Lifetime Care Plan from Laurie Sarah

LIFETIME CARE PLAN FROM LAURIE SARAH

In this blog, Laurie Sarah answers the following:

1. What is the Laurie Sarah Lifetime Care Plan? Is it free?
2. What is covered under the Lifetime Care Plan?
3. How can I help prevent warranty issues?
4. How do I submit a warranty request?
5. What happens after I submit my request?
6. Should I get my jewelry insured?
7. Can I have another jeweler work on my jewelry?
8. Does this cover settings or gemstones purchased elsewhere?
9. Is there a Lifetime Care Plan for clients outside the US?
10. What exclusions apply?

1. WHAT IS THE LAURIE SARAH LIFETIME CARE PLAN?

Bottom line? We are here for you! And it is included with all purchases for FREE! My husband Avo and I are so happy that you have chosen our handmade jewelry. To set your mind at ease that we are here for you after the sale, we have developed our Lifetime Care Plan – how we will care for your jewelry for as long as you own it – also referred to as your Warranty Plan.

This is actually one of the most important things to consider when purchasing fine jewelry. Other jewelers may be “less expensive” but are not there for you when you need them. No matter where you purchase your jewelry from, it will need maintenance from time to time. We will be here for you!

2. WHAT IS COVERED UNDER THE LIFETIME CARE PLAN?

1. Unlike other plans, we don’t require that you send your jewelry at specific intervals. We cover you whenever you need us.
2. FREE cleaning, polish, and checking of all stones each time your jewelry is in our hands.
3. For our clients within the Continental United States: FREE fully insured shipping the first time you ship your jewelry to us. For our clients outside of the Continental United States, please see point 9.
4. FREE ring sizing within 30 days of receipt for all rings where your ring size is properly verified by our FREE Ring Sizer. When you purchase, if the ring is not a surprise, we’ll mail the sizer out along with the INSTRUCTIONS. If you do not verify the ring size with our sizer, no problem, you can get it resized by purchasing THIS LINK. If it’s the first time your ring comes back to us, you can use your One Time Free Shipping (for clients outside the Continental United States see point 9). If the ring is not sizable (either it has eternity stones, eternity details, or it needs to be sized more than is advisable for the integrity of the ring), it can be exchanged for the correct size within your 5 day return period. It must be in new condition to be eligible for the exchange. If you need your ring sized after this period, again, we can help! Just CONTACT US and we’ll get you all the info you need.
5. FREE labor when replacing lost or damaged stones, fixing minor damage to prongs, tightening of loose stones, repair of broken earring posts as well as some other repairs. Contact us for details.
6. Stone replacement cost is as follows for lost or damaged stones:
   1. Diamonds and Moissanite 1.5mm and smaller – FREE
   2. Diamonds and Moissanite over 1.5mm, all colored stones and center stones – replaced at a discounted price.
7. FREE repair of slightly bent jewelry.
8. If your jewelry has sustained damage that we feel has compromised the integrity of your piece, we will discuss details and discounted pricing with you to fix or remake your piece.

This list encompasses the most common warranty issues. Each repair is unique to your piece and we will always repair at no cost if possible. Any costs associated with more serious repairs are always discussed with you and approved by you, and done at as much of a discount as possible.

3. HOW CAN I HELP PREVENT WARRANTY ISSUES?

There’s a famous saying – prevention is the best medicine. We find that most warranty issues happen relatively soon after the piece begins to being worn? Why? For many, it is their first piece of fine jewelry and they are getting used to being careful with it. When you receive your Laurie Sarah Jewelry, please review this important blog before you wear it:

Here is another blog that is helpful for caring for your fine jewelry:

Whether you know how the damage happened or not, we are here for you, no questions asked!

4. HOW DO I SUBMIT A WARRANTY REQUEST?

Anytime you need our help, please fill out the form at the end of this point after reading the following information. The Warranty Form makes sure we have your current information, and gives us everything we need to create the fully insured shipping label.

