By Rocco Clayfield, Founder & Director, GoldPaid Ltd · Published 6 August 2026
The straight answer
No reputable gold buyer melts anything before you have accepted an offer, because nothing about a fair valuation requires it. Purity is established with an X-ray fluorescence (XRF) assay, which reads the composition of the alloy without cutting, scratching or removing material, and weight comes from calibrated scales. Both measurements leave the item exactly as it arrived. Melting belongs to refining, the step after a sale has completed, not to valuation. See XRF testing explained for how the assay works.
The reason the question is still worth asking is that a minority of buyers write terms permitting items to be “melted, refined or processed on receipt”. Under wording like that, the offer you receive is not really an offer, because the alternative to accepting it, having your items back as they were, no longer exists. The clause is visible in the small print before you post, which is exactly where to look for it.
GoldPaid’s hold policy: nothing is processed until written acceptance
When a parcel arrives at GoldPaid it is logged against the description given on WhatsApp, and the items stay identifiable as yours rather than being pooled with other sellers’ parcels. Each piece is separated by carat, weighed on calibrated scales to two decimal places of a gram, and XRF-assayed, and the written offer itemises the purity found, the weight and the rate used for every piece, so the working is visible. Until you reply to that offer, your items sit exactly as they arrived: nothing is melted, cut, unset or sent onward for refining until you have accepted in writing.
Decline, and the same pieces you sent come back on a free tracked return; Royal Mail cover may be available up to £2,500 depending on the postal method and cover level used. Accept, and payment is by Faster Payments within one working hour of acceptance, usually within 30 minutes during working hours, and only then do the items move into the refining stream. The method is set out on how we value gold and what happens if I decline the offer.
Not sure how any of this applies to your own items? Send a photo on WhatsApp and ask. We answer honestly, there is no obligation, and nothing is posted until you decide. Or call 07763 741067, 8am to 9pm, 7 days a week.
Why this question matters more than it sounds
Almost everything else that can go wrong in a postal gold sale is correctable. A low offer can be declined, a delayed parcel usually reappears, a disputed fee can be argued and refunded. Melting is the one irreversible step. Once an item has been through a furnace, a dispute stops being about your items and becomes a dispute about money, and for an inherited ring or a piece with any story attached, money is not the same thing. A “no obligation” valuation only means something while the items still exist in their original form.
There is a consumer-protection angle too. What happens to your items before acceptance is material information, and UK unfair-trading rules treat material information given unclearly, untimely or inconspicuously as omitted. A right to process items before acceptance that surfaces only deep in the terms, especially when paired with a clause treating silence as acceptance, is the pattern to walk away from. That is general information rather than legal advice; the wider warning signs are covered in red flags when choosing a postal gold buyer, and the escalation routes in what to do if something goes wrong.
When melting is legitimate, and when another route is better
Melting itself is not the villain. It is the normal end of the scrap trade: after you accept and are paid, sold items are consolidated and sent to a refiner, recovered back to fine gold and returned to the market. That loop is where scrap value comes from. The only question that matters is sequence, whether the furnace comes after your written acceptance or before it.
Two honest caveats. First, if there is any chance you will want an item back later, do not sell it to anyone, on any terms; acceptance is the point of no return with every buyer, however reputable. Second, postal selling means you cannot watch the test happen. If being present matters to you, a local jeweller with a counter XRF machine is the better route, and if a piece may be worth more than its metal, a signed designer item, a rare coin, a genuine antique, a specialist dealer or auction house is the better route than any scrap buyer, including GoldPaid.
What to ask any buyer before you post
- “Are my items kept intact and identifiable until I have accepted in writing?” The answer should be a plain yes, in writing, not a reference to the terms.
- “How do you test?” XRF removes nothing. Acid touchstone testing scratches a trace of metal from the piece; not a disaster on scrap, worth knowing on anything you may want back.
- “If I decline, do the same items come back, tracked, and who pays?” A return that costs you money, or arrives untracked, is a cost attached to saying no.
- “Does anything in your terms allow processing before acceptance, or treat silence as acceptance?” Either clause alone is a reason to stop; the two together are a reason to walk away.
| Wording in the terms | What it actually means |
|---|---|
| “Items may be melted, refined or processed on receipt” | An intact return is impossible from the moment the parcel is opened. The offer is effectively take-it-or-take-it. |
| “Items are held intact until you accept our offer” | What you want to see. Pair it with a free tracked return and the phrase means what it says. |
| “No response within X days is deemed acceptance” | Silence hands over your property. Diarise the deadline, or better, use a buyer whose offers require an active yes. |
| “Non-destructive XRF testing” | The assay reads purity without removing material. Items can be tested and still returned exactly as sent. |
A buyer who answers all four plainly, in writing, has told you most of what you need to know about how they trade. GoldPaid Ltd (company number 17382540, rated 4.7 on Trustpilot) answers them on WhatsApp on 07763 741067 before you send anything, and the answers match this page.
Common questions
Does testing remove or damage any gold?
XRF testing does not. It reads the alloy’s composition with X-rays and removes nothing, which is why items can be assayed and still returned exactly as sent. Acid touchstone testing, still used at some counters, scratches a trace of metal onto a stone; the loss is tiny but real. Ask which method a buyer uses before posting.
Does GoldPaid melt gold before I accept the offer?
No. Items are logged on arrival, kept identifiable as yours, weighed and XRF-assayed, and held intact until you accept the written offer. Nothing is melted, cut, unset or sent for refining before written acceptance, and declined items come back on a free tracked return.
Can I change my mind after accepting an offer?
Treat written acceptance as final. Once you accept, payment is made and the items become the buyer’s property and move towards refining, which cannot be reversed. If you accept in error, contact the buyer immediately; whether an item can still be recovered depends on whether processing has begun, and no buyer can promise it has not.
What if a buyer has already melted my items without my acceptance?
Read their terms first: if the terms permitted processing on receipt, the dispute becomes one about value rather than the items themselves. Put a complaint in writing, keep your pre-posting photographs and the offer correspondence, and follow the escalation routes in our guide to what to do if something goes wrong. This is general information, not legal advice.
How long will a buyer hold my items while I decide?
It varies, so ask. Offers are calculated against the market rate on the day, so most are firm for the day they are issued, and a reasonable buyer will re-run the figure free of charge rather than let it lapse. What matters is that the items stay intact while you decide, and that silence is never treated as acceptance.
Why do gold buyers melt gold at all?
Because scrap value comes from refining. After a completed sale, items are consolidated and sent to a refiner, where the gold is recovered back to fine metal and returned to the market. That is the legitimate end of the trade; the only issue is a buyer who starts it before you have said yes.