Posted By:
Bruce BabcockThe following three paragraphs taken from the PSA web site explain that after a card has been graded, labeled and sealed, there are two additional so-called Verification stages.
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"Verification Stage (1)
after the cards have been sealed in the PSA holders, they are then sent to the Grading Verification stage. As mentioned earlier, this is where another grader will check the orders for accuracy and consistency in relation to PSA standards. If the cards appear to meet PSA's guidelines, the order is then sent on to the next step in the process. If any of the cards do not appear to meet the standards, the card is then removed from the holder and re-evaluated by our staff."
"Verification Stage (2)
Once our grading staff has finalized the grades through the verification process, the orders are then sent to the final verification stage. This stage is PSA's final quality control checkpoint. Here, the order is then reunited with the original submission form and each card is matched against the paperwork."
"The cards and holders are examined for defects that may have been overlooked in prior stages such as scratched cases or improper information on the PSA label. Once this is checked and verified, a PSA packing slip is printed so that our shipping department is aware of the method of delivery you have selected. Upon completion, the grades are posted and an email confirmation is sent to the customer with the grading results."
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So even if the labeler makes a mistake and the card has been sealed, there are still two more opportunities for "another grader" and "the grading staff" to catch it.
If an obvious mistake, however amusing, such as Honus/Heinie (which has happened at least twice) is not caught during two additional stages of verification, what other less obvious problems are not being caught? As Jay pointed out, thousands of dollars change hands based on decisions made by grading companies.