POLL: Who is responsible to reimburse collectors for bad autographs

[steve B]

I voted for the dealer because that's the simplest answer in what could be a complex situation. If I sold something that wasn't right and I could be shown that it wasn't right I'd refund just to make things easy for the customer.

I think though that ultimate responsibility depends a lot on the item and the timeline. If I bought it with a good cert and it's later proven bad I'd want a refund from whoever I bought it from. I might discuss it with the TPA because I might not have bought it if not for their mistake. (Assuming of course that I'd done my own research to begin with and saw no obvious problems like an item made after the signers death )

But if I bought it without a cert and sent it in myself then I would be on the hook for the whole thing. I might tell the TPA about the item so they hopefully could use it as an opportunity for further training if it's employees or as a bit of extra knowledge for themselves.

But what about an item that's circulated in a hobby for years and passed through several dealers and collectors and may even have multiple certs issued years apart but new information has discredited it? It's happened in stamps, and I'd bet it's happened in every other hobby too.
I'm not sure what should happen then. Ultimately it should work it's way back along the line of people who have owned it. But that's not at all realistic.

Steve B