Diamonds International
Reviews and Complaints

Wish I had found this info before purchasing from DI on cruise. Bought several items--all apprased at half what I purchased for. Is this fraud or what? Extremely hard for me to believe cruise lines continue to promote this company. Don't make same costly mistake I did--do not buy at DI!

I also lost a diamond out of my $3500.00 ring in 8 days. And other diamonds were loose and about to come out too. Contacted Diamonds International and they wanted to repair it or give me a store credit. I only wanted to return the ring and get my money back.

First thing I did was to take the ring to 3 different jewerly repairmen/appraisals to find out why diamonds would be falling out of a $3500.00 ring in 8 days. I got documents from them in writing that it is a design defect and if the ring is repaired with a new diamond, the diamonds will continue to fall out in days, because the prongs were not sufficient to hold diamonds.

I then contacted my credit card company to dispute the chage. it took months with the dispute going back and forth with them and with Diamonds International. At first they agreed with Diamonds International that I could only get a "store credit" or "repair." I was not going to take a store credit and I wanted my refund and nothing else would do for me.

But the real secret is on the back of the sales slip that says "N0 REFUNDS FOR BUYERS REMORSE." It does not say "NO REFUNDS."

My credit card company at first did not actually read every word and just took Diamonds International statement that they did not give refunds. But I insisted that the sales slip says "No refunds for buyers remorse" meaning I just changed my mind. It does not say "No Refunds."

I got my refund!

I am a very unhappy customer of diamond international. I bought a watch from the store in st. Marteen when I was on a cruise. I was told that the watch was a new watch and all hyped with the cruise and the little time you get to shop, I purchased the watch. On my return I examined the watch and found it to be used watch. The strap was dirty at the back and had turned a different color. The engraving at the back was dirty showing that someone had worn the watch for a long time. Upon contacting the new york office of diamond international I was told that they would get back to me. I waited for 3-4 days and contacted them again and was told that the watch could not be returned and they could not do anything further. We contacted the store in st. Marteen and spoke to the salesperson who sold the watch and was told that he would get back to me. After another 3 days I contacted the store again and they said that they would change the strap and clean it to make it look like new. I paid $11900 for a new gold watch, not one that someone has to clean to make it look like new. This company is scamming and cheating people. Please do not buy from them.

Beware of diamonds international. I bought a ring in grand caymans because of hype by royal caribbean cruises. As soon as I got home one diamond fell out. Sent it for repair and got ring back. Next thing I know the diamond is gone again. This time I send it back and pay $50 for the repair and the ring comes back exactly as I had sent it, no repair done. Then I contact them to tell them the ring wasn't repaired and several days later the contact emails me and says he doesn't know what the problem is because the ring was repaired. I inform him it wasn't and finally he believes me and gives me instructions to send back. I send back and ask for reimbursement of cost of insuring and resending it for second time. He agrees to this if I send the amount. Then I finally get ring back and no reimbursement. Fighting since august and its now november and he now wants a copy of the receipt, not just the total cost as asked for before. I have now sent the receipt copy and threatened to call my solicitor for breach of guarantee if not rectified today. He then had the audacity to tell me I misunderstood him and somehow this is all my fault. Never again!

Bought a half-carat diamond solitaire and two diamond guard rings on grand cayman in december 2009. Was mighty unhappy to learn a few months later that the solitaire was worth half of what I paid (which was a 50% discount from the store's marked price!) even worse, a few months ago, diamonds started falling out of the guard rings. Do not listen to the hype on royal caribbean — avoid this ripoff retailer at all costs.

I am also one of those unhappy customers of di in the grand caymens. My husband and I sailed on the jewel of the sea in nov 2010 for our 25th anniversary. Our last stop was the grand caymens and all we heard about on the ship was the wonderful prices and quality jewelry from di. We made sure we made this our first stop before an excursion. I picked out a beautiful setting for my engagement ring and my husband purchased a 2 1/2 ct tanzanite oval stone to have mounted in my original setting. Also I had my 1 ct each earring studs remounted in white gold. We trusted them with our jewelry and everything looked beautiful... Until I realized that the shape of my band was changing. 6 months later my ring cracked completely and after taking it to a reputable jeweler was told how poor the quality of work was done. They had sized this ring over three sizes without adding any gold and my tanzanite was set in too small of a setting toehold the stone. The prongs barely hold the stone and now this work on both rings will cost $1000.00 before I can wear the ring.

