A question for dealers who send coins on Approval...

dthigpen

Have you ever had someone whom you sent a coin to on approval either not return the coin and not pay for it, take a LONG time to pay for it while holding onto the coin, choose not to pay for it and take a LONG time to send it back, or send you back the coin damaged? Long dramatic stories please, I'm bored.

Cheers,

LindeDad

eBay don't work that way.

roadrunner

I sent a coin once to some guy in Mass. about 30 years ago named Leo Tarlowski. Never heard from him again. No check either. He got either a nice 1841 or 1842 SD half from me. Maybe someday I'll run into him.

Another time, I sent a better date seated quarter out to the west coast on approval. The guy kept the coin for months and told me would pay me in stages. This all came up after he got the coin. After many months he just returned it saying that he liked it, but just couldn't afford it. That was a strange one.

Back in 1974 when I was 19 or 20, old Steve Ivy Rare Coin sent me a totally unsolicited package on approval. I had been buying $50 coins up to that point and probably sent them a want list. In that package was a choice BU 1865-s dime worth over $2000 and a host of other neat seated coins, none of which I could afford. Heck, I couldn't even afford the $10-15 REG mail fee to send it back. The total invoice amount of that package was over $10,000. I sent Ivy a letter requesting money for postage up front to return the package as I didn't want to be left holding the bag. By postal laws I possibly could have kept the package as it was never requested by me.

Roadrunner

dthigpen

<< <i>eBay don't work that way.
>>



You bring up a good point, due to Ebay and high quality digital imaging paired with Email, many new collectors these days will likely never be sent a coin on approval.

ziggy29

<< <i>You bring up a good point, due to Ebay and high quality digital imaging paired with Email, many new collectors these days will likely never be sent a coin on approval. >>

Since I joined this board in July and stated my collecting interests, I've started a business relationship with two dealers (who also hang out here) and received coins on approval from them (with pictures even before they sent the coins). They knew nothing about me other than that I was on this forum, and they were sending $300ish coin shipments to me.

There's also another dealer on this forum I've worked with years ago (pre-forum), and he was sending me stuff on approval as well. I'd call about the coin, he'd send it for my approval, and I'd either send it back or call to purchase. (I always purchased since the coins were great!) I've not bought from him for a while now, but if he finds the right coin (and I've told him what it is), he has a ready buyer.

dthigpen

That brings up another question, would you be more likely to spend more on a coin that you've been sent on approval than a coin that you've only seen images of via the internet?

ziggy29

<< <i>That brings up another question, would you be more likely to spend more on a coin that you've been sent on approval than a coin that you've only seen images of via the internet? >>

If I trusted the return privileges equally, no difference.

But I will admit that a coin sent on approval is attractive since I don't have to worry about being paying for a coin I don't want; I have their coin and they haven't received any money yet. Just the same, if I trusted the return policy it wouldn't make too much difference.

mrearlygold

Only once. A doctor in Illinois. That was a long time ago.

Had a lawyer write my invoices after that and my requirements to send my marbles to someone else to play with are much more stringent. Haven't had a single incident since in just about 14 years.


Tom

dthigpen

The reason I ask these questions is that recently I've formed a good buyer's relationship with a dealer on the East Coast. I was seriously interested in a ~$10k coin but could not decide definitively unless I was able to inspect the coin in person. I ask the dealer to send the coin on approval and offer to put my AMEX on file with him (I know the dealer has AMEX credit card proccessing capabilities) for his peace of mind. The dealer said "No problem, no need to give me the AMEX, I trust you". A week later I receive an envelope in the mail with 2 photo prints of the coin and a note asking if I liked it and if I'd like to proceed with the sale. Needless to say, I responded back "No Thanks" and likely won't do business with this dealer again. Am I wrong to be offended by this and to cut ties with the dealer without asking him why he didn't just send the coin when he said it wouldn't be a problem?

ziggy29

<< <i>I was seriously interested in a ~$10k coin but could not decide definitively unless I was able to inspect the coin in person...The dealer said "No problem, no need to give me the AMEX, I trust you". A week later I receive an envelope in the mail with 2 photo prints of the coin and a note asking if I liked it and if I'd like to proceed with the sale. Needless to say, I responded back "No Thanks" and likely won't do business with this dealer again. Am I wrong to be offended by this and to cut ties with the dealer without asking him why he didn't just send the coin when he said it wouldn't be a problem? >>

I don't think you're wrong. If your story is as it happened and as the dealer understood it, then yes, you have a right to feel slighted by this dealer. Though I would ask why they did that before cutting ties (and whether or not I cut ties would depend on their answer).

I know in my past approvals I've never needed to give credit card info, but they've never exceeded $500 and I was always ready (if asked) to give credit card information that they could use to bill me (or charge if they never received the coin back or the authorization to charge).

