Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/10/2025

  Type:Delivery Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I was swindled out of $668.14 by this company on a sale of silver eagles through their buyback program.This transaction is the worst one I have ever had in dealing in precious metals. I have been treated very poorly even though I have done nothing wrong and have been a customer of theirs for many years and never had a problem before. Provident metals has apparently been acquired by ** ******* and is no longer run by the same people. It simply is not the same company anymore and I believe they are not to be trusted.After my shipment which was sent in good faith was delivered to them I received an adjusted purchase order for a reduced amount from their buyer and was basically told to take the money and f*** off.Their buyer accused me of not sending the correct number of coins even though the parcel weight and postage paid proves that I did send the full amount. Their buyer claims that a pound and a half of silver was missing but that is impossible based on the information that I have.After insisting that I sent the correct amount of silver the buyer then changed his story and blamed the post office although there is absolutely no evidence it was them.I received several blurry pictures of some coins from their buyer which are obviously not the same ones that I sent as they are blemished and not even the same year. This is proof enough to me that he is lying and that someone at the company has tampered with the parcel.When I called the company to discuss the issue with them I was told that no one was available to take my call.The company has not paid the amount owing after my calling twice and sending them a demand letter.Due to the changing stories and evidence I have received and no credible alternative explanation I have filed a criminal complaint with federal authorities for mail fraud.I would not trust this dishonest company with a dime of my money. You have been warned!

  

  Business Response

  Date: 03/20/2025

  Hello,

  We are sorry to hear of the issue you have with your Sell to Us order. Due to the nature of the inventory we sell, full transparency on all transactions is something we pride ourselves on. Having said that, every packing station is equipped with cameras so we can verify exactly what was received from each customer. Upon receipt of your package, the footage clearly shows that there were only 3 tubes of eagles inside the package, and there were only 58 coins inside the box. This was communicated to you via email, and the pictures provided to you is from the footage we have of your package being opened. Due to this, we stand firm on the decision of your Sell to Us order, and we encourage you to file a claim with the ************ We apologize for the inconvenience this causes. 

  Kind regards,

  Provident Metals

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/21/2025

  The company has sent another adjusted purchase order confirming their intention to defraud.
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/21/2025

  The picture referred to in their response provides no useful information as it shows the box after it had already been opened.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/22/2025

  The demand letter that is referred to in the original complaint.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/23/2025

  There are four tubes visible upon careful examination as one of them is hidden underneath.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 03/24/2025

  This response provides no new information and does nothing to address the details of my complaint.  The overwhelming evidence I have is that someone has tampered with the contents of the parcel.  As the company refuses to provide any relevant information to me I have no possible way of assessing or validating any of their claims.  There is no evidence that anything improper was done by the post office.  I refuse to participate in a cover up of criminal activity which is what this company is attempting to do.  This is not an insurance issue and I will not be filing a false insurance claim against the post office to cover up the mail fraud.
  
  To date the company has in fact provided a substantial amount of evidence to me that strongly supports my suspicion of fraud instead of disproving it.
  
  In the picture of the open box that was sent to me it is clear that four tubes are visible.  The object has a straight edge, it is the same size and its color is identical to the other tubes.
  
  The information that I have indicates that someone at the company has taken the entire contents of the box, replaced it with inferior product of lower grade, lesser quantity and different years and then proceeded to cover up the theft of $2,359.60 in silver eagles in mint condition by creating an adjusted purchase order for a lesser amount of $1,691.46, taking a few blurry pictures of some random damaged coins and a picture of the box after it had already been opened.
  
  There has been no transparency at all.  It is clear from their response that the company does not take these kinds of problems seriously.  It is clear that no actual investigation has taken place and the company is simply repeating the same story I received from them in the beginning.
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 04/17/2025

  If the remote possibility that the post office is actually responsible is true and the company has proof of this I would ask them to preserve the evidence they have in their possession for law enforcement so that a proper investigation can be done.
  
  The company almost certainly has in its possession evidence that it was not the post office, namely a picture of the parcel before it was opened by them.  This would show whether the parcel had been damaged or the seal of the paper tape used to close the box had been broken at the time it had been delivered.  The weight of the parcel at the time of delivery would also be useful.  As the company refuses to provide any useful information to me and is straight up lying about at least one important detail I am unable to believe anything else they are telling me.  They simply have no interest in the truth.
  
  The latest reply of the company proves to me that I was correct in sending this incident directly to federal authorities.  ************ has no business being accredited by this agency or being in business at all.
  
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 04/22/2025

  According to the **** it is the responsibility of the recipient to provide proof of damage to the post office at the time of delivery.
  
