ETA: I submitted a customer service request via email outlining the below details (without the greedy part) and received a call from SGC agreeing the $250 fee was not appropriate for this card in this condition and apologizing for the hard-line attitude I received from their employee. We came to an agreement on the encapsulation fee.
These greedy fukks.
I hate grading anyway and I only do it for cards I’m getting rid of to pay for new acquisitions. I send this heavily cropped Goudey Ruth for slabbing at a $1500 declared value (a little light on the value maybe, but not by much, I paid $1500 for it) for the $15 grading fee. Realistically I can maybe get $2k-ish for it.
This employee, Matt, gives me a call (I’ve never received a call from SGC before except when some of my cards went missing from their post office) and tells me the minimum GRADING FEE for this Goudey Ruth is $250…so greater than a $3500 valuation. I tell them there is absolutely no way it’s worth that but I would be agreeable to pay an $85 grading fee for a $1500-$3500 valuation.
Him and someone else go to “check comps” and he comes back and says a recent PSA 1 was $3700 so I have to pay the $250…and I literally LOL.
I have to assume this type of aggressive money grabbing tactic is a result of Collector’s purchase of SGC. It's so out of character for the SGC I’ve dealt with in the past, albeit infrequently. Serves me right for hating grading but grading anyway. My bad, but thought it would look really nice for someone in the black SGC slab (really nice might be an exaggeration, but pretty good).
Here’s the beauty in question…rant over, lol.
