then get told that the customer service rep is "on it"
That was 2 weeks ago now.
Well, that's it for me at GC.. overall its not much only roughly $50 but it's just the principle that they really stuck it to me and didn't care.
Would you guys also be upset with this recourse?
Comments
I suggest you call and talk directly with Ian. I have never had anything but great service and communication from GC. Hope you get the resolution you desire.
If you have trouble with your Tesla, you shouldn't have to talk to Elon to get it sorted out, should you?
@Morgandude1997
Sorry to hear - I'll definitely look into this. Can you please PM me your e-mail address so I can look up your account? Or call me at 1-800-442-6467 x101 (I'm here for another hour tonight or most of tomorrow).
Owner/Founder GreatCollections
GreatCollections Coin Auctions - Certified Coin Auctions Every Week - Rare Coins & Coin Values
The question is did you checkmark the box on the submission form to allow GC to decide which coins go to CAC? If so, that was your mistake. If that box at the top wasn’t checked, then you need to contact GC and get the refund for the CAC submission.
GC already handled the reholder fee, which was great customer service.
I’d be pretty annoyed. But without more info on the initial drop off it’s hard to form a final opinion.
Was it part of the deal that GC would send coins for reholder and CAC based entirely on their judgement?
There's a few situations where we will - and in most situations, we notify the consignor by e-mail and in their account.
Mechanical errors is a good example, and these are fixed at PCGS at no charge. Faded/partially peeled CAC stickers. Holders that appear not sealed properly or have fractures giving the impression they have been opened etc. I'm sure there's other reasons too.
I don't know this situation yet - but providing there's nothing confidential about it, I'll post on here what the situation was.
Owner/Founder GreatCollections
GreatCollections Coin Auctions - Certified Coin Auctions Every Week - Rare Coins & Coin Values
I too suggest to call Ian.
Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value. Zero. Voltaire. Ebay coinbowlllc
See madman they did not, that's the reason I'm upset. They charged me for the reholder fee and CAC submission both. I totally understand charging me for the CAC submission as that is their judgement and I did check that box. The adjustment for the balance was a deduction. Sorry if i was unclear on that.
Stuff happens - everyone knows that.... and there are always two sides to every story.
How it's handled after that (by both sides) is important. I'm sure it will be worked out to the satisfaction of the OP. Still, if I consigned a coin, and somehow ended up getting nothing, or even losing money as a result, I wouldn't be too happy about it.
As Ian has posted to this thread and asked the OP to get in touch with him directly, I have no doubt that all these issues will be sorted out. I personally have never had any issues working with GC or any of the staff there, however they do a lot of volume and it is inevitable that a few mishaps will happen from time to time.
My Collection of Old Holders
Never a slave to one plastic brand will I ever be.
Are there any companies that this would not be true for?
No. But some companies are forgiven and others are excoriated.
I have read a few times from a couple of posters here that PCGS is infallible.
Aside from that I cannot think of any.
My Collection of Old Holders
Never a slave to one plastic brand will I ever be.
Faded/partially peeled CAC stickers.
ALERT. Auction companies sometimes apply their lot number tape on a portion of the CAC sticker and removing it can damage the sticker itself.
My experience with GC and @ianrussell have been nothing less than stellar! please reserve all judgment until GC gets a chance to sort this out and post the results
I HIGHLY recommend GC and their staff..
To be fair, the OP waited weeks or months. This submission was in January for an auction in April. It is now October. I think he waited long enough to make a judgment. Does it really matter what happens now? He shouldn't have to publicly call out a company to get some resolution. [Assuming all facts presented are accurate ]
Something is wrong here, and for a few dollars they [GC] look just plain wrong
BHNC #203
How many months were the OP's coins sitting at PCGS and CAC?
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
Deleted.
Not the appropriate place for me to air out an issue I had with GC and the response I received earlier this year.
Pocket Change Inspector
Not a fan.