We cruised on carnival elation on 3/17-3/23/07 to the bahamas. We attended the shopping presentation onboard with the elation's super shopper mark. Mark touted diamond international as one of only two diamond merchants in nassau that could be trusted. We were shopping for a.50 carat loose diamond. We selected a round cut diamond price around $1700, but they would give us a deal on it for $1375. Per the salesperson and the appraisal we received from di it was valued at $1730, is.51 carat white diamond that was g color and i1 clarity. When we returned to the states we had the diamond re-appraised. I assure you that this appraiser had no interest in purchasing our diamond or selling us another diamond. He is an independent appraiser, not a jeweler, who does appraisals in several of the jewelry stores in our area. We have used him before and he was right on the money with our previous loose diamond appraisal. He neither tried to purchase our diamond or steer us to a jeweler to trade it in or sell it. My problem is not the newly appraised value of $1800, it is that that the.51 round cut, g color, i1 clarity diamond was now appraised as.48 carat, k color and i1 clarity. Not even close. My dispute is that the diamond was misrepresented. It is not what I purchased. We are in dispute with di through pti, which is about useless because they appear to be working for diamonds international. They only offer to take my diamond back and give store credit (I can trust them to not 'lose' my diamond to give me what I am paying for?). Di is trying to wear us down so we'll just give up and accept their store-credit offer. They don't know i'm in for the long-haul. Will I sail with carnival again? I don't know. Will I ever purchase anything of value overseas again? No! Diamonds international? Absolutley not and I will tell everyone I know! Read all of the theads, they are exactly what we are going through now. Buyer beware!

We cruised on carnival elation on 3/17-3/23/07 to the bahamas. We attended the shopping presentation onboard with the elation's super shopper mark. Mark touted diamond international as one of only two diamond merchants in nassau that could be trusted. We were shopping for a.50 carat loose diamond. We selected a round cut diamond price around $1700, but they would give us a deal on it for $1375. Per the salesperson and the appraisal we received from di it was valued at $1730, is.51 carat white diamond that was g color and i1 clarity. When we returned to the states we had the diamond re-appraised. I assure you that this appraiser had no interest in purchasing our diamond or selling us another diamond. He is an independent appraiser, not a jeweler, who does appraisals in several of the jewelry stores in our area. We have used him before and he was right on the money with our previous loose diamond appraisal. He neither tried to purchase our diamond or steer us to a jeweler to trade it in or sell it. My problem is not the newly appraised value of $1800, it is that that the.51 round cut, g color, i1 clarity diamond was now appraised as.48 carat, k color and i1 clarity. Not even close. My dispute is that the diamond was misrepresented. It is not what I purchased. We are in dispute with di through pti, which is about useless because they appear to be working for diamonds international. They only offer to take my diamond back and give store credit (I can trust them to not 'lose' my diamond to give me what I am paying for?). Di is trying to wear us down so we'll just give up and accept their store-credit offer. They don't know i'm in for the long-haul. Will I sail with carnival again? I don't know. Will I ever purchase anything of value overseas again? No! Diamonds international? Absolutley not and I will tell everyone I know! Read all of the threads, they are exactly what we are going through now. Buyer beware!

Called the customer service department of diamonds international regarding the stone in a diamond and tanzanite ring my 22 year daughter bought herself in the d.I. Store in naussau.

I contacted the customer service to get help with the stone moving both up and down and back and forth in the setting.

I was first told that this is not an everyday ring, and that my daughter must be very hard on jewelery. They made that statement without verifying how often the ring was worn.

They then went on to say that they could repair the ring at my expense of shipping, repair and duty to return it to the u.S. For repairs. We live in canada.

When I pointed out that duty should not be an issue, since this was a repair, not a purchase, he then when on to state quoting the bill of sale stating 30 days only.

I felt that they have a list of lines, they never actually would give me the bottom line of how to go about and have this repaired.

I did tell him that I was giving the company the benefit of the doubt having read on several websites the lack of customer service available to diamond international customer, he stated that they are a world wide company and only have 1% dissatifaction with merchandise. To me that is 1.1% to much dissatisfaction.

My daughter loves her ring, but be wary of what you buy, cause once you leave the store, there is obviously no support!

