I'm going to have to dig out my receipts for all the jewelry I've bought in the timeframe...

fortunately, I used credit cards for the vast majority...and I only buy from one jeweler...so I can go through those records...

cyberkost said:saetveit said:
Proof of purchase is only required if you spent more than $10K. There's no way they can process proof of purchases for everyone.

In a recent Microsoft settlement, it was the same way. I just had to list all the Microsoft software I had purchased in a set time range, and 6 - 8 months later I got a check for almost $100 in the mail.

Still, it's a very bad idea to lie about how much you spent since in the off chance that they do request proof, you will be caught committing perjury. (not to mention that it's simply not ethical.)

Any advice on what to do in the following situation:
I bought an engagement ring (it worked!) during the time period stated, however I don't think I have a proof of purchase so there's not a way for me to figure out the exact purchase price. However, I do have one of those "guaranteed to appraise for $5K" certificates (I think I paid less than the number on the certificate, but not by a whole lot). So, would it be ok for me to value my purchase at $5K?

What are you guys using as a proof of purchase is the purchase dates back to 2000 and before and you don't have a receipt or even a credit card statement showing the purchase?

I would say use your best guess. It was not the appraisal price - EVERY diamond you buy will appraise for more than you bought it. That is how you "know you got a good deal." The appraisal is really for insurance purposes in case you need to replace the item. You can't sell it for that amount, and for this class action, you can't list that as the purchase price (well, ethically anyway).

wow, i think the FW effect must be affecting this site. pages are loading very slowly. how many FW users are there? what's $135MM divided by every FW user and their spouse/parent/neighbor/cousin? I have a feeling we won't get anything near $640.

If your purchases fit the above criteria, complete the attached Claim Form, or fill in the Consumer Claim Form online. You do not need to submit proof of your purchase(s) with your Claim Form. However, you may need to send documents to the Claims Administrator to prove your purchase(s) if the Claims Administrator requests them. Therefore, keep any documents you have that show proof of your purchase(s), such as a receipt, invoice, credit card statement, insurance statement, appraisal, certificate or any other documents showing the diamond’s or the diamond jewelry’s cut, clarity, color, number of carats, authenticity or the person or business from whom the diamond or diamond jewelry was bought.

jeffsb said:Great! Thanks for posting on the deals forum. My $20 refund just went down to 15 cents.

Can we delete this thread before it becomes seen by all?

JK

OK, let me think out loud here, according to this article, the total claim that consumers will get ~$135M (half the total), of which lawyers will get at most 25%, which brings me down to $101M (worst case).

Now here are some of my assumptions.
1. The article list $295B as the total amount of diamonds sold in the US during that 12 year period. I'm going to assume that half of that was to resellers who would fall under the other portion of the settlement.

2. Less than 10% of eligible people will never file for this lawsuit or will severely underclaim. For the federal excise tax phone refund, 52% of the $8B is still unclaimed as of June 07. And that was a situation where the IRS was actively advertising for a year, everyone who filed a tax return should have been aware of it, yet many didn't even check the free $25 where no documentation or even threat of documentation was needed. This lawsuit will at least require that you have info if requested, but most don't even keep statements going back to the latest date for claims (2006). Combined with the fact that I haven't seen a lot of press on it, I just don't think you'll get a lot of claims.

3. Average amount of claim will be about 50% of what they might rightfully be able to claim. I figure that many will not have a clue how to get documentation going back several years, but may still claim something, like a single big purchase. Additionally, most will not make any claim over $10K because of the additional documentation.

4. Total so far: $150B x 10% x 50% = $7.5B. Combined with $101M available, the return will be about 13% (110M/7500M) of the actual cost that was paid. Not bad so far, but...

5. Looking at the payment table, I figure if your claim was mixed stones or $1000 or less diamond only, you'll probably only get 5-10% back. between $1000 to $10K, probably in the 10-15%, and for $10K or loose diamonds, in the neighborhood of 15-20%

That's really not that bad. I could be way off with my assumptions, but I wouldn't be surprised if the total claimed amount was less than $10B (that's 1 million people claiming about $10K in purchases)

What will most likely happen, though, is that the majority of the money will go to a relatively small number of individuals who spend a lot of money of diamonds regularly. Why? Because unlike many other types of lawsuits, buying diamonds can be considered a hobby for many people. For them, they usually have good receipts of their purchases (for insurance purposes), tend to shop through the same dealer (who can also assist in providing documentation), they have the free time to understand how to make a claim, and lastly, is likely to be well educated, and therefor, not as intimidated by the legal jargon.

I could go on with some more reasons why many will not claim (such as that it is common in the United States for a man not to disclose the cost of an engagement ring to his wife or the number of purchases in the US made by foreigners, etc.), but I'll end here.

What do you guys think?

mistat137:
Great info there on the excise tax refund. I never heard the sort of figures you posted. Thanks. Pretty well reasoned figures too.

Also, most of the posters here seem to think this is a done deal. The original post says "DeBeers is settling a class action lawsuit." From my reading of the settlement website, this appears to be anything but a done deal. Nothing has been decided in court, and I don't see anything suggesting DeBeers is ready to settle. It sounded to me like DeBeers thinks they aren't even liable under the suit because they operate completely outside the jurisdiction of the US (is that true? if so, I didn't know that).

Reminder: The final settlement hearing on this lawsuit is Monday (4/14) at 10:00am ET.

Here's hoping the attorneys will post the details of the final settlement (if approved) shortly thereafter.

skeer27 said:The settlement is out here is the breakdown for consumers

The document you present is merely the chart from the notice. This can be changed as a result of the final settlement hearing, and the amounts people receive can and will be limited based on the number of claims actually filed. Until we see documentation of the final settlement hearing, these are best-case numbers. Unless you can find a document dated yesterday, nothing is out.

The following has been added to the top of the website:

The Fairness Hearing was held on April 14, 2008. At the conclusion of the hearing, Judge Chesler stated that a written decision approving the settlement would be forthcoming, and brought the proceedings to a close. When available, that written decision will be posted at this website. Please remember that you must complete and submit the appropriate Claim Form by May 19, 2008 to receive a payment. Payments will be mailed to Class Members after all of the claims are processed. It is likely that distribution of Settlement proceeds will not occur before late 2008 or early 2009.