GC seems to be a top venue for pq coins, pretty toners, rarities that merit listing with them. Personally I preferred the old Teletrade that got bought out where Ian worked before. GC is a big money operation, this instance seems to be a low value item where the op was unlucky.
That is beyond irrelevant. Read the OPs complaint. He's complaining about money he was charged for a service he didn't request.
This was during the high volume of CAC submissions when there were very high turnaround times at both places.
I will say the CAC results email I got from Ian was sent on 4/1/22 and the coins were listed a little over 3 weeks later. Does seem somewhat excessive for a time to image and list the coins, but not the main reason for my issues with GC.
I've had stellar service with GC and all issues resolved anytime one has came up. I have had Ian personally call me to resolve a complicated issue with a key date I bought.
I'm a big fan. They have also sold many coins for me reaching prices I couldn't have obtained myself with a low commission.
No, but if you can get Elon involved, it will probably resolve more quickly.
@ianrussell has already posted twice in this thread, so it should be evident that there is an effort underway to provide the right level of customer service. I just wanted to share a different perspective that could feasibly impact a consignment: sometimes the TPGs get an attribution wrong (in my case, I'm looking at capped bust half dimes, but it could be any attribution). When such a coin is listed and I've emailed to inform GC about this, in EVERY case they responded by taking the listing down, as it was incorrect on the slab. I appreciate this enormously!
I acknowledge, my example here shouldn't incur any expenses, at least from the TPG (who should correct slab errors for free) - so I don't think that @Morgandude1997 's current situation would have resulted from such a case. But a cancellation/delay of the listing is certainly possible. I merely wanted to reinforce that GC listens and tries to do the right thing, and those principles are very important to me!
New website: Groovycoins.com Capped Bust Half Dime registry set: Bikergeek CBHD LM Set
Never had anything but exemplary service from GC. Plan on using them again and again!
The issue to the OP was never the delay...
Well, sounds like very bad services. OP sounds very reasonable to me. He agree to pay CAC fee but not re-holder fee. I believe GC should notify the OP before they sent to PCGS for re-holder.
Stuff happens, and no you shouldn't need to go to the top to get it fixed but sometimes that is appropriate.
For instance, I bought a Chevy Suburban back in 1973, brand new from a Reno dealer for $5,500. On the way home to Carson the alternator fell off and bounced under the burb for what seemed like forever. Ruined the engine, pan, exhaust, rear differential and ripped the back bumper off (I was doing 80 or so). Well, I got in touch with the dealer that very day....he didn't want to have anything to do with it or the repairs. There was no alt bolt it appears. Ended up going to Chevy's top execs. A year later the new burb was back in business. I sold it with 350,000 miles back in 92.
Didn't stop me from using Chevy dealers and I'm still driving a Chevy. Ian will figure it out, no problem for sure.
bob
Seems that some real basic questions need to be answered- What was the coin? Grade and holder? And how and why did it end up at CAC?
Come back with some answers and then maybe it can be discussed rationally
Experience the World through Numismatics...it's more than you can imagine.
Just to update: the coin we received while not opened had the fusion fractured (that's what I call it, not sure of technical term) showing in a way that some would believe the coin was opened and resealed (even though I did not think that occurred). Client requested suitable coins to go to CAC. We sent some of his consignment there, including this coin. It was a toned coin, so we thought it was in the consignor's best interest to have it reholdered before we sent to CAC. It was a lower valued, but due to toning, the upside was high if it got CAC'd. Unfortunately, it did not pass.
We did credit the OP's consignor account over two weeks ago (on the day he spoke to Juliann) with the reholder cost ($23), and even the CAC fee as a courtesy. I've manually set the check to print today, otherwise, it would have added to his next consignor check.
Owner/Founder GreatCollections
GreatCollections Coin Auctions - Certified Coin Auctions Every Week - Rare Coins & Coin Values
And that is why so many collectors and dealers like to work with GC, customer service.