Take this warning seriously. Do not purchase anything from diamonds international. Gemstones consistantly are misrepresented as to value. Cruise lines hype them consistantly... Do not believe anything the shopping consultant says.

February 23, 2011
Micky arison
Carnival cruise corporation
3655 nw 87th avenue
Miami florida 33178
U.S. A.
Phone: [protected]
Dear micky arison:
My first cruise was back in 2005 from california to mexico, I loved your cruise and enjoyed myself so much that I purchased a cruise for my brother as a wedding gift shortly after. My most recent cruise was with my fiancé from baltimore to the bahamas, it was great and we totally had a good time. However I made a poor decision by trusting the recommendations of the personal shopper on the cruise and purchased an engagement ring from diamonds international. My fiancé and I attended the “shopping seminar” and was told over and over again that diamonds international is a reputable place. As you are probably aware there are many places in nassau bahamas to purchase jewelry but I went on the personal shopper recommendation because it was backed by carnival cruise lines which I guess after reading the reviews online is not the case. The “shopping seminar” is nothing but lies after lies. I am not a jeweler and not in the diamond field. I admit I am rather uneducated when it comes to the topic. This is why I went with the personal shopper’s recommendation. Mr. Arison I have learned more about diamonds in the past three days than i’ve learned in my whole life. I am not going to proclaim that I am one of your best customers but I will say that every chance I get when my finances allow I try to hit your cruise line and always suggest them to friends. While my fiancé and I were on this cruise we were already discussing returning with her 8 year old son over winter break. After some short time “googling, ” I have learned that my story is not unique at all.
My story

“to whom it may concern:

I traveled on one of your cruise lines carnival pride from baltimore md to the bahamas and purchased an engagement ring from diamonds international because it was highly recommended by your personal shopper on the cruise. Well to put it simply it’s been a horror story.
I am getting nothing but the run around. After reading reviews I can’t believe you guys continue to back this firm as a reputable place to purchase jewelry. Google diamonds international and you will see horror stories of people just like myself. How could you allow your guests to be scammed like this. We entrusted you for a safe and enjoyable cruise

There are stories after stories of people just like myself that have been scammed and/or mislead by these so call “personal shoppers” and diamonds international. I am sure you have been made aware of them but will include them in the letter just in case of some slim chance it was over looked. As I stated in my letter to guest services what was supposed to be an exciting time for my fiancé and I has been nothing but a horror story.

As of now my fiancé will not even entertain the thought of walking on one of your ships again. This was her first cruise and to say the least left an extremely bitter taste in her mouth. That’s putting it nicely.
So with all sarcasm
‘thank you carnival cruise lines”

Thank you for ruining a once in the lifetime moment for me. No matter what the outcome, from this moment on, our engagement will no longer be remembered for the romance of me getting a ring for her in the caribbean. It will be remembered by the nightmare we had to go through with diamond international.
As the tv commercial goes “I should have went to jared” they have a 30 day no questions asked return policy.

Sincerely,
Charles boroughs

Diamonds international and holland america cruise lines are in collusion holland america steer cruisers to this store and proposse to offer a "store guarantee" if you buy from these "selected stores". If there is a reaproblem hal does nothing. You will most likely have left the port where the store is located when you discover a problem, and then you have to rely on their ny service center, who will make it nearly impossible to remedy any complaints. We were taken for over $21, 000.00 in both puerto vallarta and cabo san lucas while on a zaandam cruise. The shipboard rep promised to call her boss and remedy the problem, no reply at all. Call the ny office and all we have received so far is a claim number! My advice, avoid both diamonds international and tanzanite international which are apparently the same company and pay a commision to hal for all purchases made by cruisers.

I went on a carnival cruise in sept 2010, my husband purchased a 24 stone diamond ring paid 5000.00. Two months and 2 days later I looked down and a
Diamond was missing. I called diamond international and they said we only had a 30 day warranty. I was haeart broke. I ask if I could buy an extended warranty and they said we don't sell one. This is a crock. Carnival shouldn't promote company's that don't stand behind there product. This is a lot money to spend and then two months later have to do repairs. If any one knows of a company that I can buy insurance on my ring that will cover repairs incase another diamond falls out.

