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CAC's guarantee

logger7logger7 Posts: 9,500 ✭✭✭✭✭

https://www.cacgrading.com/legal/gradingpolicy

Is cac's guarantee better or worse than PCGS's?

Apparently cac offers no guarantee on copper or copper-nickel coins:

"Copper, Bronze & Brass. Coins made of copper, bronze, or brass, or coins which are copper-plated can change over time and are NOT guaranteed."

Also it looks as if the guarantee only covers a specific owner:

"This Guarantee only applies to verified owners of a coin that has previously been authenticated and graded by CAC and remaining in its original CAC Holder, without tampering (as further qualified herein, the “Owner”). This Guarantee does not apply to the Owner of the coin at the time of original submission, including the original submitter’s agent or representative (such as a CAC authorized submitter)."

Comments

  • jmlanzafjmlanzaf Posts: 40,273 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Looks pretty much the same to me.

    All comments reflect the opinion of the author, even when irrefutably accurate.

  • Rc5280Rc5280 Posts: 1,200 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Seems similar to the NGC guarantee, and rightfully so.

    This is the NGC grade guarantee on copper, etc...

    "Copper Coins Notice: Coins made of copper, bronze, brass or are copper-plated can change over time. Accordingly, with regard to copper, bronze, brass or copper-plated coins graded by NGC, the grade portion will no longer apply after the 10 year anniversary of their date of encapsulation by NGC."

    "This coin was encapsulated on 2023-06-27 and the grade guarantee will expire on 6/27/2033." (one of my zinc examples)

    " If the grade guarantee has not expired, it may be extended by submitting the coin under NGC's ReGrade service tier. If the grade guarantee has expired, the coin will be treated as a raw (ungraded) submission if resubmitted to NGC."

    NGC

  • Mr Lindy Mr Lindy Posts: 1,581 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited December 16, 2025 11:55AM

    Any guarantees for genuine, not counterfeit ?

    If genuine is guaranteed real coin error forever or limited to original submitter or limited by time ?
    Or no guarantee at all ?

    I've handled NGC & PCGS & ANACS error coins slabbed as real that were deceptive counterfeits. So good Charles and friends got them encapsulated. Known as Silverstone counterfeits I bought direct from Silverstone via ebay when he lived in Florida. Luckily I was successful via credit card chargebacks minus about $50 which was far better than losing $5,500.

  • logger7logger7 Posts: 9,500 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @Rc5280 said:
    Seems similar to the NGC guarantee, and rightfully so.

    This is the NGC grade guarantee on copper, etc...

    "Copper Coins Notice: Coins made of copper, bronze, brass or are copper-plated can change over time. Accordingly, with regard to copper, bronze, brass or copper-plated coins graded by NGC, the grade portion will no longer apply after the 10 year anniversary of their date of encapsulation by NGC."

    "This coin was encapsulated on 2023-06-27 and the grade guarantee will expire on 6/27/2033." (one of my zinc examples)

    " If the grade guarantee has not expired, it may be extended by submitting the coin under NGC's ReGrade service tier. If the grade guarantee has expired, the coin will be treated as a raw (ungraded) submission if resubmitted to NGC."

    NGC

    It seems that cac is offering no iron clad guarantee on copper, cn, brass coins, but that may just be wriggle room, that they will permit reasonable claims. NGC and PCGS has a sunset on the copper coins of around 10 years.

    PCGS guarantees the authenticity and grade of copper coins but explicitly excludes changes in color or spotting after encapsulation, due to copper's sensitivity to environmental factors like storage and humidity, which can cause spotting or color shift from Red (RD) to Red-Brown (RB) or Brown (BN). While the grade and authenticity are covered, you must inspect the coin's current color upon purchase; the guarantee doesn't protect against value loss if a red coin fades, though you can resubmit within a timeframe (like 10 years for NGC, similar for PCGS) for re-evaluation if needed, notes YouTube video source.
    Key Aspects of the PCGS Guarantee for Copper Coins:
    Authenticity & Grade: Guaranteed to be genuine and accurately graded according to PCGS standards at the time of certification.
    No Color Guarantee: PCGS does not guarantee against color changes (e.g., fading red) or new spotting (like PVC spots) after the coin leaves their holder, as these are environmental issues.
    Color Designations: Copper coins get RD, RB, or BN designations, with Red (RD) being the most valuable, but this red can diminish over time.
    Exclusions: The guarantee doesn't cover improper storage, environmental damage, or post-grading PVC damage.
    Buyer Responsibility: Always examine the color of a graded red copper coin carefully, even if recently certified, as the label reflects the grade at that moment, not forever.
    In essence, you're guaranteed the coin's initial state of authenticity and grade, but its delicate copper surface isn't covered for future environmental shifts, emphasizing careful examination by the buyer, explains this YouTube video.

  • Old_CollectorOld_Collector Posts: 817 ✭✭✭✭✭

    I'm usually more comfortable with red old Lincolns if they were slabbed long ago, like a nice rattler. ;)

  • Cougar1978Cougar1978 Posts: 9,551 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited December 16, 2025 11:30PM

    Looks ok to me. But no expert on a lot of that.

    However if a coin has gone bad in the holder - ugly tarnish, black spots, salt air damage, biological attack, then what?

    Let see if this junk box guy knows.

    Investor
  • I was wondering the same thing about the zinc cents that are slabbed. UNslabbed they do seem to turn ugly quite quickly and easily, so how does that work? Wondering if there is a way to protect them.

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