Ethical Question #549

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Posted By: Eric Brehm

I think all of the major grading services are hyper-sensitive to the card alteration problem right now and are trying to err on the safe side when it comes to authenticating and grading cards. They are trying to protect their reputations. They would rather risk frustrating a customer than holder a card that is later shown somehow to be altered. (Either way, they get paid for looking at the card of course.) I think this is particularly true of high-value cards, where the stakes are higher.

Therefore, I would not assume that if a card is returned un-holdered due to suspected alteration, that it has in fact been altered. I would say that if you have a card that has been professionally graded you can sell it as such, without having to disclose the complete history of the actions grading companies took on that particular card on previous grading attempts.

An exception to this would be of course, if you altered the card yourself, or otherwise had a good reason to believe that it had in fact been altered. Then I think it would be unethical to sell the card without disclosing your knowledge. Again, I would not take rejection of a card by a grading company, in and of itself, as sufficient evidence that the card has in fact been altered.