Do not purchase anything from diamonds international! A big time scam! A simple search on bluenile.com will show you that you overpaid by a ton at diamonds international.

I'm in the middle of my "return" process and it is a nightmare! I have lost a ton of money and time and am getting nowhere!

Please, please, please do not make the same mistake that I did! Buy at your local jeweler or bluenile.com.

My husband and I were on a norwegian cruise to the mexican riveria. While in puerto vallerata, we purchased a loose tanzanite. Then my husband felt we should have it set in a ring. He picked out a 18k wg mounting with 2 side trillions about.30 each. I looked at the stones in the shop with a loupe and found the stones to be nice quality, about g-h color, si2 clarity. Though not a certified gemologist, I have some jewelry sales knowledge. The cruise representative had the ring mounted and brought it back to the ship. I was a bit concerned with the mounting as the prongs holding the tanzanite were not even, very rough and not tight on the stone and one was bent. I showed it to him the cruise representative and he said it was fine. I then went to the on-board jewelry store and asked to see a loupe to examine my ring. They were hesitant but did. I found the bottom of the mounting to be severly cracked and 2 drill marks in the support ring of the 4 prong mounting that was caused obviously when mounting the stone. Then I looked at the diamonds, in the mounting one did not look right. Sure enough, these are not the same stones I had examined in the store. These are about i1 and i2. Though only having a 10x loupe was not able to tell, but appeared to me that the stones might even be laser drilled to enhance the stones. It is a technique to make poorer quality stones appear better by laser drilling the inclusions. I looked at in the store and the porosity of the gold is not as good as the ring I inspected in the store. I spoke with the representative and the cruise line and was told that I obviously was mistaken. Was told I could return to di upon my return and "negotiate with them". I called placed a claim and was sent a return contract which states you will "not notify your cc company to place a complaint and the return of the item was for inspection only as they would decide... To quote the customer service rep.."see what I had done to ring to damage the mounting." I an not sending the ring back to di new york office. The tanzanite is a very nice stone and a good value on the purchase; the mounting is what is in question. I have contacted our state attonery general and ny's ag to file complaints. I was told by di that they will not accept repair from another jeweler and as for the mounting are currently denying that it was switched. So buyer beware.

My fiance and I ordered those rings in february recommended by paypal. We live in singapore. Diamonds international do not ship to our country. Therefore, we made alliance with our country's postal service in usa to deliver it to us. We ordered and the amount have been cut from our bank. Di emailed us to inform us that since the address differ from our credit card, we have to give them the authorization code from our bank when the money is cut. So we did. We gave them the authorization code. They said that it matched and they will process our orders. We waited. Two months. Finally, the status changed to 'shipment pending'. Can you imagine how excited we were? We were getting married next month! That is in may. Now is april. I felt relieved. Finally after two weeks of 'shipment pending' they cancelled our orders without any explanations or reason. They do not even bother to contact us. We called again. They told us we do not pass they fraudulent check. Fine, we ask for our money back. They said they did not take any money from us! How can that be? If they do not take any money from us, how we obtain the authorization codes? How they even process our orders? Because, when orders are made, online, you immediately will have to pay. They do not refund! Seriously, we are on a tight budget getting married and all. This was our wedding bands! We do not have any more money to buy new ones because we have a budget on the rings. And its already spent on di. I am in depression right this instant.

While on vacation in playa del carmen in january 10, 2010, I purchased a diamond ring for $3100 us. On feb 28 I noticed that one of the small diamonds had fallen out. A day later before I could contact diamond's international, another small diamond fell out.

I contacted the company by phone on march 1st to complain and was told they would call me back within 24 hours. They did call back about 22 hours later. I advised the representative that I was unhappy with the quality of the item and I wanted to return the ring for a full refund. The company representative informed me that they would not refund my money. They would only authorize a return if I signed a document stating that I would accept a repair or credit. They refused to refund the purchase. The representative was very rude.

I am currently trying to get help from my credit card company regarding a refund. I took the ring to a local jeweler who told me that they hear complaints all the time from di customers. The jeweler examined the ring under a magnifying glass and said the prongs were too small and spaced too closely on the inside and that I could continue to expect stones to fall out. The local jeweler also showed me several similar rings that I could have purchased for equal or less money and had the confidence of a meaningful guarantee.

I was guilty of making an impulse buy and did not ask about the company guarantee.