I’m just looking for opinions on what I should do with this PSA 9 Venusaur Black Star promo I just received today. Of the 20 or so graded cards I own so far, this was one I was most excited about yet also most disappointed in the actual condition of the card. As you can hopefully see in my images below, there is a blue ink dot above the grass energy symbols. What really makes me question the grade is what appears to be a fingernail indent on the left edge of the gold box beneath the Venusaur image(the angled looking shadow). I received what I purchased on ebay(psa 9 Venusaur), but if I’m to ever sell this one day I don’t believe someone else would pay the going price of a 9 at that point. Am I overreacting and should keep it, or should I start a return? Thanks for any thoughts!
Personally I find this whole PSA issue a tricky one - by that, I mean anybody receiving a PSA graded card they bought off of eBay which they think is a mis-grade.
The seller sold it for what it is, which is a PSA 9 Venusaur. Does the green dot appear to be an ink blot or a mark made after printing? The indent under the evolution box I can see not being noticeable unless you look at it under the right light - it’s possible the seller never even noticed it. I take it neither of these issues were visible in their eBay listing when you purchased it?
Ultimately it’s your call. You bought a PSA 9 and you received a PSA 9. If you’re really unhappy and the seller accepts returns, it’s up to you if you want to message them. As a seller it sucks to be asked to take back an expensive item, but at the end of the day I would rather have a happy customer that might come back to me, than an unhappy one who has an item they don’t like and won’t buy from me again.
I do not think you are in the minority. Unless the issue is something large like a missed dent or crease this is a psa graded item and that is what it was given. It may very well be a weak 9, but that is not the sellers fault unless they were claiming it was a very strong 9 or something like that
That’s a misgrade, it should be a PSA 6 due to the dent. I’d message the seller and see if they’re willing to work with you and come up with a resolution.
Not trying to be rude, but what can the seller do? Returning the card is pretty much the only resolution he can have with the seller. He has no say in what PSA graded the card. He can take it up with PSA (which he should, as the seller did not slap a grade on it).
Take it up with PSA, it was their fault, not the sellers.
So @greenpotatoes can contact PSA regarding this even though he didn’t get it graded himself? And he would be able to send it back to PSA pursuant to their Financial Guarantee terms?
@joetehman, the seller could offer to 1.) take the card back, 2.) issue a partial refund or 3.) have the buyer use PSA’s financial gurantee. I’d personally offer the buyer all 3 options and let them choose. However, keeping your buyer happy is highly overrated.
@pichufan , thanks for the link to that! I had heard of that guarantee but had forgotten about it. I understand all perspectives that people have mentioned so far and I appreciate the thoughts! The dent was definitely not visible in the image, though the ink blot was. I didn’t pay close enough attention to see the ink blot previously, but it is a seller I usually see use 1 card image to represent multiple copies for sale. I believe I might just purchase another 9 that I believe I will be satisfied with and see about the guarantee from PSA. Below is an interesting bit I see in the details of the guarantee that reads to me as if the original card submitter is unable to use this guarantee and it is only for buyers like myself purchasing graded cards.
I have gone ahead and emailed PSA to start a PSA guarantee and will probably just buy another 9 from ebay. I had to email them even though the new Customer Request Center of their site does have a section for submitting requests like this. They lumped this request with damage review requests and it asks for an order number although I didn’t grade this card so it was impossible to submit. Thanks to all for your opinions!
Just heard back from PSA and they’re telling me the exact opposite of the way I read the guarantee details. If what they’re telling me is correct, then the PSA guarantee is a pretty hollow thing to offer and is useless to any buyer of a graded card. I’m hoping they just got this wrong, otherwise I will be in talks with who I purchased from to see about a return. I have sent my understanding back and asking for more clarification to be sure.
Managed to get a quick reply from them stating they had it backwards and that I can submit for the grade guarantee. Glad to hear that otherwise I was going to be very confused as I’d seen this advised to people here before. Still can’t get their new Customer Request Center to accept my guarantee submission but at least moving forward and know I am correct to try and submit for this.
So if you’re the original grader you’re not offered the guarantee which makes sense because people would just abuse this and keep resubmitting cards they thought were graded too harshly or damaged during the grading process. I’m just curious how they would combat this. Is there a proof of purchase that is required or something that proves you aren’t the original submitter? And perhaps a rule or something that keeps track of the fact you already sent the card in for the guarantee so it can’t be reviewed again?
I’ve been the original submitter and used the financial guarantee. This was years ago on cheap psa 10 exs that were $40-50 each at the time. Now given what prices are they’d likely not stand buy. As mentioned someone can just sell it at market value to a friend who then finds the damage.
I have also been a buyer and did provide proof of purchase as well as other completed Ebay sales for comparable market data (one time my purchase was a single card in a large purchase so no individual value was ascribed for the deal). Remember that it can be a negotiation and theyll likely try to short you and you dont have to just accept their first offer. Sometimes theyll do better with vouchers than cash.
So I got a shipping label from PSA last month and sent in my Venusaur for the Grade Guarantee review. Yesterday the card appeared in their system, and this afternoon I got a call that they have UPHELD the 9 grade. The caller said that a “head grader” upheld the grade and it would be staying a 9. I had nothing to say but ok to that because I am truly confused that a card with a surface dent like that could keep a 9 grade upon review. It’s not like I would have received thousands of dollars if they regraded it, I am just truly confused and a bit disappointed that they believe it is a 9. As I have gotten further along in my PSA black star promo set, I am occasionally getting disappointed in the actual card condition and this just adds more to it. Definitely considering BGS/CGC with subgrades in the future with how my experiences have gone so far.