If they say "I trust you" with an obvious implication that they were sending the real coin, I'd be a bit put off if I only received pictures, too. Hell, you can send hi-rez pictures over the Internet via web sites and e-mail now. Why use snail to send pictures in this day and age?

Sunnywood

That's pretty funny. I would have a good laugh if a dealer sent me photos like that. My guess is he doesn't own the coin, and doesn't even have it in his possession. His source, whether it's another dealer or a collector/consignor probably just e-mailed him pics or sent photos, so that was the best he could offer you.

Most dealers will offer to take a collector's coins on consignment if they are the right quality. Thus, the dealer does not own the coin (and there is nothing wrong with that). Also, dealers frequently take coins from other dealers "on memo." This often happens with inventory that doesn't move; the dealer who has it farms it out to another dealer. You would be amazed at the number of coins offered by dealers that they do not own. Sometimes the dealer will even refer to the consigned coins as "new purchases" from this or that show. But in some cases, the dealers have never even SEEN the coins or had possession of them. In such cases, the best the delaer can do is forward photos or scans, or offer verbal descriptions. Of course, this questionable practice is limited to a fraction of dealers.

On a different note, I recently e-mailed a dealer to ask him about a coin that was offered on Ebay. I suggested that I might be interested at a lower price than the Ebay starting bid of $6400, which is quite significantly above sheet. The dealer wrote back that the coin is PQ, and that "as a courtesy" he would sell it to me at $6500. Some courtesy !!!!! I then checked on Ebay, and noted that the dealer had no return privilege unless "Buy It Now" is used (which was offered at $7100). No thanks !!!

Best,
Sunnywood

topstuf

I've bought on approval many times but the one that really floored me was when I first started collecting coins and was struggling with the cost of the Dansco "Gold Page."
I got Mononucleosis and was ordered to do NOTHING for a few weeks. My wife went to our main local coin dealer, the late Bob Auger of Stockton, CA, and told him of my plight.
She came back home and I was sitting in the yard and she took out about 8-10 ...gold...coins for me to choose from. Never forgot that. Still have the coin I could afford. 1909d Indian $5 for $42.00

TomB

I've sent and received plenty of coins on approval and everything has always gone without a hitch. None of the coins, however, was individually worth more than $15,000.

A story similar to topstuf happened to me several years ago when my wife caught chicken pox. We were in our 30s and when she caught the pox I thought it was pretty funny, until I caught it from her. Anyway, I spent about four weeks at home and one afternoon I was speaking on the phone with Andy Kimmel and mentioned my plight. The next afternoon the postman rang my door and dropped off four PCGS boxes full of wonderfully toned coins. Andy had sent them, along with a price list, for me to go through while I was ill.

I purchased several and still own them.

ColonialCoinUnion

I'm a collector, not a dealer, but I've had all sorts of experiences with receiving (or not) coins on approval.

On one end of the spectrum I've had unsolicited packages arrive in the mail containing $20,000 worth of coins that I didn't want or need, and on the other end I once had a dealer ask me to pay just to see a photograph of a coin I was potentially interested in buying. And everything in between.

If I see or hear about a coin that could be of interest, my typical MO is to ask the dealer to email me a photo first. I can always rule out a lot of coins just by a picture. But if the picture looks good, I will ask the coin to be sent to me for a close look - in which case I offer to pay round trip shipping and provide whatever references or 'security' that the dealer requires.

At the end of the day, there are plenty of coins out there and almost as many dealers. So if someone isn't willing to work with me thats OK -

ER

I have received coins on aprroval from Jade (Dennis), Legend (Laura), Pinnacle (Scott), and Harry Laibstain.

coinbuf

I have received several coin on approval from fellow board member David(Linconcentman). I did send one back to him and paid for several others. One was a very expensive coin and he was gracious enough to wait a month for payment(while I held on to the coin). A very stand-up guy in my book.

Chris

braddick

Ironically, TomB has sent me toned coins on approval and I've never been disapointed.
I've sent coins out too for a looksie (three times this last week alone) and believe, the truly neat, eye catching coins sell themselves much more than a photo or an eBay auction text ever could.

Barry

A week later I receive an envelope in the mail with 2 photo prints of the coin and a note asking if I liked it and if I'd like to proceed with the sale

Doug - send him back a photo of $10K and say "thanks, this could have been your's."

ClausUrch

I don't know what the big deal is.

The dealer could tie a string through the hole of the coin and if you didn't pay for it within the agreed upon periiod of time, he could simply "reel" it in.

RYK

ttt (since we were talking about coins on approval yesterday, and this thread is relevant)

morgannut2

Sounds like you were talking to an employee, not the principal owner. It also sonds like the coin was on a "memo"
consignment, and your contact didn't know it. I'd call the guy and say you're jusy curious why he didn't do what he said he'd do with the coin of interest.