The first time you ship your piece to us – fully insured shipping is free for our clients within the Continental United States! For clients outside the Continental United States, please see point 9.

For all subsequent warranties, when you answer on the form that it is not your first warranty, it will take you to where you can purchase shipping. We know shipping is not cheap (especially with rising fuel prices), but each of our labels are backed by our Jewelry Insurance Company to make sure they are fully insured, giving you complete peace of mind. (For clients outside the Continental United States, please see point 9.)

If your jewelry item was purchased for under $250, you can request less expensive shipping options if you’d like.

Once you have filled out the form, please follow these very important shipping instructions listed below the Customer Warranty Form. We know it’s a bit of a pain, but the packing instructions come from the Jewelry Insurance Company who want to make sure that no one knows that something small and valuable is inside. You will typically receive the email with the shipping label and instructions within 24-48 hours. Check your junk/spam folder if you don’t. Here are the shipping instructions and warranty form:

VIEW SHIPPING INSTRUCTIONS

5. WHAT HAPPENS AFTER I SUBMIT MY REQUEST?

Here is what you can expect:

1. For our clients within the Continental United States, we will email you your insured shipping label and instructions typically within 24-48 hours from when you submit your request. If you don’t see the email, check your junk/spam folder in case it went there. For those outside the Continental United States, we will contact you with all the details you’ll need.
2. When your jewelry arrives, we’ll let you know it’s safely here, inspect it, and give you an update.
3. We typically turn requests around in about 1 week or less from the date we receive them. If you need the jewelry back by a specific date, please let us know when you fill out the Customer Warranty Form. We’ll give you the tracking info once it ships back.

6. SHOULD I GET MY JEWELRY INSURED?

This is a personal choice. There are 3 main reasons in my opinion to get your jewelry insured:

1. Loss of Center stones. If you lose your center stone, we can replace it no problem, but since they are not covered under the Lifetime Care Plan, some insurance companies will cover the cost.
2. Major damage. We had a bride that smashed her ring against the side of the swimming pool side as she jumped in on her honeymoon. The ring was so badly damaged that it had to be recast and the stones had to be reset. No problem, we can do this for you and always try to keep the costs down. But again, some insurance companies will cover the cost of major damage that is not covered under the Lifetime Care Plan.
3. Loss of the item. If you lose your jewelry completely, a good insurance policy will cover the replacement of it. When you purchase your jewelry, we provide you with a Certificate of Authenticity that can be used to make sure your jewelry is fully insured.

How do you go about insuring your jewelry? There are two main ways:

1. If you own a home, you can add it to your Homeowner’s Insurance Policy. Contact them for details.
2. Although we do not personally endorse any particular Jewelry Insurance Company, many of our clients have been very satisfied with the low cost and how easy business was to conduct with www.JewelersMutual.com Whomever you choose, make sure they offer the coverage you are looking for.

7. CAN I HAVE ANOTHER JEWELER WORK ON MY JEWELRY?

This is a completely personal decision. Having another jeweler work on your Laurie Sarah Jewelry does not void your Lifetime Care Plan with us. However, please know that we are not responsible for any damage they do to your ring, nor will we financially reimburse you for either their work, nor subsequent issues/loss of stones etc as a result from their work. Be informed. Make sure that the jeweler you choose understands your ring. Many of your choose colored stones for your center stones. Colored stones must be treated very carefully. A wrong move from a jeweler who is not familiar with it may crack or damage your stone. If another jeweler does damage to your jewelry, you can absolutely contact us to help. My husband and I can help and will charge as little as we can to undo the damage.

