Should I purchase coins or bars?
• Coins generally incur higher premiums but some can have advantageous tax benefits.
• Our premiums reduce significantly as the bars increase in size - it can be far more cost effective to buy a single larger bar rather than several small bars.
Which type of coins should I buy?
• It is important to remember that bullion coins are bought as an investment rather than for any numismatic value.
• Some coins may be more expensive to buy (often due to scarcity) even though they contain the same amount of metal and therefore the same intrinsic value.
• One ounce bullion coins are generally the largest size available and can be the most cost effective.
• Under current legislation (Dec.2016) UK bullion coins are free of CGT.
Do you base your buying / selling prices on the current Gold price?
• Prices on the website are constantly updated and accurately reflect the fluctuations in the spot price throughout the trading day.
• A client wishing to carry out a transaction over the phone with one of our team will be given a price based upon the price at the time of calling.
• Prices available on the phone may not be the same as those on the website.
Will I pay the price as quoted on the website?
• Yes - we usually provide you with a window of 1 working day after having placed an order in which to get the funds to us (i.e. the funds in our account by bank transfer or the cheque in our possession).
• We hold the original price agreed - whether or not the price moves up or down during this period.
• If you fail to pay the full balance for any reason you may be excluded from the website and further action may be taken.
Do you have minimum or maximum spending limits?
• We have no minimum nor maximum spending limits when purchasing small bars and coins - we are happy to sell single units of our very smallest bars up to multiple units of our largest market bars.
• If placing an order for £120k or more please call one of our team via: 0203 633 9312 or orders@essentialbullion.com.
Which methods of payment do you accept?
• We currently accept sterling cheques, bank transfers and online orders where we accept payment by credit / debit card.
• We will provide you with our company bank account number and sort code at the time of ordering should you wish to make payment via a bank transfer.
Will you accept payment by credit or debit card?
• Yes, we do accept credit / debit cards for the full payment of an order.
Am I required to provide identification when dealing with you?
• Purchases or sales by private individuals up to the value of £10,000 GBP may be executed without any identification - we will ask you for a name and address for the invoice.
• If you are spending more than £10,000.00 in the course of a year then we are required to carry out full Due Diligence procedures.
• Client information is subject to The Data Protection Act and would never be disclosed unless we are compelled to do so by the authorities.
What are your delivery methods and costs?
• Our packages are discreetly wrapped and the process is recorded by HD camera and a recording is kept.
• We deliver the majority of our items via our delivery partners including Royal Mail - fully insured to your personal address and a signature will be required (other couriers may be used at our discretion).
• We can deliver bullion to banks and other institutions via our discreet delivery services using highly secured and bulletproof vans if requested, or at our discretion, or should the order be above £50,000.
• When you receive goods from us by post or courier we advise that you carefully check the external packaging before you sign for it - if you notice any signs of damage or tampering you should not sign for it.
How long will it take to receive my order?
• A typical waiting time to receive the goods - from the time of the order being placed - is usually within 2-10 working days if paying by CHAPS or Faster Payment and 2.5 weeks via cheque.
Will you buy back my coins and bars?
• Yes - we are happy to purchase bars and coins originally supplied by us or other bullion merchants.
How do I sell Precious Metal back to you?
• Call or email one of our team and request a valuation for your items.
• Prices given will be based upon the spot price less a small percentage commission, or for some items a premium will be paid (over and above the value of the metal) if we have a requirement for that item.
• Once a price is agreed we will hold this price for 24 hours whilst we await delivery of your items.
• If posting metal to us you should use new packaging and fully insure the package(s).
• We reserve the right to reject packages which in our opinion may have suffered damage or have been tampered with.
How do I know that my coins and bars are genuine?
• Essential Bullion distributes only brand new, inspected and tested authentic bullion coins and bars - unless otherwise stated. Any previously used bullion will be stated explicitly as bullion having been previously owned.
• Essential Bullion distributes bullion coins and bars strictly from highly reputable refineries and from mints that are members of the London Bullion Market Association.
• Coins are obtained from reliable sources including direct from internationally recognised Mints.
• Every coin is inspected before it is sent out to ensure that it is genuine.
• Regular checks are carried out on our manufacturing processes and the high standards in our laboratory in line with our Quality Policy to ensure the quality of our products.
• Every bar is inspected and checked for metal quality and the weight and Gold bars of one troy ounce and above are also checked for authentic serial numbers so that they can be easily identified and referenced.
Can you give me advice about my investment strategy?
• Whilst we have considerable experience gained over fifty years in the bullion trade we are not able to provide guidance on your personal investment strategy.
• We are happy to tell you about the most appropriate products we sell.
• We are unable to provide a forecast regarding metal prices.