NEWARK
– The owner of a Bellmawr, Camden County
jewelry store has pleaded guilty, and is ordered
to pay $15,000 in penalties, for multiple
violations of the State law designed to protect
consumers who seek to trade in gold or other
precious metals for cash, the New Jersey Division
of Consumer Affairs and its Office of Weights
and Measures announced today.
“When
consumers choose to part with their jewelry
in exchange for cash, it is often a difficult
decision made during hard economic times,”
Attorney General Jeffrey S. Chiesa said.
“This very significant penalty demonstrates
just how seriously we take the laws that
protect those consumers, by ensuring transparency
and accountability in the weighing, testing,
and pricing of their precious metals.”
The
Office of Weights and Measures conducted
an on-site inspection of Phil Mund Jewelry,
in Bellmawr, after receiving information
provided by the Bellmawr Police Department.
The inspector noted several violations of
New Jersey’s Weights and Measures
Act. The violations included failure to
test the fineness of precious metals in
plain view of the seller; failure to weigh
precious metals in plain view of the seller;
failure to clearly and prominently display
the price being offered for precious metals,
expressed as price per standard measure
or weight; and failure to issue proper serialized
and detailed receipts to the sellers of
precious metals.
“This
judgment sends a very clear message about
the importance of the law that protects
consumers seeking to sell their gold and
jewelry,” Sharon Joyce, Acting Director
of the Division of Consumer Affairs, said.
“The law requires jewelers to clearly
post their current prices for gold and other
precious metals, to conduct all weighing
and testing of jewelry within plain sight
of the owner who wishes to sell them, and
to provide detailed and accurate receipts
once the sale has been made.”
Robert
J. Campanelli, Acting State Superintendent
of the State Office of Weights and Measures,
said, “In this era of high gold prices,
the Office of Weights and Measures has heightened
its surveillance of precious metal buyers
and is seeking enhanced cooperation with
local police forces.”
Phil
Mund Jr., owner of the store, on March 28,
2012 pleaded guilty in municipal court to
30 counts of violating the Weights and Measures
Act, and was ordered to pay $15,000, or
the maximum penalty of $500 per count.
Advice
for Consumers When Selling Precious Metals
or Jewelry
The
Division of Consumer Affairs provides important
advice and information fort those wishing
to sell their precious metals or jewelry,
in the following publications:
Consumer
tips include:
-
Know with whom you are doing business.
The buyer of precious metals and jewelry
must include their name and address in
all advertisements and at the point of
purchase.
-
Remember that any weighting and testing
of your precious metals or jewelry must
be done in plain view of you, the seller.
-
Check the scale being used to weight your
precious metals or jewelry. The scale
must bear a blue New Jersey Office of
Weights and Measures sticker, dated to
show the scale has been tested by the
State within the last 12 months. Make
sure the scale bears a seal that is not
broken; a broken seal indicates possible
tampering.
-
Prices must be prominently posted.
-
Be sure to get a complete sales receipt.
The receipt must include the buyer’s
name and address; the date of the transaction;
the names of the precious metals purchased;
the fineness and weights of the precious
metals purchased; the prices paid for
the precious metals at the standard measures
of weight; and the name, address, and
signature of the seller.
-
After the sale, the buyer is required
to keep the item purchased for at least
two business days; and to keep a serialized
receipt of each transaction for at least
one year.
Consumers
who believe they have been cheated or scammed
by a business, or suspect any other form
of marketplace abuse, can file a complaint
with the New Jersey Division of Consumer
Affairs by visiting its website
or by calling 1-800-242-5846
(toll free within New Jersey ) or 973-504-6200.
Follow
the Division of Consumer Affairs on Facebook,
and check our online calendar of upcoming
Consumer
Outreach events.
Investigator
E. Robert Spiegel of the Office of Weights
and Measures conducted the investigation
on behalf of the Division of Consumer Affairs.
Officer Bill Perra of the Bellmawr Police
Department provided the initial information.
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