A Question - What Would You Do?

If you don't mind, let's change the scenario a bit. Let's say you're not in a coin shop but instead searching newly listed items on ebay and see someone selling a gold or silver coin for less than half of spot, and you're certain it's a legitimate coin. Buy or contact seller. My honest answer, I buy it, as quickly as possible.

I tried to be honest once and it didn't do any good.
I bought an unusual coin from a dealer I know which turned out to be a good find in that the coin was a very nice Kleeberg specimen better than the one pictured in the book.
The same dealer then gave me two Chinese dollars. They were freebies. I told him they were genuine and worth about $100 each. I offered to buy them. He insisted on no. He didn't know anything about them and didn't care about them. All he said was they didn't look right. I failed to see them in the same way and they did prove to be genuine.

The discussion I provoked has finally resulted in some rather thoughtful replies as I hoped it would. We coin collectors need to think more about being fair to everyone rather than to be so focused on money. The golden rule should apply to our hobby. I expect a fair price which includes a fair overhead and profit. I expect accuracy over all and I do not like to be lied to. I do not expect to be taken advantage of nor do I take advantage of people.

Personally, I always advise a dealer when a mistake has been made. Even if the mistake is his. I start by asking him/her to look at and confirm the price when I suspect an error has been made. That is only fair because in the case of multiple junk boxes with loose coins a previous customer may have returned a coin to the wrong box. It would be unfair for me to insist on a lower than fair price.

Regarding sorting a coin box by value using my expertise when the dealer for any reason does not or can not. I say why not. If I have the time I do just that. Many times without an intention to buy. I like to get things correct. It is obsession and I know that.

I have found that honest dealers who really did make a mistake will normally be thankful. Some will honor the price even though it was an error. In that case, I will offer to split the difference. On the very few occasions that a dealer actually snatched the coin back or says it was no longer for sale, then I figure his is NOT an honest person. That would be the last time I dealt with him.

Regarding the sentiment that the character of the dealer enters into the ultimate decision, I agree it sometimes does but very rarely. About 30 years ago I was very heavy into Capped Bust half dollars as investment coins. I liked the die varieties and at one time owned well in excess of 100 Overton varieties. One day I was in the shop of a very obnoxious dealer who had 2 or 3 countermen working on a somewhat busy day. I found a beautiful early rare variety that I had been hunting for for a very long time. It had a $1000 price tag. I figured that was perhaps 10% (at most) too high and asked the counterman if there was any wiggle room in the price. I was prepared to pay that price if he said no, but I always ask. He sent a note (it was policy of the dealer - all offers in writing) asking the owner for a final price for the coin. The note came back with a clear price of exactly 1/5 the price listed on the coin holder. So I bought it for $200. I then asked to speak to the owner. When I finally got to speak with him, I asked why only $200 for such a rare variety with a retail value of over $900? He got very mad at me for questioning his price because that was all the darned coin was worth. It was obviously a "problem coin". He went on to say he would barely be able to recover this price when he tried to sell it. He said I should be very happy with his very generous offer. In that case, I left the shop and never went back. It was obvious he was lowballing the price because he believed he was buying the coin not selling it. That dealer was an out and out thief.

Regarding using what I know about coins to make an unfair bargain with a less well informed seller? I think that is morally wrong. It does not square with my faith in a just God. If I spot an error in a dealer's inventory I will tell him. At times I have to explain the issue and the true value. Just because I have been collecting for over 60 years and I am blessed with a good memory, does not mean I should use that to take an unfair advantage of anyone else.

Most dealer's I run into are actually unaware of the value of circulating contemporary counterfeit coins. I always offer a fair price based on my experience. At times that is more than the marked price. I do it because I know that is the only fair way of doing things. There are very few people who have my level of experience in this field.

I am also not doing this for profit. I enjoy the hobby and always volunteer my knowledge to people willing to listen. I am not a capitalist, I definitely would not be successful in many businesses (even as a coin dealer). I am however honest in my dealings with others.

andyg The fact of the matter is that the dealer was being dishonest in not at least buying the foreign coins by weight. I find even that practice to be far from fully honest, but I understand that for many dealers foreign coins are or were a nuisance. Since he sold 13 coins from his free gift to you for 130 pence, his motivation is clear to me. Common foreign "junk" is still worth a dollar a pound US in the worst case. Apparently this dealer did look at the coins in the bag because he tipped you off to the contents being interesting. So at the very minimum he misled the seller and added to the poor reputation of coin dealers in general.

The dealer and the hobby would have been better off if he asked the gentleman if Grandma had any grandkids or knew other young folk to give them to. That way the dealer might have sparked interest in the next generation and created a future customer for someone.

Interesting thread. Can I flip it on it's head?
You're a non-coin addict with some friends at the pub. A coin collecting friend is going to the bar so you give them some loose change for them to buy you a drink. A week later you learn that a 2009 Kew Gardens 50p was among the change which your friend sold on ebay for 80 quid. You are annoyed that your friend didn't tell you and feel that in a sense he stole from you. In his defence the friend says that if he was not a coin collector then the coin would now be in circulation and you would never have known its value. Who has the moral high ground?

But is not knowing a coin is collectable a 'mistake'? Using a note of different face value is clearly a mistake and a different scenario. The 50p coin is just 50p to the person without the collector knowledge. No-one feels guilty finding gems in the till but they are there because the person using them as change didn't know better. In my books, if told, a true friend would swap the 50p coin with the collector friend.

Insanity. Are you going to tell your local car dealer he's asking too little for that used car? Or your local grocer that the competition is charging more for a head of lettuce?

Seller sets price. Buyer decides to buy or makes counter-offer. Seller says yes or no.

Imagine if we led our lives telling sellers, based on our own experiences, that they "could get more".

What nonsense.

Seller prepare, buyer beware.