Gold Coin Scam

mjjh1970

I have just found out my Father has been buying gold coins from Rosland Gold UK and they have been selling him vastly over priced coins eg 1oz Gold Coin £5000+ but I have had it valued at £1500 also a 1oz Platinum coin £5500 which I have had valued at £600. I am trying to establish what I can do because he has spend £60000 on these so called collectors coins. I have contacted collectors and the coins are not collectable and are only valued at around £10000 in total 'spot value'. The website has disclaimers that they are not an investment house and buyers should seek independent financial advice but I am at a loss as what to do. 

tightauldgit

Probably nothing. I don't think it's a scam so much as just overpriced items relative to their worth. If they are as described and you got what you paid for and your father is competent to legally enter a contract then all you can really do is advise him to stop buying any more. 

RogerPensionGuy

Some adverts do indeed come across as gold plated investments and very valuable, plus very nice people do these adverts. 

Talking of adverts, if I texted and entered every time I get presented with winning a car, caravan or XXX in tax-free cash on TV I would be skint.

Whist taking of adverts, I like the equity release adverts and being advised that my money is completely tax free, it's like saying if you spend money out of your own pocket in a shop via these wonderful companies the tax man won't tax me.

All the above are indeed gold-plated, unfortunately people need to be aware who is getting all the gold.

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head

Hello OP

Very sorry to hear, putting aside their emotive picture of grandad showing his gold coins to grandson implying you can pass on your wealth through their coins, this page

https://www.roslandgold.co.uk/pages/why-buy-gold

talks about why you might wish to buy gold and everything there is (I presume) truthful but what is missing is that the gold they are selling as coins won't achieve the reasons they suggest people buy gold.

You would be looking to argue that their set up is misleading under the Consumer Protection From Unfair Trading Regulations under which there are certain rights to redress if it is deemed a trader did indeed mislead a consumer.

Sadly no one here can give you a direct answer to whether this is the case or not, ultimately a court would decide, and given the amount you might want to seek professional advice on what, if anything, can be done.

At the very least hopefully you are able to persuade dad to stopping buying I don't know what coins he has as you mention some high numbers but (at a glance at something I know nothing about) a 1oz gold Britannia coin is about £2300 on their site and they sell for around £1600 on eBay, not great but better than losing 83%. 

See if you can identify which coins they are and what they are selling for on eBay or similar outlets and if you decide to forget the legal side but sell the coins I would recommend asking for tips on the MSE eBay board for the best places to sell and how to protect yourself when selling. 

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/forumdisplay.php?f=40

mjjh1970

it seems to be a unregulated market. My Father lives alone in sheltered accommodation and was contacted multiple times with suggestions he bought the latest coin, each call they said his investment had gone up by x% and his 60k was worth 100k. Its shocking that companies can legally operate like this 

born_again

mjjh1970 said:

it seems to be a unregulated market. My Father lives alone in sheltered accommodation and was contacted multiple times with suggestions he bought the latest coin, each call they said his investment had gone up by x% and his 60k was worth 100k. Its shocking that companies can legally operate like this 

Ask them to buy them back, sounds like a plan 👍Even if you said, well I'll take £80K

diinozzo

Can people please read what they have typed and correct it so it makes sense?

eskbanker

diinozzo said:

Can people please read what they have typed and correct it so it makes sense?

???

I don't see anything above that doesn't make sense to me - who/what are you thinking of?

Okell

eskbanker said:

diinozzo said:

Can people please read what they have typed and correct it so it makes sense?

???

I don't see anything above that doesn't make sense to me - who/what are you thinking of?

I don't understand either...

Okell

the_lunatic_is_in_my_head said:

...You would be looking to argue that their set up is misleading under the Consumer Protection From Unfair Trading Regulation under which there are certain rights to redress if it is deemed a trader did indeed mislead a consumer.

Sadly no one here can give you a direct answer to whether this is the case or not, ultimately a court would decide, and given the amount you might want to seek professional advice on what, if anything, can be done...

In a situation like this - if I were a member of Which? - I'd consider using their Legal Advice service.  If I wasn't a member I'd find out if I could join specifically to use it.  I don't see any harm in ringing them and asking ... 0117 456 6020

Who could be better suited or have a better reason for looking into such trading practices?

Ectophile

For what it's worth, 1oz of gold is currently worth about £1524, and 1oz of platinum is about £744.  I'm suprised platinum is that low, as it used to be higher. https://www.kitco.com/market/ (make sure you set British Pound as the currency).

If you're selling coins, you should be getting something close to the "spot" price.  If someone offers you significantly less, walk away.