Ask first, post later
Start with a question, not a parcel. Send a photo on WhatsApp or call, and you will get a straight answer on what testing tier suits your item and what the report will cover. None of it commits you to posting anything.
This is a UK-wide postal testing service. There is no shop to visit and no counter. Wherever you live, the process is the same: ask first, then decide.
What makes "the difference" page different from the trade pages
The trade sub-pages (pawnbrokers, charity shops, solicitors, auction houses) each argue the independence case for one audience. This page argues it once in general terms: that an XRF test produced by a party that is also buying has the structural conflict a probate solicitor, HMRC or an executor is entitled to question, whereas a test from a party with no interest in the outcome does not. The trade pages reference back to this one rather than restate it.
A hallmark
A UK hallmark is a set of legally-controlled marks applied to a precious metal item by one of the four UK Assay Offices: London (Goldsmiths'), Birmingham, Sheffield or Edinburgh. The Hallmarking Act 1973 reserves these marks. Anyone in trade selling a precious-metal item above the minimum weight without one commits an offence under the Act.
The mark guarantees that the item meets a legal minimum standard of purity (e.g. 375 ppt for 9ct gold). It does not say what the actual content is; the actual content could be 375 ppt or it could be 390 ppt, the mark is a floor, not a measurement.
A hallmark is also a record. It identifies the Assay Office that tested the item, the year it was marked, and (where present) the maker / sponsor. Antique hallmarks are themselves valuable historical records.
An acid test
A traditional acid test involves filing a small mark into the item to reveal the metal underneath, then applying a testing acid of a set strength to that mark and observing the reaction. The reaction colour and rate indicate the carat range of the gold. Cheaper and faster than XRF, used widely in pawnshops, jewellers and gold-buying counters before XRF became affordable.
It has three limits. It is destructive (the filed mark is permanent), it is operator-dependent (the result varies with technique and acid age), and it is an approximation (it puts the item into a carat range, not a parts-per-thousand reading).
On most modern Niton-equipped buyers, acid tests are kept for special cases, heavily plated suspects where XRF is being defeated by plating thickness, rather than as the primary method.
An XRF test
XRF spectrometry is non-destructive, fast, and reads the actual elemental composition of the metal, every element, in parts per thousand. Where the hallmark gives a legal floor and the acid test gives a carat range, XRF gives the measured composition itself.
It does have limits worth knowing. It reads only the surface and a short depth into the metal, so heavy plating can occasionally mimic solid metal on a single scan. The SOP defence is a multi-point scan trace (readings at face, edge and corners) which exposes plating signatures cleanly.
It also does not read inside a closed bezel-set stone, and it does not read non-metallic materials. For stones, the in-house gem service is the right tool.
This page compares the three methods so you can choose the evidence you need. If you are selling to GoldPaid rather than paying for a test, every item you post for a valuation is XRF-tested as part of the free service, and XRF testing explained sets out how that works and what it means for your offer.
When each method is right
| Question | Hallmark | Acid test | XRF |
|---|---|---|---|
| Does this meet a legal standard? | Yes, that is what it does. | Roughly. | Yes, and shows by how much. |
| What is the actual fine gold content? | No, guarantees a floor only. | No, gives a carat range. | Yes, to parts per thousand. |
| Is this plated or solid? | The hallmark may indicate, if present and trusted. | Yes, after the filing. | Yes, with multi-point scan. |
| Will my item be marked or damaged? | No, applied by the Assay Office. | Yes, small filed area. | No, non-destructive. |
| What other metals are in the alloy? | No. | No. | Yes, every element shown. |
| Is it valid in court / probate / insurance? | Yes, legal mark. | Not on its own. | As a written composition record, yes; it does not replace a formal probate or reinstatement valuation, and court admissibility depends on the proceeding. |
Cover and tracking
Your parcel travels on Royal Mail Special Delivery, and Royal Mail cover may be available up to £2,500 depending on the postal method and cover level used, and if a parcel may be worth more than that we split it across more than one prepaid label at no charge, each with its own tracking number and cover.
The label is Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed by 1pm next working day, with full tracking and signature on receipt. The tracking link is emailed to you the moment the label is issued.
What you get back, and when
Your item is returned by Royal Mail Special Delivery on the same working day the report is issued. Return postage and its cover are included in the testing fee. There is no separate return charge.
