Duty Free.com, Columbian Emeralds International, CEI, Jewels Sold us a cracked diamond; switched the diamond for a much smaller also cracked diamond; severed their ties with the Columbian Emerald's International located in St. Thomas which has been renamed to Jewels but refused to give a stone that was not cracked; Sarah Restrepo and Angela Jaramillo mislead us and the owner Mr. Cranes refuses to return our calls or email; buyer/tourist needs to beware. Caribbean Islands
Columbian Emerald's staff lied to my fiance and I about the Diamond Engagement Ring we purchased. They sold us a cracked diamond that appraised for much less than their appraisal. The store was unwilling to resolve the issue. However, they felt the need to protect themselves after assuring us that this was not the first time they had the problem with their St. Thomas store--they protected themselves by severing the tie with the St. Thomas store, but left us with a cracked diamond and no other recourse. We contacted the store and customer services and received a run around on many occassions. We were asked to return the cracked diamond to Customer Services for resolution and at this point, we were ripped off. Our cracked diamond was switched to a much smaller diamond that was also cracked right in the middle and of a lesser color and clarity.
The persons in Customer Service's that we worked were Angela Jaramillo and Sarah Restrepo. Angela and Sarah played a game and we later discovered that it was to buy time until it was too late for their insurance company to get involved. We purchased the ring from Suresh Sujanani. We also contacted Mr. Steven Crane the owner and he never returned our calls or email. They have a location in New York that assisted them in ripping us off. This event occurred more than two years ago, and has never been resolved to our satisfaction. We are also aware that another customer was ripped off on a purchase of diamond earrings that were quite costly. We are posting this to inform travelers and buyers to beware of Columbian Emeralds, Jewels, CEI, and DutyFree.com's ripoff practices. You are referred to these stores by Norwegian, Carnival, Holland America Cruise Lines, etc. These stores are located throughout the Caribbean and online.
Denise
Upper Marlboro, Maryland
U.S.A.
3 Updates & Rebuttals
Karl
Highlands Ranch,Colorado,
USA
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#4Consumer Comment
Thu, October 28, 2010
646259.
Denise
Upper Marlboro,Maryland,
U.S.A.
Inaccurate Statements--Corrected!
#4Consumer Comment
Thu, October 28, 2010
We are not yet married, thanks to Columbian Emeralds and all the hassles we endured with our engagement ring purchases. For the record, there was no problem with our first purchase (the 2 carat diamond). However, on a trip years later, we stoped in to Columbian Emeralds International to look at earrings. On our way out of the store, we passed the diamonds and a sales clerk asked us to just take a look. We did not have a lot of time because we were on our way on a sightseeing tour. The sales person made us an offer that we could not refuse, so we thought, until we returned to Maryland to get an appraisal and discovered that the diamond was cracked to the surface. For weeks, Columbian Emeralds International refused to acknowledge this possiblity or consider an exchange--they kept telling us that it was not cracked to the surface. Reluctantly, they agreed to look at it and I (against the wishes of my fiance) sent it to them for review. He was dealing with his fathers death and had asked me to wait until that was over before trying to resolve the issues. But, I was trusting of Columbian Emeralds International and agreed to send the stone to them for review. Well, it was at this point that they switched the stone to one of a much lot lesser quality and refused to acknowledge the switch. On a scale from 1-10, we had about a 5 (with the crack) and they switched it to a 1. We were so frustrated with this situation that we decided to change our wedding date until we could get the situation resolved. We did not think it was a good idea to get married with issues surrounding the ring and unfortunately, we were stuck with the horrible ring until 2008 when we went back on a cruise and upgraded to a better stone. It was not Columbian Emeralds International that helped with the upgrade, it was Diamonds International. Therefore, I maintain that buyers should beware of purchases made at Columbian Emeralds International--Diamonds International is a much more reputable company. At the time of this issue, I did in fact contact the cruise line after there was no resolution with Columbian Emeralds International. I also, had to go to Court in Maryland with Columbian Emeralds and was still not able to get them to satisfactorily resolve this issue. Our wedding is planned for 2011.
St Jude
St Thomas,Florida,
United States Minor Outlying Islands
Something for nothing
#4UPDATE EX-employee responds
Thu, April 23, 2009
These clients wanted something for nothing.
They (husband and wife) bought a 2ct diamond. The diamond has a visible inclusion in the center. They came back a year after the purchase and wanted a refund. The receipt they signed says no refunds after 3 months. It is clearly visible on the back of the receipt they signed. They were even told to read the terms on the back of the receipt. They could have contacted the cruise lines or the company prior. What made this a little difficult also was that the company changed owners and names.
They also omitted several details about their unwillingness to be helped after their warranty period expired.
On their return visit an upgrade in the quality of the diamond was offered at a price in which would have been at cost (so the company would make no profit but just to win over the customer) but they demanded the higher quality diamond without paying the additional difference in price. Since the clarity of the diamond was low she got an exceptionally low price and without paying any taxes on the diamond. The difference in price was a few thousand dollars more. They were also offered a replacement diamond that would require an even less amount but they refused sticking to their demands to get something for nothing.
It does not surprise me that no one will take their calls.
The best course of action is to contact Columbian emeralds and try to get an upgrade in the diamond quality. Now is a good time since the price of diamonds have come down.
The diamond could also be "fracture filled" at a very low cost from a diamond manufacturer. The client can search the meaning of the term and search for diamond manufacturers.
I think that this web site should verify complaints before publishing them.
Regards.