As a side note, I always have and always will refund Baseball Card Grading fees if a card is fake or timmed, so I see your point, but there its like $10 and it is a good will gesture more than anything. Some autograph authentications can run more than the item is worth. I see people with slabbed encapsulated Monte Irvin Index Cards all the time. If I sell a Monte Irvin for $5 and some guy overnights it to PSA to get it slabbed for a show or something and it fails, he is out 10X more than he paid for the signature and I would end up owing him back $55 on his $5 purchase (and it might not be fake anyways). With cards at least if it is deemed "counterfeit" or recolored or rebacked there is concrete evidence to show it and in that case, yes I think it would ethical.
As another sidenote, if an autograph seller is forging signatures than I think part of the restitution would be to refund any and all authentication fees but that is a different can of worms (IE: Coaches Corner).
Rhys
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