If, for any reason, an item cannot be tested (badly damaged surface, non-metallic core, equipment misalignment), we tell you straight, refund the testing fee, and return the item the same day.
The testing pledge
You can use this testing service with no intention of selling. Nobody here is paid more for turning a test into a sale. The report carries no offer and no upsell, because it is not the front end of anything. We test. What you do next is your own business.
Ask at the end whether the item is something we would buy and you will get an honest answer. Do not ask, and nothing follows.
What this report is, and what it is not
The report identifies the elemental composition of an item to the accuracy of the analyser. It does not replace a UK hallmark, an Assay Office fire assay, or a written valuation from a qualified valuer for insurance reinstatement purposes. We say so in plain English on the front page of every report.
If a report leaves any doubt, we will tell you what the next step would be, typically a UK Assay Office fire assay (destructive but definitive) for high-value disputes, or a written insurance valuation from a qualified independent valuer for reinstatement cover.
Why sell to GoldPaid
GoldPaid is a small, owner-run UK business built on one promise: show the working. Every item is weighed and XRF-assayed, and every offer is itemised in writing. Postage is free and tracked both ways, and there is never a countdown or a hard sell. If something is worth more to a specialist than to us, we say so.
What decides your offer
Every parcel is opened at our Bristol office and each piece is handled on its own. Nothing is averaged across the parcel.
- Weight. Each item is weighed on calibrated scales. Stones, steel springs, non-gold clasps and cores are separated first, so you are paid on metal, not on what the piece looks like on the scales.
- Purity. Each item is tested with an XRF analyser, which reads the alloy without marking or damaging it. The hallmark tells us what the maker claimed; the XRF tells us what is actually there. We pay on the test.
- The market on the day. Gold and silver are priced against the live precious-metal market at the time your parcel is assessed, not at the time you posted.
- Condition and intact value. Broken is fine and does not reduce a metal offer. Where a piece is worth more intact (a named maker, a collectable coin, a locket with provenance) we tell you before testing, so you can choose.
- Anything that is not gold or silver. Plated, rolled-gold and base-metal items are listed on the offer at nothing and returned to you free. We never quietly keep them.
Why we do not publish a per-gram price list. A single printed rate hides the things that change the figure: hollow versus solid, stones, mixed carats in one bag, a mark that does not match the metal. We would rather show you the weight, the tested purity and the figure for each item, in writing, and let you decide. Final offers depend on inspection, item weight, purity, hallmarks, stones, non-gold components, condition and the live precious-metal market.
What you see before you decide. A written, itemised offer by WhatsApp or email: every item, its weight, its tested purity, and its figure. Accept and we aim to pay by bank transfer within one working hour. Decline and the whole parcel comes back by Royal Mail Special Delivery at our cost. No fee, no deduction, no questions.
Common questions
Is an acid test enough to know whether to sell my piece?
For a binary "solid or not" question, an acid test will get you most of the way there but it leaves a filed mark on the item. The plating check at £25 is the same binary question, non-destructively, with a written report.
Can XRF and a hallmark disagree?
Sometimes, and when they do, the XRF reading is usually correct. The most common cause is replaced parts (a chain hallmarked 9ct with a 14ct repaired clasp) or solder joints diluting the average. The multi-point scan trace usually finds the disagreement.
Is fire assay better than XRF?
For a definitive, court-grade reading on a single sample, yes. Fire assay is destructive (it consumes a sample taken from the item) and is the reference method the UK Assay Offices use for disputes. For a non-destructive, written composition record across multiple items, XRF is the right tool. The report identifies the fire assay route as the next step on contested high-value items.
Why do you not offer acid testing?
Because the customer is paying for an honest, non-destructive report. Filing a mark into an inherited piece to get a less precise result than XRF would be the wrong service for the customer.
Not the question you had? The full GoldPaid FAQ covers the rest, from postal cover and ID checks to what happens if you decline the offer.
Request a prepaid Royal Mail label for your XRF test
Tell us which pack you want in the note on the first step and we will confirm the price and how to pay before anything is charged. The label is prepaid and costs you nothing, and your items are returned to you free once the report is issued. Here to sell rather than to have items tested? Testing is free as part of selling, and how it works is the page you want.
Rather ask a question or send a photo first? Message us on WhatsApp.
GOLDPAID LTD · 07944 014111