  'You must immediately present the article, mailing container, wrapping, packaging, and any other contents received in damaged condition and/or with missing contents to a *********** for inspection. The *********** will verify the damage and give you a PS Form 3831, Receipt for Article(s) Damaged in Mails, for your files.'
  
  **************************************************
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  Date:12/21/2024

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I ordered two 1 ounce fine silver bars on December 7th and it has not been delivered and all I am getting from the company is a run around. I would like a refund so I can choose to use a more reputable business.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 12/23/2024

  Hello,

  We apologize for the issue you're having with the delivery time for your order. During this busy season, delivery times may vary and can be longer than usual. Upon reviewing your tracking number, your order is still in transit. However, we understand your frustrations, therefore, a member of our team will be contacting you by phone to resolve your issues. 

  Kind regards,

  Provident Metals

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/23/2024

  I am rejecting this response because:   I placed my order on the 7th of December and as of the 14th of December it is still supposedly in transit with no knowledge of the product. And all the other companies offer step by **************

   

  

  Business Response

  Date: 01/14/2025

  Hello,

  We reached out to this customer on December 23rd by phone but we were unable to get a hold of him to resolve his issue. We then communicated via email, that his claim has been finalized and a full refund was processed on December 24th. We appreciate the opportunity to resolve this, and we apologize for any inconvenience this caused. 

  Best regards,

  Provident Metals

  Customer Answer

  Date: 01/14/2025

  I have reviewed the business response and accept this resolution.  I did receive the email but no calls, then told me if I still get it I will be charged when it's still at their facility, I appreciate the refund 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:07/30/2024

  Type:Billing Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  fraud withdrawal from my bank account from this company

  

  Business Response

  Date: 08/05/2024

  Hello,

  We reached out directly and spoke with this customer. We apologize for the issue and inconvenience this caused.

  Kind regards,

  *******************

• Initial Complaint

  Date:11/17/2023

  Type:Service or Repair Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  Ive purchased silver and gold bars from Provident Metals over the last 7 years. I guess this stream of purchases set me up for the con. I recently bought a 1 oz ************ Gold Bar (New w/ Assay) from Provident recently. The bar looks as though it was retrieved from a ship wreck. The assay card was peeled off even in the corners and the bar itself looked like it was beat up.They were willing to honor their return policy but it had so many conditions and steps I gave up. Be careful if you buy any bar from Provident especially if its over $2000- you may get ripped off.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 11/22/2023

  Hi *******,

  I'm sorry to hear about this issue. I show that this was your second all time order with Provident Metals. We appreciate your return after 5 years. Looking at the history, we have provided you with a fully paid for return label and exchanging the bar free of any charge. Is there something else you had requested from us? We're trying our best to make this right. 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:07/11/2023

  Type:Delivery Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  * Purchased June 17, 2023 * Delivered June 28, 2023 * Order # ********* Provident Metals failed me. I ordered 10x 10oz bars. Processing and shipment were fine. Upon inspection, there were a variety of bars, more than half were tarnished, one was acid stained from testing. There were a variety of mints and bars. I have a Precious Metals Verifier Pro which can test inside the bars. After setting it to pure silver (**** or greater) and 10oz bar, all bars tested fine except two. Both were AMARK. One of the suspect bars was testing outside normal range. The second, acid scarred bar, was very out of range, almost to the red indicator (which is bad). Flipping the bar over, it in some cases did fail in the red zone, but repositioning would allow it to barely pass as cautionary. I requested Provident Metals to exchange it, and they told me I had to have a local bullion shop run an XRF analyzer and provide a report to show it wasn't of expected purity, which would cost me money. They further said a very well known tool used by shops (Precious Metals Verifier Pro) that costs over a grand is not a reliable tool. I gave them another chance to offer an exchange on the suspect bars, and they refused. Know if you buy these secondary market bars, you may get low purity and Provident Metals will likely refuse to exchange them if you have an issue. I provided evidence to them that they were suspect, and they refused to do anything about it. I'm no longer going to be a customer of **********************.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 07/13/2023

  This issue was resolved on the 28th. Our agent was in the wrong here and we offered the customer a coupon for the mistake in addition to replacement items on the 28th of June. Sorry again for the hassle!

  Customer Answer

  Date: 07/14/2023

  I have reviewed the business response and accept this resolution. 

