Subj : Fair Go: How long should a wedding ring last? To : All From : News Date : Tue Apr 16 2024 12:50 pm When you get married the intention is that it's forever. Many couples vow to stick it out "til death do us part". Those promises are usually sealed by an exchange of rings expected to last - even outlast - a marriage. But as newlyweds Chelsea and Romi Prasad discovered, that's not always the case. After just four months of wedded bliss, one of the gold inlays on Romi's titanium wedding band snapped. "I was heartbroken at the fact," said Romi. "It's my wedding ring." "A wedding ring should last for the length of a marriage, right?" asked Chelsea. The Prasads bought the ring from Michael Hill Jeweller in December 2022, nine months before their big day. "Weddings are expensive, so we wanted to spread the costs out. We paid $480, but the original price was $800." The couple tied the knot in Fiji. Their wedding album shows them surrounded by loved ones and proudly sporting their wedding bands. Once back in New Zealand, Romi decided to wear his ring on weekends only, due to the physical nature of his job. "I'm a courier driver and there are a lot of hazards - picking up boxes, heavy items, oddly shaped boxes we pick up all the time. "If I wear the ring to work, it could get pulled off - or caught on something - or get lost or damaged. That's why I went and got a tattoo on my ring finger." When he wasn't wearing it, Romi kept the ring in a velvet box. So, the couple was shocked to discover the band had snapped. Broken ring just 'wear and tear' They took it back to Michael Hill Jeweller to see if it could be repaired. The store organised a cause report, putting it down to wear and tear. But Romi found that hard to believe. "I could possibly count how many times I wore it. Maybe seven or eight times?" "It looked brand new, it wasn't even scratched," added Chelsea. Michael Hill quoted the couple $100.74 to repair it, as the warranty had expired one month prior. Despite being married for just four months, they'd bought the ring 13 months earlier. "We got married in September and, by January, it was broken - only four months out of the box and only worn on occasional weekends. "They didn't care, they just stated the fact that as it was one month over warranty there was nothing they could do," shrugged Chelsea. Chelsea admitted to being "a bit of a fighter" and decided to do some digging. When she took a look at the Michael Hill Jeweller website she discovered other customers had reported similar issues. So feeling emboldened, Chelsea insisted they shouldn't have to pay and was eventually offered a replacement ring. "I had to go back to them four times, when they kept saying no. The only reason they gave us a resolution was because I pretty much brought up the Consumer Guarantees Act." Different couple - similar issues The Gordons are another young couple enjoying married life. Dan and Elesha paid around $3000 for Elesha's bridal set, featuring an engagement ring and wedding band, around six years ago. This sounds so cliche, but I was like 'Oh, this is it'," grinned Elesha. "It was nice and sparkly," agreed Dan. "Every guy wants to give his wife the ring of her dreams." But that dream has become more of a nightmare for the couple, as Elesha's engagement ring has needed multiple repairs. "At least six times," said Elesha. "A few diamonds started falling out, but we had a warranty. "As part of that you have to go back to Michael Hill every six months to have it checked to keep the warranty, so we would religiously take it in. But still, the diamonds kept falling out. "One day I looked down and the gold had snapped. It was at the top and it had just snapped in half. I was distraught." The couple went back to Michael Hill and paid $400 for it to be fixed. "Then it happened three more times, the last time was a month ago. It was just like, how is this still happening? A gold ring we paid nearly four grand for and it's snapping in half? "The manager said, `you obviously play intense sport'. And we laugh, because I'm not that person. I have a desk job and a toddler. The most extreme thing I do is cleaning the house." Elesha said Michael Hill had a suggestion for the couple "We went to two different Michael Hill branches, and they both said the same things - `it's time to talk to your husband about an upgrade'. "We both work for not-for-profits and have a mortgage and a toddler. I was shocked by that." An expert opinion Caitlin Worth is the design director at Jewellers Workshop in Auckland's High Street. Fair Go couldn't show her Romi's wedding band as it had already gone back. But she had a good look at Elesha's engagement ring and said she's not surprised it broke. "A band is only as strong as its weakest point. Right up the top by the setting there's really only one little connection, right at the base and it's only about point seven of a millimetre thick. "And then up the top where the top of band connects to the setting, that was only ever tacked on, so not very strong. "Because the band is hollow, it probably would have been quite easy for her to flex it and then, because of that