Gem Shopping is extremely slow in posting a credit to your charge card for merchandise that is returned. They keep telling me that they have to make sure that the returned item is ok and that since they have gone to broadcasting 24hours 7 days a week, they have really increased their workload, so they are sorry for the delay.

Well, when you purchase an item that has a pretty high dollar amount it is frustrating to have to watch your credit card charge you interest on that outstanding balance month after month. The credit amount Gem Shopping will refund you is only for the amount of the item purchased, so you are still strapped with the postage you paid to get the item shipped to you and then for the postage to send it back and on top of that now you are building finance charges on a balance that you thought was going to be cleared quickly.

According to their Return Policy there is a very small window of opportunity to get a Return Authorization number after receiving an item. It must be within 7 days of receipt. I've complied with their rules. I got my Return Authorization numbers and I've got the UPS tracking details that show when the items were received back by Gem Shopping. So I know exactly how long they have been in possession of the returned item. I've even seen one of the items I returned already displayed for sale again. It was a very distinctive bracelet so it was easy to spot. I've talked with their customer service and mentioned this to them. I've sent e-mails requesting that someone look in to the items that I've returned. I realize that I'm not one of their big spenders but over the past couple of years I have spent thousands of dollars and it is disappointing that they don't react as quickly as other companies when managing returns.

As I have been waiting for my credits to post I have continued to watch and purchase other items and it seemed interesting that the person on the phone would ask if I wanted to use my Store Credit...which leads me to believe that is part of the game they are playing. They keep the cash flow going by not running refunds quickly and encouraging customers to just use the credit balance they already have.

To their credit...on their invoice under the Return Policy they state 'Pending an approved inspection and validation of your returned item(s), your credit should appear on your statement within one to two billing cycles.'

However, I've had a couple of items returned as early as November 26, 2008 and as recent as January 16, 2009 and as of today, March 5, 2009, I have yet to see a credit for any of these items on my credit card.

I purchased a ring from them and was dissapointed also. I had to pay the return postage. Since them I have bought a a ring worth 5k at a jewerly store, where I could see it, hold it & haggel with a live person. TV plays tricks on the appearence of the items.