Last Updated on February 8, 2023 by George
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A reputable precious metals trader in the US is Blanchard & Company, also known as Blanchard Gold. It is currently among the biggest and most well-known gold companies.
After Jim Blanchard, the company’s creator had a successful marketing campaign to persuade the government to allow gold ownership on a confidential basis, Blanchard Gold was established in 1975.
This family-run business supports its customers by using the time-tested method of wealth protection through a portfolio of premium tangible assets.
Earlier than you begin our review:
You are familiar with the difficulties of selecting a company to invest your hard-earned money. We create enlightening and helpful content because we want you to have all the knowledge you need to make the right choice.
The business has operated for over 40 years, with a long enough history to be confidently regarded as a reputable enterprise.
However, things have sometimes gone poorly; the company has fielded several customer complaints.
The objective of a trustworthy precious metals trader is to sell precious metals at fair market value. They should also be able to address your questions and concerns in a timely and efficient manner.
The essential need is that they provide outstanding customer service throughout the transaction. None of these are Blanchard’s strong suits.
Their offerings could be better, even though their products can be genuine.
Numerous grievances have also been raised regarding the cost of their rare coins. Price fluctuations for collectible coins are much more significant than for pure precious metals.
Accusations indicate that Blanchard blatantly inflates the value of their holdings much more than necessary before upselling the investment opportunity.
Background on Blanchard
Rare collector coins, gold, platinum, and palladium are the primary investment focuses of a company named Blanchard Gold. Unlike gold, which is often purchased as coins or bullion, platinum and palladium are commonly purchased as bullion.
The company offers a wide variety of gold coins.
There are possibilities for those who desire to convert their current IRA or 401(k) into precious metals. Precious metals respond differently to economic risk variables than stocks, making them an excellent choice for retirement savings.
You’ll have a backup plan in case the market declines drastically. You can be sure that your retirement account will be worthwhile and that you will have access to enough money to get by investing in precious metals.
You should invest 10 to 20% of your retirement funds in precious metals. The IRS has developed a variety of regulations regarding investments in precious metals, including the requirement for an account custodian and the need to store your metals in a location that has been approved.
As a result, you must pay annual fees as long as you own the account.
Blanchard focuses on making the process far more accessible and seamless for clients by connecting them with their custodians and completing the necessary paperwork on their behalf.
However, other financial businesses have developed their abilities in this field. Additionally, they work more efficiently and affordably. Blanchard needs improvement in this area due to its focus on rare coins.
According to the BBB, Blanchard has been in operation since 1975. As an investment advisor, they initially offered guidance to clients on gold investments. There are almost forty years worth of BBB information to evaluate, starting with when the company gained BBB accreditation (1982).
For an investment company to still be in business after all this time is an incredible feat, especially in the precious metals market. The company has been operating since shortly after it became legal for anyone in the US to own gold.
The company’s founder was a crucial figure in the 1970s movement that encouraged private ownership of precious metals as investments.
Why Put Gold in Your IRA?
Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) safeguard your retirement and your family’s financial stability.
You can save money in these particular tax-sheltered accounts for future usage.
Investing a sizable amount of these long-term funds into trustworthy and substantial assets is crucial.
Cash in an IRA is possible, but it depreciates quickly, and inflation is out of control.
There is no better asset for this than gold because it is dependable, holds its value over time, and even grows in value.
Investors guard themselves by placing actual gold in IRAs as the global economy struggles due to lockdowns, shortages, conflicts, and inflation. Uncertainty is at an all-time high.
Investments in gold gain from these economic crises, which hurt most other assets.
Risk is ignoring economic dangers to your family and yourself even though you are aware of them.
Safety means understanding the risks to your financial future and taking steps to safeguard it. With a Gold IRA, this is simple to do.
Customer Feedback
Customers have given Blanchard a lot of unfavorable feedback during its operation. These ratings are excellent because the corporation interacts little with customers online.
Compared to those reporting positive experiences, more persons report negative ones.
It can be attributable to several factors, the most important of which is that the clientele of the business tends to be older age groups.
These people invested in precious metals at the beginning, in the 1970s and 1980s. Developing long-term client relationships is one of Blanchard’s top focuses.
The favorable consumer feedback reflects this. Many customers who have been with the business for a long time have submitted feedback on the BBB website.
They have stated that their experience has been mostly positive and that they received their metals on time. They have affirmed that they can endorse the business to others.
On the other hand, Blanchard appears to have fallen behind the times. Although the business was a long-time leader in its field, numerous new companies have emerged offering far better customer service and exhibiting more significant physical activity levels.
It suggests that these allegedly satisfied customers are so because they need to know better options and what they are missing.
It’s also possible that the business purposefully flooded the website with positive ratings to mask lousy feedback. If so, they did a terrible job of it, supporting our prior assertion that the company’s management staff might need to be more tech-savvy to stay up.
Complaints
Most of the complaints posted on the business’ BBB page appear to have been removed. Consider that there were complaints about it if there was something to bring up.
People have voiced comments over things like:
- They were overbilling, the presence of undeclared fees, and uninvited automatic credit card payments.
