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| Cooper and Binkley Jewelers in Brighton, Mich., generated interest in the De Beers settlement among its customers by alerting a local newspaper to the story. |
Though jewelry storeowners nationwide are eligible, it is unclear how many will step forward to claim their slice of the De Beers class-action settlement.
Some say it involves too much paperwork for too little money, while others take the attitude that it's worth a shot.
Of the 10 retailers interviewed by National Jeweler, four planned on filing claims, two did not, and four were undecided.
"I frankly think it's a waste of everybody's time," says Fred Nasser of the Antiques Gallery Midwest in Sioux Falls, S.D. "If you [think you're] getting $5 a diamond, you're probably overly optimistic."
He adds that the attorneys are probably the only ones who will profit.
Meanwhile, jeweler Richard Huntington of Huntington Jewelers in Las Vegas, says he already has his office manager gathering up the paperwork necessary to file a claim.
"I have no clue if we're going to get anything at all," he says. "If it's worthwhile doing, you don't know until [after] you do it."
The notice and claims process to divide up the $295 million De Beers settlement fund began Jan. 9, with a hearing set for mid April to determine if the settlement gets final approval. May 19 is the deadline to file a claim.
The fund is the result of a series of class-action lawsuits alleging De Beers charged anti-competitive prices for rough diamonds, monopolized the market and disseminated false and misleading advertising.
The settlement fund will be divided between two classes, direct and indirect purchasers, with the majority of retail jewelers and consumers falling into the latter class.
Indirect purchasers are those who bought diamonds from someone other than De Beers or one of its mining competitors. The settlement applies to diamonds purchased between Jan. 1, 1994, and March 31, 2006.
How much retailers and consumers will receive depends on the number of claims.
Industry analyst Ken Gassman says research shows that more than 130,000 retailers are eligible for a refund.
As for consumers, the exact number is unknown, but statistics show about 1.8 million diamond engagement rings are sold annually in the United States, and in 2006, about 47 million pieces of diamond jewelry were sold.
Gassman says he expects very few people to file claims.
"There is too much required to get a rebate, and too little money, probably," he says, estimating that payouts could be as low as $1 for every $1,000 spent, in the unlikely event that every eligible person claimed a rebate.
While retailers' opinions on applying for the settlement vary, most jewelers who were interviewed by National Jeweler report few if any customer inquiries.
One exception is Barb Binkley of Cooper and Binkley Jewelers in Brighton, Mich. As a service to the customers of her 60-year-old family-owned jewelry store, Binkley says she sent a press release to the local newspaper, the Livingston County Press and Argus, which ran a story on Jan. 25 alerting readers that De Beers could owe them money.
The article set off a tidal wave of consumer inquires, with Binkley estimating, at press time, that she had given out claim forms to 110 customers who were interested.
She keeps extra copies of the forms on hand in her store, and is offering to print the buying history for any of the 35,000 customers in the company's database who are interested in filing a claim.
Binkley says she considers herself and her husband to be "ambassadors" for the jewelry industry in this bedroom community located about 60 miles from Detroit.
"We feel like we should be the answer person for jewelry in this area," Binkley says.
Source: nationaljewelernetwork
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