0% Making Charge :As soon as the festive and wedding season arrives, the purchase of gold and silver takes place in full swing across the country. Especially on occasions like Dussehra and Diwali, people turn to jewelery shops in large numbers. At this time, to attract customers, jewelers give great offers like 0% making charge, which looks quite attractive at first sight. But the reality is different from this. Under the guise of these offers, jewelers charge many types of hidden charges, which are heavy on the pockets of the customers.

Investment expert CA Sarthak Anuja, in a post on Instagram, has revealed how jewelers overcharge customers on the pretext of 0% making charges. Let us know the five ways in which you can be unknowingly cheated, and how these can be avoided.

gold rate manipulation

Often people expect to get the same gold rate in the market as they see on Google. But jewelers charge ₹150-₹200 per gram more than that rate at their shops. Suppose you buy 50 grams of gold jewellery, you may have to pay up to ₹ 10,000 more.

This amount is directly added to your bill, although hardly any customer is aware of it. You become happy after seeing the offer of 0% Making Charge, but this hidden trick in gold rate becomes costly for you.

Wastage charge move

Jewelers often say that gold gets wasted in making jewellery, which they charge in the name of wastage charge. Actually this charge should be 2-3%, but citing complex design they increase it to 5% and to top it all, this charge is levied on today’s high gold prices, which makes the bill even higher.

By showing the greed of 0% Making Charge, they charge excessive Wasteage Charge, which later shocks the customers.

real value of precious stone

Jewelery with 0% making charge often contains stones, whose price is quoted to be many times higher than the actual price. For example, the price of an ordinary stone is increased to several thousand rupees. The result is that the discount being given is recovered from the increased price of these stones. You pay attention to gold rate, but this hidden game in stone prices destroys the benefit of 0% making charge.

loss in buyback

Often customers think that they can get a better price by selling the jewelery back later. But in reality, buyback of jewelery with 0% making charge is only 70-80% instead of 90%. That means if you bought jewelery worth ₹1 lakh, you may suffer a loss of up to ₹20,000-₹30,000 on return. These terms of Wasteage Charge and Buyback are hidden in advance, which proves costly in the long run.

not giving benefit of bulk discount

Jewelers buy gold in bulk at cheap prices, but do not pass on its benefits to the customers. That is, the gold which they buy for ₹ 5,800 per gram, they sell to you for ₹ 6,200 per gram, while they claim that they did not charge making charges. It is their big business to keep this difference in gold rate while claiming 0% making charge.

How to avoid these scams?

While purchasing gold, pay attention to some special things like always check the HUID code by visiting BIS Care app. Read the bill carefully, every charge should be clearly written in it. Compare prices and don’t rely on just one store. Ask for the price of the stone, and confirm the weight separately. Clear the details of Wasteage Charge and Buyback in advance.

The festive season brings happiness, but if you shop without knowledge then this happiness can turn into loss. Therefore, whenever you see an offer with 0% making charge, be cautious and buy jewelery wisely. Along with this, know the buyback conditions in advance and get the details in writing from the jewelers so that there is no problem later.