- Instead of receiving what they paid for, customers receive inferior goods. For instance, some buyers received incorrect bullion or alternative gold coins.
- The issues for delivery times and package.
- A broken company promise. It turned out that the business was unwilling to keep a commitment if a client was happy.
Concerns concerning the company’s rare coins have recently increased. Numerous clients claim that Blanchard has overpriced its rare coins by utilizing outrageous commission fees, causing them to sell for twice their market value.
However, the business has claimed they have never marked up its rare coin products by 100%. The company has undoubtedly denied ever marking up any of its items by more than 50%.
Regarding the prices of their rare coins, Blanchard is more concerned with maintaining face than taking the necessary action to address the genuine problems affecting their consumers.
The business has a reputation for rejecting the allegations without taking further action. So, the only choice left is whether to believe the company.
We cannot advise relying on the company’s statements in this case. Many other businesses have received significantly more favorable client feedback with fewer complaints.
Any trustworthy business will work to address client complaints promptly and guarantee that they are satisfactorily remedied.
Trustlink and Ripoff Report
These are two of the most popular independent watchdog websites where clients can post reviews.
While Ripoff Report primarily focuses on unethical business practices and terrible customer experiences, Trustlink is created to gather feedback of all stripes from customers who have interacted with the organization.
Blanchard is currently listed outside Trustlink. On the website, there are no reviews of the company, positive or negative. It might be due to a lack of technical knowledge, but it can also be a red flag.
On Ripoff Report, there have been two complaints made against the business.
One of the complaints concerns a concern that customers appear to have the most trouble with at the moment: the marking up of their rare coins to disproportionately high prices.
This complaint has been made on several forums and various dates.
But figuring out how much the prices have been marked up is challenging, and it is partially due to the price difference between rare coins and bullion.
The coins must first be valued, and the actual market worth depends on the number of bids received.
Additionally, a coin’s value might change significantly depending on market demand. It means that a coin’s value will rise if many collectors are interested in it, and vice versa.
It makes buying rare coins risky and must be carefully considered before investing.
In a separate case, it is claimed that Blanchard is secretive about their pricing. According to the complaint, the business adjusted product prices without first getting the client’s approval and refused to let the customer lock in the lower price.
The consumer ultimately paid substantially more than what was first estimated.
We believe that this complaint is legitimate. Once the price of your intended purchase has been disclosed to you, you must be sure that you will pay that amount.
The business must also be transparent about its lock-in rules if anything changes.
Blanchard Gold Company Policies
The company’s policies are typical and straightforward to understand. Customers have access to a 10-day satisfaction guarantee under a specific policy.
You can return the coins and get your money back if you’re unhappy with your purchase.
This policy is used in customer resolution when a consumer receives an incorrect product.
Remember that the 10-day money-back guarantee begins when you receive your coins, not when they are shipped. And shipping to locations in the US can take almost two weeks, and when sending internationally, this process takes longer still.
There is also a buy-back policy when you want to sell your rare precious metals, and your metals will be purchased back by the corporation at the going rate.
There is a danger that the value of your precious metals may be much lower than when you purchased them, resulting in a loss. All investments have some level of risk.
However, precious metals offer a financial safety net amid a financial crisis. As the value of the dollar declines, unique metal values typically increase. Investments in precious metals are the ideal answer for people whose retirement savings are threatened by inflation.
It’s crucial to remember that you have additional options for selling your precious metals for cash, including alternative gold IRA distributors. You can settle for another buyer if Blanchard’s offer does not satisfy you.
Blanchard Gold Shipping Policy
Once you’ve placed your order, one of FedEx, USPS, or UPS will handle shipping. Ordinarily, orders are checked before shipment, and a tracking number will be sent to you so that you can monitor the delivery process.
Depending on your state, you might have to pay a shipping tax. Additionally, you need to sign for the delivery. You will receive a message telling you that delivery was attempted in the event the carrier is unable to obtain your signature.
If you are not available to sign for the delivery after the second or third attempt, they may make one or two more attempts before returning the box to Blanchard.
In this situation, the business may send your shipment to a secure location where you can pick it up whenever it’s convenient.
Typically, the package is wrapped discretely, hiding any information about its contents or the sender. Additionally, the contents of your delivery are fully insured, guaranteeing that you will receive a refund if the metals are lost in transit.
You will be asked to pay a flat cost of $23 to cover insurance and delivery if your order is less than $300. The pricing will stay the same no matter where you are in the United States. For purchases over $300, the business offers complimentary shipping and insurance.
Final Thoughts – Blanchard Gold Review
Blanchard is one of the US’s first precious metals investment organizations, operating for more than 40 years.
Its founder’s assistance was crucial in making precious metal ownership lawful in the United States in the 1970s. The business has been in business since 1975, assisting investors in precious metals.
While everything is excellent, the organization struggles with the changing precious metals market. Although they have received some favorable reviews, there are more negative comments than favorable ones.
Along with overpricing their rare coins and having deceptive buying policies, they need to gain the knowledge of IRA planning that many other companies possess.
As a result, we urge you to refrain from doing business with this gold dealer and instead go with a company that has made a name for itself by offering excellent customer care.
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