In response to an attempt at a class action lawsuit, Helzberg Diamonds says a diamond vendor error caused the company to sell a ring set with an incorrect total carat weight.
Michael Caprarola, an Illinois resident who says he bought a ring at Helzberg in 2012, has sued the retailer, claiming it sold him a ring set with an incorrect total carat weight, and that it didn’t sufficiently make amends.
“Helzberg admits that the ring set’s center stone along with its accent diamonds were mistakenly described as weighing approximately 1 ct. t.w,” said the retailer in an Oct. 16 response to Caprarola’s compliant. “This mistake was due to an error by the diamond vendor from whom Helzberg purchased the ring set.”
The response further notes that when the mistake was discovered, Helzberg contacted all the consumers who purchased the set, saying the set’s total weight was actually ¾ of a carat. A letter from CEO Beryl Raff apologized and gave Caprarola until Aug. 31 to chose either to return the set for a full refund or accept a $300 Helzberg gift card.
The plaintiff, however, said he didn’t like either of those options, and launched his suit. Helzberg’s response did not address that issue in the suit.
The case, which has been moved to Illinois federal court from the Circuit Court of Cook Count, charges Helzberg with breach of contract, violations of Illinois consumer fraud provisions, and several other counts.
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