One more caution. It has happened MANY times, so beware. Other jewelers have told our clients flat our lies about their jewelry. Why? Don’t forget, you didn’t buy your jewelry from them. If they can discredit us and make you feel that your jewelry is bad, they are hoping that you will try to return it and then buy from them instead. If another jeweler says something bad, don’t hesitate to reach out to us and let us know what they said. We’ll either confirm what they saw if they saw a legitimate problem, or we’ll put your mind at ease that they were just trying to make a sale. Read more here:

“I took it to my local jeweler, and…”

8. DOES THIS COVER SETTINGS OR GEMSTONES PURCHASED ELSEWHERE?

Short answer, no. If any part of your jewelry was made by another jeweler, or if any of the stones set in your jewelry were purchased elsewhere, those components and their labor are not covered by us. If, after we set stones not provided by us, they are not covered for free replacement should they be lost. If we work on another jeweler’s setting and unforeseen damage happens, we do not cover their defective settings. However, if damage does occur, or you lose stones purchased elsewhere, we will absolutely help you repair the damage or stones at a modest price.

9. IS THERE A LIFETIME CARE PLAN FOR CLIENTS OUTSIDE THE US?

Yes, we welcome clients that are outside the continental United States! If you have a warranty issue, we want you to know that we are absolutely here to help. However, shipping packages with valuable things between countries has proven to be harder and harder – especially since the pandemic. We have seen corruption grow exponentially within other country’s customs departments. Because of this, and because of our desire to always offer the best customer service we can, in general, we believe the best customer service is to have you take any warranty issues, repairs etc. to your local jeweler. We have had multiple issues where people’s rings were taken hostage by customs in other countries, and people were force to pay hundreds of dollars to get the package released to them after we repaired their jewelry. It has been a horrible experience for our dear clients, and it’s a horrible experience for us.

So with each international package we ship out, we will include an appropriate number of extra side stones, so that if you do lose a stone in the future, you can have it set there locally.

If you decide that you would really, really like us to handle your warranty issue, we will, but with these (and not limited to, depending on the unique situations that can arise) conditions:

We are unable to offer fully insured shipping labels to you if you wish to return your item to us for warranty concerns, resizes, or any other reason. Therefore, shipping works as follows:

1. Before you ship your item to us, please contact us. We will give you all the information needed for you to create the shipping label properly. Because we cannot provide you with a return label, it is your responsibility to choose and pay for the carrier you will return the item with. We strongly advise against using a carrier that will use the USPS (United States Post Office) once it reaches the United States. More reliable carriers such as, but not limited to, UPS, FedEx, and DHL are recommended. We are not responsible for packages that are lost or damaged due to improperly packaging the item, or for shipping labels or customs paperwork that is improperly filled out (and any subsequent Customs Import Fees etc). We are not responsible for loss or damage of the item during its return. You are responsible to insure it properly, and will be responsible for filing and following up with any claims associated with the package should you need to be reimbursed financially for loss or damage to it.
2. Once your item is ready to ship back to you, we will provide the fully insured shipping via UPS or FedEx International as follows: For the first warranty submission, we will cover up to $80 US. For subsequent shipments, you will be responsible for the full cost of shipping the item back to you. We will provide you with a quote for your approval. Please understand, that due to corruption in many country’s Customs, even though we will send your item back properly marked as a “return or repair”, even though import fees aren’t technically due, you may be charged for them. It is your responsibility to fight or pay any charges incurred. Should you be unfairly charged, we will provide you with the appropriate paperwork to fight it, but you are responsible to fight it, and to pay the charges should they not be reversed.

For all other details about what is covered, please refer to all the other points in this blog.

10. WHAT EXCLUSIONS APPLY?

Some exclusions and exceptions apply. Contact us for more details.

Don’t see your question answered here? Contact us. We’re here to help.

We reserve the right to update/change the Lifetime Care Plan as necessary. Please always refer here for the most updated Plan details.

The Lifetime Care Plan that comes with your jewelry does not transfer to a new owner. But if they need our help, they are welcome to contact us.

From time to time, we make updates to our Lifetime Care Plan. The version that is currently seen here on the date of your warranty submission is the version that is applied.

Thank you for letting us be Your Jeweler For Life!

Sincerely,

Laurie Sarah & Avo