By Rocco Clayfield, Founder & Director, GoldPaid Ltd · Published 6 August 2026
The three tests of a genuine no-obligation valuation
There is no legal definition of “no obligation” in the UK. It is a marketing phrase, so it means whatever the buyer’s terms and conditions say it means, and those terms vary a great deal across the postal gold market. Three things decide whether the phrase is real, and all three can be settled in a single message before you post.
- Is the testing free? Ask directly whether any assay, handling or administration charge applies if you do not sell. The answer should be a plain no, in writing, not a reference to a schedule of charges.
- Is the return free, tracked and insured, and who pays? A buyer who returns declined items on an untracked service, or who charges you the postage, has attached a cost to saying no. That cost is the obligation.
- Do the items come back as they were sent? This is the test people miss. If the terms permit the buyer to melt, cut, unset or otherwise process items on arrival, there is nothing left to return and the offer quietly becomes take-it-or-take-it.
What “no obligation” does not mean
- It does not make an indicative figure binding. A figure given from a photograph is a guide. Weight, purity, hallmarks, stones, condition and the market rate on the day all move the final number, and none of those can be settled from an image.
- It does not freeze the offer. Written offers are built against a market rate that moves through the day. A reasonable buyer re-runs the figure against the current rate rather than letting a stale one lapse, but the number itself is not fixed indefinitely.
- It does not survive acceptance. Once you accept in writing, you have sold. There is no statutory cooling-off period on a sale you make to a trader, because the cancellation rights in UK consumer law are written for consumers who buy, not for consumers who sell.
- It does not remove identity checks. Businesses buying precious metals carry out proportionate identity and ownership checks. Being asked for photo ID is normal practice and is not an obligation to go ahead.
The clauses that quietly remove it
If a postal buyer publishes terms, read them before you post rather than after. Open the page, use your browser’s find function, and search for these words specifically. It takes about two minutes.
| Search the terms for | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| deemed accepted, deemed acceptance | Some terms treat silence after a stated number of days as acceptance of the offer. If you are away, in hospital, or simply slow to reply, silence sells your gold. This is the single clause most worth finding. |
| melt, refine, process on receipt | Permission to process items before you have accepted means a return in the original form is no longer possible, whatever the homepage says. |
| return postage, administration fee, restocking | Any charge attached to declining is the obligation the headline denies. It does not have to be large to change how you behave. |
| minimum weight, minimum value | A few buyers pay nothing below a threshold, and a smaller number do not return below it either. |
| at our sole discretion | Read whatever follows it carefully. Discretion clauses are usually where the asymmetry between the two sides sits. |
What the law expects a buyer to tell you
Since 6 April 2025 the UK unfair commercial practices rules sit in Part 4 of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024, which replaced the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. The Competition and Markets Authority guidance on those rules (CMA207, Unfair commercial practices, gov.uk) defines a commercial practice as an act or omission by a trader relating to the promotion or supply of, among other things, “a consumer’s product to the trader or another person”.
That last limb is the point. A business buying your jewellery is covered by the same unfair-practices regime as a business selling to you. The rules treat leaving out material information as a misleading omission, and the CMA guidance is explicit that information given unclearly, untimely or inconspicuously counts as omitted. A fee that only surfaces once your parcel is in the buyer’s hands, or a right to melt items before you have accepted that is not made clear up front, is exactly the kind of omission the regime is aimed at. This is general information, not legal advice, and how the rules apply always depends on the facts.
Step by step, when you decline
- Say no in writing. A message is enough and you do not have to give a reason. Keep the thread rather than deleting it.
- Ask for the return tracking number. A tracked return is only useful to you if you hold the number.
- Check the returned parcel against your own pre-posting photographs on the day it arrives, before anything is put away.
- If anything is missing or altered, raise it the same day, in writing, with the photographs attached. Contemporaneous beats accurate-but-late.
If a parcel does not arrive in either direction, the process is separate and time-limited, see what to do if something goes wrong.
How this works at GoldPaid
The label is free, the XRF assay is free, the written offer is free, and the tracked return if you decline is free. There is no assay fee, no handling fee, no administration fee and no minimum. Your items are logged against the description you gave, kept identifiable as yours, and are not processed before you have accepted, so declining returns the same pieces you sent. Offers depend on inspection, weight, purity, hallmarks, stones, condition and the market rate on the day, and the written offer shows the purity found, the weight and the rate used so the working is visible. If you accept, payment is by Faster Payments within one working hour of acceptance. The full return process is on what happens if I decline the offer, and the valuation method is on how we value gold.
Common questions
Is a no-obligation gold valuation really free?
It should be, but the phrase is not regulated, so check three things in writing: no charge for testing, no charge for the return, and items kept intact until you accept. If a buyer will not confirm all three, treat the phrase as marketing rather than a promise.
Can I change my mind after accepting an offer?
Generally no. The statutory cancellation and cooling-off rights in UK consumer law apply to consumers buying from traders, not to consumers selling to them. Once you accept a written offer you have agreed a sale. Ask for time before accepting rather than after.
What if the buyer has already melted my items?
If their terms permitted processing on receipt, a return in the original form is no longer possible and the dispute becomes one about value rather than about the items. That is why the terms are worth reading before posting rather than after.
How long does a written offer stay valid?
It varies. Offers are calculated against the market rate at the time, so most are firm for the day they are issued. A reasonable buyer will re-run the figure free of charge rather than let it lapse. Ask how long yours holds and get the answer in writing.
Does no obligation mean I do not have to give ID?
No. Identity and ownership checks are standard practice for businesses buying precious metals and protect honest sellers. Being asked for photo ID is a normal part of the process and does not commit you to selling.