• Initial Complaint

  Date:02/06/2023

  Type:Product Issues
  Status:

  ResolvedMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I would like to voice a complaint regarding Provident Metals. On September 26, 2022, I was charged $1179 market loss fee for a computer glitch not of my making, and even if there were some mistake on my part, the charge was unreasonable. I have purchased coins totally multiple hundred thousand dollars with your company since 2015, and I should have been given the benefit of the doubt. These are the details:On 9/7/2022 I placed an ACH order for ****oz. gold krugerrands for $27,600.45. I received a confirmation and was informed that I would be notified when it shipped. After a week elapsed and it hadn't shipped (which has never been my experience), I placed an identical order on 9/15/2022 totally $26,805. Soon after Provident sent a notice to pay by paper check for the first order. I did not understand this, as I have not paid by paper check since 2015. I pay by ACH transfer. This was a system glitch by your computers that has not been addressed.On 9/26/2022 Provident cancelled the first order and charged a $1179 market loss fee. That was completely unreasonable and I disputed that charge by emails to *******. On 10/27/2022 Provident offered to reinstate the original order; however, I had already expended the funds.On 1/31/2023 I placed an order for a family member for *****oz. silver coins via ACH transfer. On 2/1/2023 the funds were taken out of my account. On 2/3/2023 ***** from Provident phoned and left a voicemail advising that he would not ship the coins until I paid the market loss fee. That's extortion. On the same date, I spoke with both ****** and ******. I offered to pay the difference in price between the two gold orders in question, but they were adamant that the market loss fee must be paid before the silver order could be shipped.As a retired federal agent, I know that extorting payment in order to release an unconnected transaction can be construed as a violation of the ***** Act, 18 USC ****. I hope you will credit the market loss fee back to my credit card. This fiasco was not my fault, and I would like to continue doing business with Provident.

  

  Business Response

  Date: 02/13/2023

  ******, I'm sorry for the hassle you've experienced with this. Could you elaborate on how the order that was placed was actually a "computer glitch not of your making"? It appears you placed this order so I'm not understanding the argument here.
  
  The fee is based purely on the market movements. It is not punitive. It's simply the difference in price from when you placed the order to when you cancelled. This is necessary because we un-hedge the metal once you order. So if you do not pay for the order we are truly out that money since the value of the metals has changed.
  
  We explain this in the terms here: *********************************************
  
  12. Provident Metals Market Loss Policy
  Upon issuance of an order number following a purchase from Provident Metals, the price is guaranteed, and you *** not cancel the transaction. The transaction *** only be offset at Provident Metals' current asking price. If your item is cancelled, you are responsible for any deficit between the price at which Provident Metals sold the item to you and the offsetting purchase price. As set forth above, all cancellations are subject to our Market Loss Policy. Market gains on cancellations or returns shall remain the property of Provident Metals. Furthermore and to the extent Provident Metals does not have any of your funds in its possession, Provident Metals reserves the right, in its sole and absolute discretion, to charge market loss fees to any credit card you have on file with Provident Metals.
  
  Without limiting any other legal or equitable rights and remedies that *** be available to Provident Metals, Provident Metals *** elect to apply any and all of your funds in its possession to satisfy your monetary obligations and/or *** offset any obligations that Provident Metals *** have to you. Provident Metals also reserves the right, in its sole and absolute discretion, to apply any/all funds in its possession toward the satisfaction of your obligations to Provident Metals.
  
  

  Customer Answer

  Date: 02/18/2023

  (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
  Thank you for replying.
  Here is why I state the order that was cancelled was a computer glitch:
  In 2015 I made six purchases at Provident, two by bank wire and four by paper check, totaling $27,155.95.
  In 2020 I made two purchases at Provident, both by ACH transfer, totaling $39,366.50.
  In 2021 I made ten purchases at Provident, all by ACH transfer, totaling $141,324.90.
  In 2022 I made eight purchases at Provident, all by ACH transfer, totaling $105,623.45.
  This can be verified on the Provident website under my orders.
  
  Up until the computer glitch, I made nineteen purchases by ACH transfer. The last paper check I used was in 2015. This is why I state it was a computer glitch that submitted the transaction as a paper check, and I don't believe I should be responsible for Provident's mistake.
  
  Additionally, I did not cancel the order. Provident did.
  
  I did not have any credit cards on file. Provident refused to ship an order which had been paid by ACH transfer until I paid a market loss fee of $1179 by credit card.
  
  And so I am requesting a refund of the market loss fee of $1179.00.
  
  
  

  

  Business Response

  Date: 02/20/2023

  ******,
  
  Based on your order history, we are going to make a one time exception are refund this market loss fee. You should see the refund process this week. Thank you for being a good customer.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 02/21/2023

  (The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)
  I am pleased that Provident Metals has agreed to refund the market loss fee to my credit card.
  The order that resulted in a market loss fee was a computer glitch that entered the transaction incorrectly. Based on my order history, Provident made the exception to their policy. Thank you.