Grading Guarantees - Are They For Real???

[BobC]

Originally Posted by Carter08

I’m not perfectly on topic here but it’s related. I have a friend that has a small but nice collection. He sent in a card 49 bowman he thought was mint and paid the psa premium of 2k for services on a card with a declared value under 49k. Card came back a psa 2, probably justified. Psa won’t issue a refund of any of the expenses or even meet him halfway and drop the price to 1k for cards with a declared value under 29k. It seems tough that psa would make you declare a value and be bound to it when their grading is what helps dictate the value so to speak. At any rate, would like to help this vent out if anyone has any experience on this. Psa customer service at least one time said no dice.

And this exactly one of the biggest problems and issues all along with TPGs and their opinions. They are NOT independent in the giving of their opinions on the grade of cards. There should be absolutely NO DIFFERENCE in the grading standards and way a '52 Topps Mantle card is examined and graded, and the way an '89 Topps Gregg Jefferies rookie card is examined and graded. So why should there be any difference in the grading fees?????

Any TPG charging such varying and graduated fees is automatically biased, and subject to a conflict-of -interest in their grading services. And this IS NOT DEBATABLE, IT IS A FACT!!!!! Any person/party/company being trusted and hired for their giving of an "opinion" should be totally independent, in both fact, AND appearance. All TPGs should follow a single and accepted set of grading standards, set by a majority of people in the hobby and not independently by each TPG to suit their own whims, that are unchanging and consistently applied, and further supported by total transparency as to why a card is graded as it is. And all the TPGs should be subject to ongoing peer review of their work by outside parties, with consequences for failing to accurately, and without bias and conflict-of-interest, do what they get paid to do. Give accurate, honest, and unbiased opinions on the grade of cards.

So how can anyone trust the "opinion" given by any person/party/company as to a card's grade that is not totally independent, unbiased, and without an obvious conflict-of-interest? The very simple and accurate answer is.........you actually can't!!!!!