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PSA Quick Opinion....
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Posts: 3,127
Wow, I just spent my break reading the post from earlier. Bizarre. However, I read something in there that said something about a PSA quick opinion. I'm curious what that is, do you have to be a member of PSA to get one, and where do you go to find the quick opinion? Thanks everyone!
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Quick Opinion LINK
PSA/DNA site:
What Is It?
QuickOpinion¢â is a service of Collectors Universe, Inc., the leading name in collectibles authentication. Our service enables you to get the opinion of the autograph industry's leading authenticators as to the genuineness of an item being offered for sale on the eBay web site. QuickOpinion¢â is making this service available at a nominal cost to provide bidders with valuable knowledge to help them make informed buying decisions.
How Does It Work?
¡áOn www.ebaysports.com and other conspicuous locations on eBay, and the PSA/DNA home page (www.psadna.com), you will find a QuickOpinion¢â link which will take you to the Request Page.
¡áOnce there, simply enter the eBay item number for the autographed item in which you are interested, and make a fast and easy payment of $7.49.
¡áThe item listing page will be forwarded [via e-mail] to our highly qualified experts for an online examination.
¡áWithin 24-36 hours, you will receive an e-mail with their opinion on whether they feel the item is "likely genuine," or "likely not genuine."
How Long Does It Take?
While we will make every effort to examine all items submitted, requests for opinions on items closing in less than 24 hours will, in all likelihood, be too late for us to examine. With most auctions lasting 5 or 7 days, we encourage you to promptly submit all opinion requests.
What Do You Get for Your Money?
For your $7.49, you will get a qualified opinion based on an expert's examination of the scan. The opinion will be either "likely genuine" or "likely not genuine," based on the following standards:
¡áLikely genuine: Our expert believes that the item, if physically submitted to CU's PSA/DNA division for examination, would likely receive a PSA/DNA certificate of authenticity.
¡áLikely not genuine: Our expert believes that the item, if physically submitted to PSA/DNA for examination, would likely not receive a PSA/DNA certificate of authenticity.
Because the quality of scans varies, and because often the only way to be absolutely sure an item is genuine is to physically examine it, the opinion offered will be non-binding. In other words, you will not receive a certificate, or guarantee of authenticity. You will get our experts' candid reaction to the item based on the quality of the information presented in the lot listing.
What If QuickOpinion¢â Cannot Render an Opinion?
If QuickOpinion¢â is unable to render an opinion, we will provide a refund to your account.
There are several reasons we will not be able to render an opinion:
1.If the scans are inadequate, [e.g. too small, poor focus, bad lighting] then we will not be able to give an opinion. A good rule of thumb to keep in mind is if YOU can't see it very well, neither can we. Please don't send requests for items that cannot be clearly seen.
2.Out of our area of expertise. While our experts are the best in their field, they cannot authenticate the signature of every personality, in every field/sport, throughout all of history. If the item bears the signature of an extremely obscure sports figure, we may not know.
Note that if the auction is closing in less than 24 hours, we may not have the time to examine the item. We will render an opinion regardless of the time the auction closes as long as we opine within our 36 hour turnaround obligation. Once an item is reviewed and opined our system will automatically charge you for the services rendered. Please plan your request for a Quick Opinion accordingly.
What Do I Do After I Buy the Item?
If you are the successful bidder and ultimately purchase the item, you have the option to physically send it to our experts for a formal and complete examination.
If we receive the item within 90 days of the close of the auction, you will be entitled to a credit of $7.49 off our regular authentication fee. All you have to do is attach a copy of your paid QuickOpinion¢â invoice to the PSA/DNA submission form.
After the in-person examination takes place and your item(s) are deemed authentic, you will receive a Certificate or Letter of Authenticity from the industry's most respected and marketable name in authentication. To take advantage of the full PSA/DNA authentication service and to view all the benefits this service provides, please visit our Submission Center.
It is important to understand that the QuickOpinion¢â program is just that. For the very low fee of $7.49, you will get the assistance of the most respected experts in the autograph authentication field, taking a quick look at the autograph in question, giving you their unbiased opinion. You should be fully aware that this opinion is NOT GUARANTEED and that errors are possible.
Make sure you see this excerpt that Storm posted:
" the opinion offered will be non-binding. In other words, you will not receive a certificate, or guarantee of authenticity. You will get our experts' candid reaction to the item based on the quality of the information presented in the lot listing."
To put it in a nutshell, just because they opine one way on a quick opinion, does not mean they will opine that way when it comes time to issue a letter of authenticity. Use quick opinion as a tool only, not as an end all.
I used to put a great deal of faith in their quick opinions until some recent experiences I had with it. The first occasion was on an Albert Pujols autographed rookie card that I had already bid on, but was using their quick opinion, to confirm my gut feeling that the auto was real. The quick opinion came back "Likely Not Genuine". If I had followed their opinion, I would have missed out on a tremendous card. I went ahead and made the purchase after some internal hesitation because of the opinion, and sure enough, the card got slabbed and authenticated by BGS/JSA (James Spence who used to be the authenticator for PSA/DNA) who enjoys a good reputation in the industry as well.
The second issue was more disturbing to me. I received a quick opinion on an AROD signed rookie that I was considering buying. It came back "Likely Genuine". I bought it based on that opinion, and turned around and sent it in to PSA for slabbing. I did not include the copy of the "quick opinion" in with my submission, and to my astonishment, it failed. I called and asked them to review and to their credit, I think they did and they looked up their quick opinion. I believe this kind of put them in between a rock and a hard place, and they chose to stand by their new belief that it was not real. I received what I felt was a "canned" response as to what the reasons were, and it is my belief (which in fairness to them might be flawed) that if I had included the quick opinion in my initial submission, that it would have been easily slabbed. The AROD is authentic and is being slabbed by BGS/JSA as well.
I do feel that the $7.49 is generally a good investment you can make when considering the purchase of a high dollar autograph or an autograph that you don't have any experience with, but I just wanted to reiterate what Storm posted, and let you know it's definitely not an end all of opinions. Keep in mind that you are only paying $7.49 for it, and sometimes it's only worth what you paid for it, and it's always best to use it in combination with your own gut and research.
(I know that last paragraph is a little contradictory, but I will continue to use quick opinion as a tool, but only as that)
Mike
Guru