Warning do not shop at milano"s

[FOXTROT]

Do NOT buy anything of value at Milano's Jewelry . Even though they are one of RCCL's Approved Shopping Stores. Yes at the Shopping Talk they tell you how great the store is. They tell you about how RCCL stands behind your purchase. We dealt with Hitesh the store's manager.Our purchase was a legal text book example of fraud. RCCL's position is "wait to see what Milano will do". It is still in the Resolution Part but with all the evidence it should have been resolved two weeks ago.

 

If any one wants to hear the details just ask.

[Cruzncutie]

Details please

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[FOXTROT]

We meet Hitesh at the Milano store by where the ship docks. He took us downtown to his shop. We purchased a loose diamond with a GIA Certificate. An 18 k gold band with .75 side baguettes. A 14 k gold wedding band. This was on day 1 of a B2B cruise. Wlfe' wore the ring twice did not want to wear it because we could not get it insured until we returned. On day 5 she noticed the baguettes were loose. Went down to the shopping desk & talked to the shopping guide. He filled out the papers to have Milano contact us to get the ring fixed.

 

Upon returning home we contacted our insurance company. They told us to take the ring to a place to get it appraised. We did & that is where the story goes bad. Wife' asked the gemologist to find the GIA number on the diamond. Our GIA Certificate said the diamond was inscribed with the certificate number. He could not find the number & said there where other discrepancies. The ring was to have .75 cw of baguettes, it had .30. We had the diamond looked at by another gemologist, same results. We contacted Milano & RCCL they said to have the ring examined by an independent gemologist.

 

We took the ring to an independent gemologist. The report states on the diamond there is no GIA number, there is florescence present, the diamond on the GIA report had no florescence, there were size difference, carat weight was within allowances. The ring had .30 cw baguettes not the .75 as on our sales receipt, it was 14 k gold not the 18 k gold we paid for.

 

Milano's last response was for us to send everything back to them. They would fix the loose baguettes & charge us $400 to have the diamond GIA inscribed. Our diamond per the GIA Certificate said it was already inscribes.

 

Yesterday we received in the mail the "Original GIA Certificate". It was the same as we had since the purchase. Also was a bill of sales showing where the diamond was sold to another Company. The sale was 3 weeks AFTER we had purchased it. Looking at everything closer. Milano sent us the Certificate, The seller had a different address than Milano. The buyer had the SAME address as Milano. We called the seller & they confirmed the diamond was sold & delivered as stated on the bill of sale.

 

We have talked several times with RCCL about this. Their position is wait for Milano to make a resolution. We told her how many cruises we have taken on RCCL. We told her how many more we have booked with them. We told her we would sit in the front row at every Shopping Talk & tell people what a scam it is. Her attitude changed to let me contact Milano. The Diamond Institute's definition of fraud is receiving items not as described on the sales receipt.

 

We have talked with our Credit Card Company. They will have no problem with us disputing the sales. Their fraud department said if the document from the gemologist & sales receipt are different the change would be removed. We are still within this time frame.

 

You would think once you showed Milano the differences in their sales receipt & the independent gemologist report they would bend over backwards to make it right. By the sales pitch at Shopping Talks on the cruise ship, RCCL would be on your side. I admit there can be mistakes. When ALL of the mistakes are in the favor of the jewelry store, which means more money in their pockets it is called fraud.

[Ashland]

Lesson learned...I don't care who recommends them...least of all a cruiseline with a kick-back.....Shop at a trusted store in your hometown... ;)

[FOXTROT]

Lesson learned...I don't care who recommends them...least of all a cruiseline with a kick-back.....Shop at a trusted store in your hometown... ;)

 

Amen brother. We loved the diamond & ring. The set appraised to what we paid. They say how cheap it is to buy there LIE.

[April42749]

Thank you for this information. I buy a lot of jewelry, but would never buy anything "expensive" (a relative term) at a cruise ship recommended store.

