Buying an engagement ring online works, and it is usually the better price. But the difference between a great experience and a bad one is written in the fine print before you pay. Here are the seven things to check with any seller, with our own numbers shown as the worked example, because a checklist you cannot check us against is just marketing.
1. The certificate, with a number you can verify
Ask for the grading report number of the exact stone and look it up at the lab's own site. At Beylora every center stone is a lab-grown diamond with its own IGI report, verified before setting. Here is how to read one.
2. The grades, in writing
Color, clarity, polish, and symmetry. Not "premium quality." Ours: every center stone is D color and VVS2 clarity or better, with Excellent polish and Excellent symmetry on its certificate.
3. When the return window actually starts
Some sellers count the return window from the day the ring ships, or the day it is ready. Days can disappear before the box reaches you. Ours: 30 days from the day it arrives.
4. Every fee, before checkout
Return fees and rush fees should be printed where you can find them, not discovered on the refund. Ours: returns carry a 20% restocking fee, deducted from the refund, and if you chose Rush delivery, the $300 Rush fee is not refunded. We would rather you read that here than find it later.
5. What happens if it arrives wrong
A change of mind and a damaged ring are different things, and the policy should treat them differently. Ours: if a ring arrives damaged, faulty, or not what you ordered, we repair it, replace it, or refund you in full, and no fee is taken.
6. The resize path
A surprise ring size is a guess. Ask what a resize costs and where it happens. Ours: we send you $100 to have it resized at any jeweler you choose, one resize per ring.
7. What happens in year five
Prongs wear. Ask what the seller does when a ring needs repair long after the sale. Ours: every ring is covered by our lifetime repair guarantee, and the terms are printed on the policies page.
Print this list and hold every seller to it, including us. See the rings or what a 2 carat ring should cost.