My Collection of Old Holders
Never a slave to one plastic brand will I ever be.
If you deal with enough auction coins, you will deal with a screw up. It happened to me. A floor bidder got the auction coin at my mail bid at the same amount, and it was mistakenly awarded to the floor bidder. When I pointed this out to the auction company, they tried to get back, and the 'buyer' told them 'no.' They gave me a free book as a courtesy. There wasn't much more they could offer.
That said, the key is what does the auction company do to make it right? I think GC is on top of this.
"Seu cabra da peste,
"Sou Mangueira......."
So do mail bids take priority over floor bids? I did not know that
Generally, the earliest bid at a certain amount takes priority.
Huh,,,,,, I always thought floor bids took priority
An auction house in Australia would always award to the floor bidder, so they didn't have to ship the items.
At GreatCollections - the earliest bid takes precedence. In a few instances, bids have been placed at the same amount on the same second (our system awards to the earliest going by a fraction of a second).
Owner/Founder GreatCollections
GreatCollections Coin Auctions - Certified Coin Auctions Every Week - Rare Coins & Coin Values
I would have reached out directly to Ian regarding this issue (since he has demonstrated receptivity repeatedly on the forum) vs creating a complaint thread, but that’s just me. Escalation is the normal course of action for addressing complaints
"Got a flaming heart, can't get my fill"
Heritage:
Because bids come in via phone, Email, FAX, regular mail, etc., a tie for the high bid is possible. In the event of a tie for the high bid, the first bid entered - regardless of its source - wins.
Stacks-Bowers:
When identical bids are received for a lot, preference is given to the first bid received as determined by the auctioneer.
That's just two, but still...
Interesting this thread came up, I am dealing with a similar issue. I sent in 39 coins a few months ago. I just noticed one of my coins which happens to be the most valuable coin I sent in was marked “returned consignor” so I sent an email asking about it and the response was that it was sent back to PCGS because it wasn’t properly sealed. The coin in question is a 1884 CC GSA MS66 and I had just gotten it graded by PCGS which was a lifelong experience in itself. The entire GC process is excruciatingly LONG, and now the wait for this to unfold. With my luck this coin and the ones that are at CAC will end the week of Christmas. I’m frustrated with GC for not communicating this issue and I’m frustrated with PCGS for the obvious lack of quality control. And if I get charged from GC for this my frustration will turn to outright anger. Do you guys think this is a PCGS issue or GC being to picky with PCGS’s sealing process?
Don't know. What I think should be happening in a situation like this is that if the company you're sending your coins to wants to do anything other than what you have asked them to, they should contact you and get your agreement before proceeding.
I would imagine that it is better for everyone that a "questionable" seal on a holder be corrected before being auctioned. If a buyer gets it,,,,,, see's the problem it only will delay the whole process for everyone. Coin is returned. You wait for return shipping time from buyer. Payment is delayed. Do you send the coin and get the holder fixed,,,,,,,, A whole big Cluster-Plunk waiting to happen. Getting it fixed before auctioning it IS the way to go.
Doesn't seem like a bad idea. Maybe the coin's owner could be involved in the decision?
“Do you guys think this is a PCGS issue or GC being to picky with PCGS’s sealing process?”
How could anyone even begin to answer that question, fairly, without first seeing the coin and the holder, in hand?
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
Fair enough, please disregard my question
I agree with this 100 percent. It’s not so much the inconvenience of the coin going back to PCGS, If there’s an issue that needs to be fixed then yeah it should go back but to go through that process with zero communication doesn’t seem right.
It happened to me once exactly the same. I agree with you that making a mistake sometimes happens but the auction should make it right. In this case GC (Ian) did it right eventually. That's a happy ending for OP and the GC's reputation.
SB once sent my coin to PCGS to re-holder without letting me know but my coin is a 30K coin so re-holder fee is nothing in my case. I did not say a word to SB about it.
100% positive experiences with GC. Their customer service is excellent, and I am in the customer service business.