 

You should pay about half of the appraisal (which is really only for insurance purposes). Anything more that that is too much. A good deal is paying about a third of the appraisal quote.

[baileybrad]

Thank you for sharing your experience and being willing to let others know in advance. Disappointing that RCCL is not more willing to step up. We believe that the preferred shop propaganda is just that.

[FOXTROT]

That's all it is. Even when presented with overwhelming independent information.

[willise]

We were even skeptical about buying something from Pandora is St. Thomas, but we did. However, it was a $60 purchase that is not the end of the world if it fell apart. I would never buy anything in the "expensive" range at any of these cruise recommended places, or even shops at the pier. Too much risk.

 

I hope it all works out for you in the end and you get an acceptable resolution.

[FOXTROT]

Thank you. Right now the credit card company & our attorney tell us " do not return until you get a full refund". Milano's say " return it for our evaluation. Just because the ring is marked 14 k it usually is 18 k, it will take a goldsmith to know for sure". Would any one trust that type of stupidity? The representative at Royal Caribbean will not return phone calls or answer emails now.

[CaroleSS]

I do sympathize with you, but this is fraud....no more, no less. You have documentation stating the specifics about what you bought and you didn't get that. They LIED to you and you have all the documentation you need.

 

The 'good' part is that St Thomas is a protectorate of the US, so US laws apply.....so you can go through the US legal system to get this resolved. If you purchased it in, say, Cozumel.....you'd be able to dispute the charge through your credit company, but that would be it.

 

The cruise lines 'say' they guarantee your purchase, that is just a bunch of BUNK! They won't help you in any way, shape or fashion if things go wrong. Just remember that the cruise shopping guide is paid BY THE STORE....that's right - they get a commission from YOUR purchases! They are motivated for you to buy - not because it is good for YOU, but because it is good for THEM!

 

Ashland had it right when saying to make your major purchases at home.....where you have some recourse should things go wrong.

 

I always shake my head when people ask about 'good deals' on jewelry while on a cruise (vacation). The internet has made most of those obsolete.....and these places (and the cruiseline) are making HUGE profits off of you. I see reports of good purchases, but I think they are few and far between.....that the not-so-good purchases (like yours) are more frequent.

 

Buyer beware!

[perditax]

I've been working with a certified appraiser locally to get some stuff appraised for insurance, and I asked her if she had a lot of people come in with stuff they bought on cruises. She raised an eyebrow and said "Oh, yes."

 

When I asked if anyone ever actually scored a good deal, she said, "Well, sometimes they don't get *enormously* ripped off ..."

[FOXTROT]

Here is an update. We tried going through Royal Caribbean, no luck. Finally filed a dispute with the credit card company. Now everyone wants to settle it.

[CaroleSS]

GOOD!!!

 

Tell them they can have ring back (send it back to them insured, signature required)....and tell them you want your total purchase price refunded.....that or you will sic the Credit Company lawyers on them for FRAUD!!!

 

Then, use the money to buy your wife something from a reputable jeweler back home!

 

Please let us know the resolution!

[FOXTROT]

Update, it took almost 4 months to the day to get the money refunded on our card. It still cost us $150 to prove what a bunch of crooks they are& for shipping. They promised to send a shipping label, still waiting.

[CaroleSS]

Congratulations! (and thank you for the update!!)

 

After all is said and done, it was an expensive lesson...in time, money and distress. I do hope that people read your story and take heed when making a large purchase in a foreign country! Shop local to your home!

[FOXTROT]

They tell you they have special pricing because of their volume. This is all lies. They will sell gold at market value, that value is the same world wide. Basically diamond prices are pretty much the same world wide. The difference is the mark up. Look at their store locations & the number of people standing around.

 

We just replaced the the ring and diamond with a local jewelry store. Bigger & better diamond, more substantial ring. All this at a lower cost & a local company to deal with if we have problems.