It was the wedding ring of her dreams. But in the end, it cost one valley couple a lot more than they expected. So Contact 13 stepped in and was able to help. We've got a look at what went wrong and how to avoid it happening to you.
"We've been good customers. And I just didn't think they would do this," says Gian Norelli.
He says he can't believe it. His problem dates back to 2016, when he and his girlfriend found a wedding ring at Zales.
"Actually it was too much! But then the manager, we knew him, and he said I'll give you 18 months interest free," says Gian.
So they bought the ring for $3,200, using store credit. Copies of the bill show they were faithfully paying off their debt every month. But Gian was in for a surprise when he opened last September's bill, and found the balance actually shot up.
"I thought it was a mistake on their part," says Gian.
It turns out, the ring wasn't paid off within the agreed upon 18 months. So Gian was slapped with hundreds in back interest. He tried working with Zales, but says they weren't willing to listen. So he reached out to Contact 13.
"I've given them exactly $3,200. And I wanted to see what you guys could do," says Gian.
We reached out to Zales, which told us they're "dedicated to exceptional customer service", and take all concerns seriously. In the end, Zales dropped the charges.
"I thought they were going to be real hard about it. But they stepped up. For what you guys did, the best attorney in Las Vegas couldn't have done this," says Gian.
Gian was lucky. He admits, he wasn't keeping track of his payments, and didn't know about the penalty mentioned in his contract.
"I never read it. I never read it," says Gian.
Michele Johnson with the Financial Guidance Center says, it's a mistake far too many people are making.
"People need to think about when they're entering into a legal contract. They need to read the contract," says Michele.
If you can't meet an important deadline with any lender, be sure to contact them ahead of time. They may be willing to give you an extension. That's better than your bill possibly going to collections, and landing on your credit report. And before buying anything on credit, Michele says consider saving up the money yourself.
"If it is not a need, it isn't really necessary to obtain credit in order to get it," says Michele.
As for Gian, he says he's learned his lesson and he couldn't be happier.
"I can't believe it. It's like a miracle that happened... I want to thank you guys so much, Channel 13," says Gian.
