Policy
Warranty and repair
All four advertise a lifetime warranty. All four exclude the things most likely to happen to a ring. The interesting part of these documents is the exclusion list.
Check live prices — we don't print them here, because they change daily.
Rings
The centre stone is where nearly all the money goes. Compare the same specification at each — shape, carat, colour, clarity, cut grade and grading laboratory held identical, or you are not comparing anything.
Earrings
Sold by total carat weight across the pair, so a 1ct pair is two half-carat stones. Cheap enough to make a sensible first purchase from a retailer you have not used before.
Bracelets
Check the clasp and the safety catch before the stone quality. A tennis bracelet that springs open on the wrist is the most common way people lose one.
Necklaces
The chain matters more than buyers expect. Check the gauge and the clasp — a heavy pendant on a thin chain is a repair waiting to happen.
Links open each retailer's own category page. Rare Carat links are affiliate links and earn us a commission if you buy, at no extra cost to you. The other three are plain links that earn us nothing today; if that changes, this line changes with it. Every relationship is listed on the disclosure page.
Read from each retailer's own warranty pages from the retailers' own pages. Policies change; the retailer's current published terms govern.
What is covered
| Blue Nile | James Allen | Brilliant Earth | Rare Carat | Grown Brilliance | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Manufacturing defects | Limited lifetime warranty. | Limited lifetime warranty. | Free lifetime warranty against manufacturing defects on all Brilliant Earth fine jewellery. | Set by the underlying vendor | — |
| Who may claim | Original purchaser. | Original purchaser only — explicitly non-transferable. | Confirm with the retailer; not stated on the pages read. | Set by the underlying vendor | — |
| Third-party repair | Alteration by another jeweller affects eligibility — confirm before any outside work. | Items showing alteration by a jeweller other than James Allen are not accepted. | Repair or service by a jeweller not authorised by Brilliant Earth voids the warranty. | Set by the underlying vendor | — |
| Damage replacement | Not offered as a standard term; damage claims on arrival must be reported within five days of receipt. | Not offered as a standard term. | Damaged fine jewellery replaced within 60 days of purchase; after that, only pieces under $1,000 in value. | Set by the underlying vendor | — |
| Excluded | Normal wear and tear, stones lost or chipped in wear, discolouration from cosmetics or chemicals. | Wear and tear; outside alteration. | Wear and tear, loss of gemstones, product loss, theft. | Set by the underlying vendor | — |
| In-person service | Limited US locations; most service is by post. | Showroom in New York; most service is by post. | Showroom network across major US cities. | None — service returns to the underlying vendor | — |
Terms change without announcement. Every value above was taken from the retailer's own policy page on the date shown — confirm the current terms before relying on them.
What "lifetime" excludes
The word does a lot of work in the marketing and very little in the document. Across these policies, the following are typically not covered:
- normal wear — thinning bands, worn prongs, softened detail over years
- a stone lost because the ring was knocked or caught on something
- a chipped or damaged diamond
- discolouration from cosmetics, chlorine, cleaning products or perfume
- any work done by a third-party jeweller, which commonly voids the warranty entirely
- loss and theft
Read that list against what actually happens to rings. Most real-world failures fall inside it. The warranty covers the ring being made wrong; it does not cover the ring being worn.
The third-party clause
This one costs people the most and is the least known. Having a ring resized, repaired or even cleaned by a local jeweller can void the manufacturer's warranty outright.
If the ring came from an online retailer, service has to route back through that retailer — which for a purely online seller means posting a valuable item and waiting, rather than walking into a shop. Retailers with showrooms have a practical advantage here that does not show up in a warranty comparison at all.
Who is allowed to claim
Several of these policies limit service to the original purchaser. If you bought the ring and she wears it, you may be the one who has to arrange every repair, indefinitely.
Worth knowing before it matters. Where a policy permits it, adding the wearer as an authorised party at the time of purchase avoids a tedious problem later.
Warranty is not insurance
They are constantly conflated and they cover opposite things.
A warranty is the maker's guarantee that the piece was made correctly. It costs nothing and covers defects.
Insurance covers loss, theft and accidental damage — the things that actually befall rings. It is an annual cost, it usually requires a valuation, and for a significant piece it typically needs to be scheduled specifically rather than left to a general contents policy.
Budget for the insurance from the day the ring arrives. The budget guide treats it as part of the purchase cost, because it is.
What we cannot tell you
We have read these policies. We have not made a claim under one. How quickly a repair is turned around, how an ambiguous case is decided, whether goodwill is extended past the written terms — none of that is within what we can honestly grade. See the methodology.
Common questions
What does a lifetime diamond warranty cover?
Manufacturing defects — a setting that fails because it was made wrong — plus routine servicing such as cleaning, polishing and prong tightening. It is a workmanship guarantee, not protection against loss or damage.
Is a lost stone covered by the warranty?
Generally not. A stone lost because the ring was knocked, caught or worn hard is treated as damage rather than a defect. That is what jewellery insurance is for, and the two are frequently confused.
Can my partner claim on the warranty if I bought the ring?
Often only the original purchaser can. If you bought the ring, you may need to make the claim yourself even though she wears it. Check this before it becomes relevant.
Do I need separate jewellery insurance?
If the piece matters, yes. Warranties cover workmanship; insurance covers loss, theft and accidental damage. They address different risks and one is not a substitute for the other.