Some people blinded by new gold rush

The selling of unwanted pieces of jewelry has become popular and profitable in the shadow of difficult economic times, but local police say it also presents unwanted opportunities for residents to be scammed and cheated.

The high price of gold in today’s market recently brought some traveling precious metal buyers to the area who set up temporary businesses, Florence Police Maj. Carlos Raines said.

But few seemed to know it’s illegal in South Carolina to purchase gold or other precious metals without a special permit, Raines said.

Buyers without a permit can set unfair prices and leave the area without ever being caught, he said.

“With the price of gold going up, we had people coming in to town saying that they will be at a certain hotel or motel buying gold — well, you can’t do that and we had to let them know,” Raines said. “You can’t ride into town, set up shop, take a bunch of stuff and leave, it’s not legal.”

Police also began visiting local jewelers and pawn shop owners to notify them of the law and to explain the state’s precious metals permit. The permit is $50 and can be obtained by filling out information and filing it with the Florence police records division, Raines said.

Many reputable Florence jewelers and pawn shop owners who purchase gold and other items didn’t know they had to have precious metals permits in addition to business licenses. But most were happy they were informed about the law and were eager to comply, he said.

Bill Travis, who has owned Travis Jewelers in Florence for more than 20 years, said he and his wife, Jackie, didn’t know about the permit until Raines told them.

The couple obtained a permit immediately, he said.

“I wanted to be legal. I went out and brought the permit pretty much the next day,” he said. “Basically, I didn’t know you had to have a permit.”

The precious metals law standardizes the way goods are received by buyers and makes the metals somewhat traceable for a time. All metal buyers are required to ask for identification and hold the items for a time period before melting them down, Travis said.

Even without the permit, the Travises said they have always used discretion when purchasing gold.

“Anything suspicious, we stay away from it,” he said. “If things aren’t on the up and up (the seller) usually tucks tail and runs.”

As far as the buyers are concerned, it’s a shame when they cheat residents who want to sell their old jewelry, Travis said.

“It really angers me to think there are people preying on people’s ignorance,” he said. “They are taking these people’s jewelry and offering this low-ball figure.”

Travis said he understands setting a price that will cover the cost of refining the metal and turning a profit, but there are buyers who pay out much less than what the jewelry is worth.

“I can’t offer them the full value because it’ll just be me making change,” he said. “I’m not apologizing for my prices ... you have to have a profit margin. If somebody isn’t happy with my quote, I encourage them to shop around and compare.”

Travis said because of the economy, now is really a good time for people to sell unwanted jewelry if they need the money.

Recently, Travis Jewelers has had more customers wanting to sell their old jewelry, so Travis said it seems as if people have recognized it’s an opportune time to make money.

“(Jewelers) offer a service that I feel is good for the local community,” he said.

— Staff writer Jamie Rogers can be reached at (843) 317-2766. Comment on this story at www.scnow.com.