narrow fine point, it would have snapped quite easily. "I don't think you'd have to do anything particularly aggressive to get this ring to break," she added. "If you had a bag of groceries with orange juice in it and picked it up with that ring on, it would be enough to bend it. "I would say that is a design fault." What Michael Hill offered Michael Hill did offer the Gordons a replacement ring, but it came with a catch. "They told us `we'll offer you a replacement of the ring', because luckily for us our ring is still available online, but we have to pay the difference of inflation. They put me on the spot and I had to decide. So we paid $600," said Elesha. "The sad thing is that they encouraged me to get white gold, which is apparently better and sturdier. But it looks different. "After two years of dealing with it I just wanted to move on and have my ring back and never deal with them again," admitted Elesha. The Prasads no longer have their original ring, either. Michael Hill agreed to a swap. "I asked for same ring. But they told me it wasn't going to be produced any more, which is odd because it's still on their website," said Chelsea. "They said, 'don't worry we won't make you pay the extra', which is interesting because it was their product that broke, this should be a resolution in my favour, but they thought about charging me more." Both couples feel Michael Hill has failed to understand the real value the rings had. "Proposing, being able to lift it out and put it on her finger. We could look at the ring and see and remember the time we got engaged, and the joy we felt. And the excitement of telling our parents, friends and family. We could see it all in that ring," recalled Dan. Elesha agreed, saying: "And we have to give back the broken one - so even for my daughter, it's just not being able to hand it down and say 'this is the ring your dad proposed with, under this tree'." The Prasads feel the same. "We've got photos of the wedding, with a ring that we don't have anymore," said Chelsea. "That new ring doesn't hold any value because it didn't come on the travel to Fiji. It wasn't at the wedding day. It's just a piece of jewellery at this point." Romi added, "Our parents' rings were so much cheaper. My dad's was two hundred bucks, it's still not broken, it's been 20-plus years." Elesha had similar thoughts. "Talking to my mum and his [Dan's] mum and they have had theirs for 36 and 40 years and never had an issue," exclaimed Elesha. Michael Hill Response: Fair Go asked Michael Hill why the rings seemed doomed for splitsville. They said: "We are sorry that these customers did not feel the service experience they received was up to our usual standard. "... We are continuing to review the background and correspondence that led to the customer outcomes. "... Following Michael Hill's internal review, we will liaise directly with both customers to ensure their concerns are resolved." Meantime, for the past two years Elesha, has been wearing a much cheaper replacement. "I was so sick of not having a ring on, so I went to a little cheap jewellery shop and bought this for $10", she said, showing off a stand-in sparkler. "This one has been so sturdy. It's lasted, it hasn't broken." "It's fake, but who cares," she laughed. Choosing the right ring: Jewellers Workshop advice Caitlin from Jewellers Workshop offered these tips for anyone ring shopping. "Over the past 10-20 years - as the price of gold has gone up - we've seen quite a big push from quite a few jewellers and fashion designers to create ultra-fine, ultra-delicate pieces of jewellery. "It's done to keep the pricing more attractive. "And so, we are getting quite a few rings through the shop now to be repaired that have broken, snapped or disintegrated, because they are so fine and very delicate. "They're also very problematic to repair - quite time-consuming and challenging." "Getting a ring with a little more substance is really important. Avoiding anything with a hollowed-out band is a good start. "Choose a ring that has a reasonably thick band on it as well - for us, we don't sell anything under 2mm. Around about there or wider is good to look for. "Generally for a ladies' engagement rings, 14 karat, 18 karat and platinum are really great options, they're a little bit denser and that density gives it better longevity. "Particularly when you're looking at the little claws that hold diamonds in, they'll gradually wear down over time even on high quality piece of jewellery. "That takes longer with higher karat gold and platinum. Mens' just need to be reasonably thick." "If you have a ring with lots of gemstones or delicate filigree work on it, you'll have to be more cautious of it. "An item of jewellery like this one [fine and delicate] doesn't really have the longevity to be handed down, and because it's so delicate it's also really complicated and time-consuming to repair. "You're trying to solder fine, little pieces of metal and as soon as its repaired even more susceptible to being damaged again." --- Mystic BBS v1.12 A44 2020/02/04 (Windows/64) * Origin: S.W.A.T.S BBS Telnet swatsbbs.ddns.net:2323 (63:10/102) .