Most likely you have heard the term “certified diamonds”. But have you ever wondered what the big deal is if buy non-certified diamonds? A diamond is an expensive purchase and whether you buy a certified stone can make a big difference. Let’s see what certification really is and how to make a smart investment.
What Are Certified Diamonds?
Certified diamonds are stones that have been appraised and whose quality characteristics have been documented by experts.
Such diamonds come with a certificate or grading report, which is a document describing the colour, clarity, carat weight, cut quality and other important features of the stone.
Who Certifies Diamonds?
Diamonds are certified by independent professionals trained in gemology. One of the most respected and famous certification authorities is the Gemological Institute of America (GIA).
Always remember that certification makes sense only if it is done by a third party that is not connected with the jeweller selling the specific diamond. In case the jeweller can influence how his or her diamonds are evaluated, the quality characteristics may not be objective.
Why Some Diamonds Don’t Have a Certificate?
Diamonds may come without a certificate for a variety of reasons.
Certification costs money and some jewellers just don’t want to incur extra expenses. However, certification may be offered if the buyer covers the cost.
Some jewellers think it’s not worth it to have low-quality diamonds certified since certificate won’t make big difference to the buyer.
And some sellers prefer to offer non-certified diamonds so that they can present the quality of these stones in the best possible light.
What If a Diamond Is Not Certified?
Certification is very important since it provides independent verification of a diamond’s quality characteristics.
When evaluating stones, diamond grading laboratories follow robust guidelines. Labs try to make the process as accurate as possible by assessing each stone by multiple graders. However, the exact grade on any given characteristic comes down to the opinion of the expert making the grading.
In fact, without a certificate, you can never be sure what you are buying. If a diamond is not certified, your only source of information about the quality of the stone is the seller. And let’s agree, the seller’s assessment is not likely to be the most objective.
Due to seller’s subjectivity of diamond grading, they are allowed to have some leeway when representing a diamond’s quality to the buyer. They can increase the colour and clarity of a stone, but by no more than one grade up from what the diamond would be graded by an independent party.
That’s why if you want to make sure that the quality of the diamond is what the jeweller claims to be, always ask for a certificate and never buy non-certified diamonds.
