Collecting gold coins is not just a fulfilling hobby; it’s also a good way to diversify your portfolio. However, scammers are also capitalizing on this industry and robbing substantial amounts of money from unsuspecting coin collectors. If you want to get your money’s worth and the most out of coin collecting, here are four common scams involving gold coins that you need to watch out for:

1. False Grading

Grade influences the value of a gold coin, and some con artists will use a false grade just to sell a piece for a higher price. Always make sure that the grade of a gold coin is accurate before you purchase it.

2. Fancy Packaging

Packaging and storage is essential to preserving the quality of a gold coin, but you need to be wary of coins that are wrapped rather too fancily. Decorative packaging can be a warning sign that a dealer is trying to scam you. Don’t buy a gold coin if the seller doesn’t allow you to see the coin properly.

3. Misquoting from the Salomon Brothers Index

Be careful. Some scammers use the Salomon Brothers Index as reference and claim that the worth of the coin they’re selling goes up annually. In present times, coin values do not appreciate as drastically as the ones did on the Salomon index.

4.Offering to Store Coins for Convenience

Some scammers will sell you a collection of gold coins and offer to store them for you. Part of their usual marketing pitch is citing the danger of keeping valuable coins in your household, so for your safety and convenience, they will offer to oversee the safekeeping of the coins you will buy from them.