Trade accounts

XRF testing for the trade: monthly accounts for charity shops, pawnbrokers, auction houses and solicitors

Send a photo on WhatsApp Ask which pack fits

Read our reviews on TrustpilotIndependent written XRF reportA test result, not a UK hallmarkYour item returned tracked, postage includedNo obligation to sell

A monthly retainer + per-item rate, bulk prepaid envelope packs, an emailed job log, dedicated WhatsApp routing, and a 48-hour target from receipt. Five trade tiers, designed around the way real UK trade desks work.

Is there a minimum contract length?No. Monthly retainers are month-to-month with 30 days notice. We expect the turnaround and the report quality to keep accounts active without a lock-in.

You stay in control

A photo on WhatsApp is enough for us to tell you which testing pack fits, what the report can and cannot tell you, and what it will cost. Only when you are comfortable do you order the pack.

No part of this involves a shop visit. The testing service is postal-only, anywhere in the UK, with the phone and WhatsApp answered 8am to 9pm, seven days a week.

How a trade account works

One monthly retainer that covers account management, dedicated WhatsApp routing, the emailed job log, and the priority queue.
A per-item rate for every item tested, billed at the end of the month.
Bulk prepaid envelope packs posted to your address so a parcel can go out the day a job arrives.
A 48-hour target from receipt to report. Pawnbroker on-call jobs run on a four-hour photo-first response target.
An emailed job log covering every job logged, scanned and dispatched, with the PDF reports attached.
A single monthly invoice with full VAT detail, suitable for charity finance teams and small accounting practices.

The five trade tiers

Tier	Retainer	Per item	Turnaround target	Built for
Charity Shop Starter	£59 / month, first month free	£5	48 hours	High-street charity branches handling donated jewellery.
Pawnbroker On-Call	none	£20	4-hour photo target	Pawnbrokers needing a fast second opinion when in-house testing is contested.
Solicitor / Probate	none	£195 per probate pack	48 to 72 hours	Solicitors handling estates that include jewellery.
Auction House	price on request	volume-based	48 hours	Regional auction houses cataloguing jewellery lots.
Standard Trade	£99 / month	£8	48 hours	Antique dealers, estate clearers, refiners.

The process, step by step

Start with a photo. A clear WhatsApp photo of the item is enough for us to tell you which pack fits, what the report will show, and what the price will be.
Pay and get your label. Once you order, a free Royal Mail Special Delivery label and a QR code for the counter are emailed straight back.
Send it in your own time. Use any padded envelope. The label stays valid until used. There is no time pressure on you.
Tested by handheld XRF. Each item is scanned at multiple points with a Thermo Scientific Niton XL2 precious-metal analyser. The full elemental table goes into the report.
Report inside 48 hours, or 48 to 72 hours on the solicitor probate tier. A written PDF report arrives by email, and your item is dispatched back on the same day by tracked Royal Mail Special Delivery, with cover that may be available up to £2,500 depending on the postal method and cover level used.

How items travel

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.

Special Delivery is signed for at every handover. We send a confirmation by WhatsApp when the parcel reaches us, and the same again on the return leg once the report has been issued.

If something cannot be tested

Now and then an item will not give a reliable reading. When that happens you get the whole testing fee back, plus a short note setting out what defeated the analyser and what an alternative test would involve. The item goes home the same day.

That is the exception rather than the rule. Ordinarily your item leaves here by Royal Mail Special Delivery on the day the report is signed off, with postage and its cover already included in the fee you paid at the start.

Testing is testing

Plenty of gold buyers will offer a "free test" if you send your item in. That is a sales tool, not an independent service. This page is the other way round: you pay for the test and the report stands on its own. Whether you sell anything afterwards is a separate decision, and one we do not get involved in unless you ask.

The full reasoning is on the dedicated independence pledge page.

What this report is, and what it is not

This is an independent XRF (X-ray fluorescence) compositional analysis report. It identifies the elemental composition of the item submitted. It is not a UK hallmark and does not replace the legal requirements of the Hallmarking Act 1973. UK hallmarks may only be applied by an authorised UK Assay Office.

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.

The proof, not the promise

Anyone can say "best price". GoldPaid does not. Instead the process is laid bare: a measured XRF assay, calibrated weighing, the live market rate, and a written breakdown you read at home before you commit to anything. The reassurance here is structural, built into how the service works, rather than asserted in a slogan.

Common questions

Can I trial an account before committing?

The Charity Shop Starter tier is first month free by default. For the standard trade tier, we offer a 5-item trial at the per-item rate before the monthly retainer kicks in.

How does invoicing work?

A single monthly invoice on the first working day of the following month, with VAT detail, item logs and a reference for every job. Payment is 14 days net by bank transfer or direct debit.

What is the job log like?

A job log emailed after every job. Every job appears with timestamp, item photo, scan trace, PDF report and status (received, scanning, dispatched). Audit-friendly and exportable to CSV.

Can a trade account refer customers to the consumer side?

Yes, and that referral path is open and named. Trade accounts and consumer customers stay separate in the system; the independence pledge applies to both.

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

Two quick steps. Tell us which pack you want in the box below and we will confirm the price and how to pay before anything is charged. The label itself is prepaid and costs you nothing, and your items are returned to you free once the report is issued. Testing is a separate, paid service: if you are here to sell rather than to have items tested, the assay is free as part of selling and how it works is the page you want.

Two things worth knowing before you start, rather than after. Everyone sends a photo of a UK passport or driving licence, whatever the parcel is worth — it applies to every seller, so it is never a comment on you. And the parcel is handed in at a Post Office counter rather than dropped in a postbox: the receipt they give you is the proof of postage any compensation claim depends on.

Step 1: What are you sending, and how should the label arrive?

A rough description is plenty. This helps us confirm the right postal cover level before we issue the label. Skip if you would rather not say — the field is optional.

What have you got? (optional)

How would you like the label to arrive? Both are prepaid and both use Royal Mail Special Delivery Guaranteed, so pick whichever is easier. The QR code is already selected because it needs no printer, and you can change your mind later — just message us before you post.

Choose how your prepaid label arrives

Printed label by emailPrint at home and tape it to a padded envelope or small box. You need a printer.

QR code by email (recommended) — no printerShow the QR code at any Post Office counter — the clerk scans it and prints the label for you.

Step 2: Where do we send it?

Your label arrives by email whichever format you chose, so nothing is posted out to you. We need your address because it prints on the label itself, and because it is where anything you decline is returned. UK addresses only.

Needed so the label can be addressed to you.

Your name

Email — this is where your label is sent

Address

Address line 2 (optional)

Town or city

Postcode

Phone (optional, so we can text if the email bounces)

Would you rather ask a question first, or send a photo? Message us on WhatsApp. It is the fastest way to get a sense of what something is worth before you post anything.

Ask first, order only when you are ready

Get an independent written report

Send a photo on WhatsApp and ask anything you like. We answer honestly, and we tell you which pack fits what you have before anything is charged.

Send a photo on WhatsApp Call 07944 014111

Prepaid Royal Mail Special Delivery label and tracked return included in the pack price. We confirm the price before anything is charged. The result is an independent written report, not an offer to buy, and you are never obliged to sell.