Cartice

Jewelry company Cartice claims in Meta ads to offer up to 80% off plus free gifts.

The jewelry, according to the brand, is high quality yet affordable. In the ad above, for example, the company claims that its $50 watches pass diamond testers, are worn by celebrities, look like $50,000 watches and come with a free chain, bracelet, jewelry box and $25 gift card. Additionally, the company says it has over 100,000 satisfied customers.

But after receiving a tip from a TINA.org reader, we discovered a few things about this jewelry company that you may want to watch out for.

The “deal”

For one, you might not be able to get the advertised 80% discount or the free gifts.

Of the 90+ watches currently listed on Cartice’s website, only one shows an alleged discount that amounts to 80% off. Not to mention, our reader said that during a previous promotion, he did not receive the advertised free items (which does not seem to be an isolated incident, as other consumers have reported the same issue to a third-party review platform).

Sneaky add-ons

Cartice also employs some sketchy tactics throughout its checkout process that could lead to consumers paying more than expected.

Specifically, the company automatically adds to consumers’ virtual shopping cart a subscription to its rewards club, which, despite being listed in the cart as costing “$0.00,” actually costs $49.99 every month. In order to avoid this recurring monthly charge, consumers have to manually remove the “Cartice VIP Club” item from their cart or uncheck the “Cartice Rewards Club” box that appears at the very bottom of the page.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, numerous consumers have complained about being unwittingly enrolled in Cartice’s subscription.

In addition, Cartice may also automatically add a $4.99 “Shipping Protection” fee, on top of a shipping charge ranging from $4.95 to $7.95.

And to make matters worse, the company pressures consumers to rush through the checkout process with a fake countdown clock that misleadingly suggests the purported free jewelry box and $25 gift card are only available for a short amount of time. (In reality, the offer still shows up as being available after the clock hits zero.) A similarly misleading countdown timer appears at the top of the Cartice website as well.

Quality issues

In the ad above, Cartice claims its watches, which are made with diamond stimulants as opposed to real diamonds, can pass diamond testers, are made with Italian craftsmanship and are even on par with $50,000 watches.

According to experts, however, diamond stimulants are “easily identified by their optical traits or with diamond testers.” And numerous consumers have complained about the poor quality of Cartice products.

Bogus star rating, fake reviews

Despite Cartice claiming to have a 4.6 star Trustpilot rating, its actual Trustpilot rating is unavailable due to the company’s use of fake reviews.

Cartice did not respond to our request for comment.

The bottom line 

Consumers should be wary when shopping online. Carefully review your order for any sneaky add-ons, watch out for misleading countdown timers designed to create a sense of urgency and consider what consumers may have to say on a variety of third-party review sites before trusting a company with your payment information.

Find more of our coverage on jewelry.