Diamond Int'l - Almod - Tanzanite Int'l Diamond Int'l & Carnival Cruise Line Liars, Diamond Tennis Bracelet Worth Less Than 1/2 of Purchase Price, Now Falling Apart Belize City Central America

I recently went on a Carnival cruise (10/2007) to the Western Caribbean and had ample opportunity to shop for bargains on diamond/gemstone jewelry at different ports. I recall that Carnival supplies guests with a list of "approved" shops/sellers prior to arriving at the port. Carnival states in this list of approved shops/sellers that the seller has met certain standards set by Carnival that supposedly guarantees the quality of merchandise. Additionally, the sellar has entered into an agreement with Carnival regarding certain rights given to Carnival guests such as timelines for honoring warranties, returns, and standards for merchandise. This is quite possibly why Carnival guests trust these shops/sellers and would lower their otherwise normal "buyer beware" common sense standards. The approved list from Carnival is also likely the reason why this consumer has listed her ripoff report under Carnival's name and not necessarily Diamond International.

However, I looked at the jewelry being offered at the shops in Cozumel and Honduras that were on Carnival's approved list and was immediately suspicious. It was a case of "too good to be true." I didn't care whether or not Carnival approved the shop or not; I was in a situation where if I had a problem with the quality of the diamonds I purchased I would be dealing with a seller in a foreign country and a gigantic cruise line that would likely be unwilling to deal with my "minor" issue should I be unsatisfied. I would rather not have that headache!

Anyway, I hope that calirifies why this consumer and others would trust a foreign shop/seller while on a cruise.

Gee, why don't you go back to Diamonds International to find a diamond of similar quality, or lack thereof.

I'm still awaiting your response as to how you came to the conclusion that they are a trustworthy company ........

From what I remember there was a warranty that goes along with the sale. Did you make Diamonds International honor it??

You should go ahead an email Carnival Cruise Line though and make them aware of other peoples problems. The way I see it is even though you did not get the tennis bracelet from Carnival Cruises they should be made aware of all these complaints about Diamond International especially since they vouch for them and point people towards them.

Read somewhere else that you should probably shop around for appriasal's the person you took it could could have been low balling you to pay you 840 and turn around and sell it for 1900 something.

Thanks

Steve
Jacksonville

Rip off date was 1/02/07
Forgot to mention in the above text that one diamond has fell off tennis bracelet, so now I'm in search of a similar brown diamond stone for the replacement of the one that has fallen out of the bracelet. Any ideas?

What exactly made you so trusting of Diamonds International? You admit that you didn't even bother to read the terms and conditions on your receipt, and it seems pretty clear that you also didn't bother to check out the bracelet before buying it. Now you are upset because you realize your rash decision was a poor one. I just can't figure out why you were so trusting of the company to begin with. Could you please explain this?

Been in the jewelry business for 24+ years. I have people who have bought jewelry on cruises come into my shop all the time with their "great" bargins that they have purchased. I hate to be the bearer of bad news when I tell them what their "stuff" is REALLY worth. They usually get really pissed off and think I'm trying to bad mouth their purchase so what I've learned to do is show them what I would sell them the item/items for and let them figure it out for themselves. The usual reply is "I got ripped off". I don't say a word. That way I'm not the bad guy giving them the bad news. Last month took the wife on a carnival cruise for the first time. She'd been bugging me for ten years to take her on one. Had a great time. Attended several of their onboard jewelry buying seminars. They told us where to go and who to see. What a frickkin' racket. Stopped in coszumel and visited several of "their" stores. Their prices were about 2 to 5 times what I sell the stuff for. The couple we sat with at dinner were interested in a ring. DI started at $15,000 and went down to $3,700. I'd sell the ring for $1,700 to $2,000. My realtor bought a ring she was told was 3.12 ct T.W for $2,700. I appraised it a 1to1.25ct T.W and $1,900. She contacted A/E and got a refund of $800. She was mad at me cause I didn't "lowball" it. Tough. You learned a hard lesson. Just because someone tells you and gives you and appraisal doesn't make it so. Did you bother to look at the diamonds in the tennis bracelet. Look at them with a loupe? If you had, you would have been able to spot the I2 stones. You don't state a color only a clarity, in your first report. It's very difficult to get a total diamond weight on a tennis bracelet due to the stones being mounted. If each stone is an extra point heavier and you have 40 or 50 stones, the bracelet could be .40 or .50ct more or less then stated. The ONLY way to be sure is to "pull" the stones and weigh them and no one does that. Yes it's pretty sad when people get ripped off by a cruise line.