Transaction Guide

Guide to Transactions at United Coin & Precious Metals

Most transactions at United Coin & Precious Metals are straightforward:

• If you are buying, you identify the product you want to buy, pay for it, and off you go.
• If you are selling, you bring in or ship us the product, we appraise it, make an offer, you either accept it or not, we pay you, and off you go.

In either case, we do our best to answer your questions, and of course we are available by phone or in person during business hours for additional clarification.

The transaction guide below can act as a handy reference covering many of the questions and terms associated with the buy/sell process.

Buy/Sell Spreads – All of our most frequently traded products have their buy/sell prices clearly posted in the store. These prices update every 30 seconds during trading hours based on the spot price of their respective metal. Precious metals trade on the COMEX & NYMEX markets Monday thru Friday, and then in the aftermarket on CME GLOBEX World Markets. Except for brief periods and on the weekend, precious metals trade continuously around the world. Our transparent pricing allows you to know what you should expect to pay for an item or how much we will pay you for your precious metals.

Pricing Spreads – Our buy/sell spreads tend to be the narrowest on the most frequently traded/highest turnover items. Higher turnover lowers holding costs, which we pass on to you. Pricing spreads can and do vary over time as the popularity/demand of given items can shift.

Product Premiums – Product premiums refers to the amount you pay over the spot price for a bullion item. Fabrication costs and supply/demand are the primary determining factors with respect to how much you should expect to pay over the spot price. For example, you pay a larger premium for a Silver American Eagle than you do for a 1 oz silver round, while the buy/sell spreads tend to remain narrow on the Silver American Eagle due to its high turnover.

Product Inventory – Gold, silver, or platinum products are among our most frequently traded bullion items. We do our best to have these items in stock. If there is an item you wish to purchase and it is not listed on our website, call us. Chances are we can find it for you. Similarly, if you wish to sell us a bullion item not listed on our website as something we typically buy, call us. We are always interested in buying opportunities and welcome your inquiries.

Minimum/Maximum Orders – United Coin & Precious Metals has no minimum or maximum order requirements with respect to buying or selling.

Types of Payment Accepted – United Coin & Precious Metals accepts cash, cashier’s checks, certified checks, personal checks, wire transfers, and money orders. We also accept and encourage trade of numismatic rarities, collector coins, scrap gold or silver (jewelry, etc.). We do not accept credit cards at this time. All checks and wire transfers should be made payable to United Coin & Precious Metals, Inc.

If You Pay with Cash – If you pay us more than $10,000 in a single transaction or related transactions, we are required to fill out IRS form 8300. There is no reporting requirement for amounts under $10,000.

If You Pay with Cashier’s Check or Certified Check – You can take your order with you same-day if we can verify your check with your financial institution over the telephone, up to a maximum of $25,000. Otherwise, you must wait for your check to clear (up to 10 days depending on the location of your financial institution) if we cannot verify.

If You Pay with Personal Check – There is a 10-business day holding period for your check to clear before we ship product or allow you to pick it up at our location. If this is too long for you, consider using a wire transfer.

If You Pay with Money Order – There is a 3-week holding period to allow money orders to clear the issuing bank. If this is too long, please consider paying by cashier’s check or wire transfer.

If You Pay with Wire Transfer – We will give you the wire transfer information during our phone order conformation or in our store. For large orders out of the area, we encourage wire transfers.

Lock in Pricing – United Coin & Precious Metals allows you to lock in the price on your order prior to the arrival of your payment on all orders less than $25,000. If you wish to lock in an order greater than $25,000, we require a 10% down payment.

• If you are mailing payment via the USPS, all payments must be postmarked within 24 hours of the phone order confirmation and must be received within five business days.
• All payments are required to have a confirmation number which we will provide to you at the time we confirm your order.
• When sending a wire transfer, our bank must receive payment within two business days from the time of your order confirmation.

United Coin & Precious Metals, Inc. reserves the right to cancel any orders that do not meet the above criteria.

Local Orders – If you live in the area and would like to lock in your order of $25,000 or less prior to arriving at our store, we ask that you arrive within 24 hours with payment for your order. United Coin & Precious Metals, Inc. reserves the right to cancel any order that does not meet these criteria.

Sales Tax – Within the State of California, we are required to charge sales tax on all orders under $1,500 at a rate of 7.75%. On orders above $1,500, we are not required to collect sales tax on numismatic or bullion items. On all orders shipped out of state, there is no sales tax requirement.

Market Loss Policy – When you purchase from UCPM, we will issue you a confirmation number. Once the confirmation number is received, the transaction is locked in and may not be cancelled, but only offset at our current buy price. Any deficit between the price at which we sold to you and the offsetting purchase price is your responsibility. That amount will be charged to you, plus a $35.00 (USD) cancellation fee. Any market gain on cancellations shall remain the property of UCPM.

Reportable Bullion Transactions – IRS Form 1099-B requires coin dealers to report certain purchases from non-corporate sellers. The following are the items listed by the IRS Revenue Procedure 92-103 as requiring submission under Form 1099-B ( and the minimum threshold quantities that must be sold in single or related transactions before the form must be filed):

If an item is not on the list, sales of it do not need Form 1099-B, no matter how large the quantity. Remember, this applies to sales you make to United Coin & Precious Metals, not purchases.

Anti-Money Laundering Policy – United Coin & Precious Metals has implemented and maintains an Anti-Money Laundering Policy with all appropriate measures in place when requiring customer identification. Management is responsible for the training of employees in matters related to the prevention of money laundering. We immediately report all suspicious transactions to the authorities and take appropriate action within the scope of the law against suspicious transactions.

Shipping Products to You – Once your payment has cleared, your order will ship within two business days via the United States Postal Service, registered/insured mail. It is our opinion that the USPS offers the most secure method for high-value shipments. Depending on the size of your order, it may be split into multiple packages.

• Depending on your location shipping takes an average of 4 to 6 business days.
• If you have a Post Office Box, your order can ship directly to that P.O. Box when using USPS registered/insured mail.
• Shipping charges range from a low of $15 to a maximum of $25 and are free to you for all orders over $5,000.
• If requested, we can arrange to have your order shipped Federal Express. All methods of shipment require a signature at the time of delivery.

Privacy Policy – For your safety and security, all information collected by United Coin & Precious Metals, either through our website, over the telephone, email, or in person, is handled with the utmost discretion. The information is not shared or sold to anyone except as may be required by law. UCPM is the sole owner of the information you share with us, and no outside parties have access to any of the information.

Whenever we collect sensitive information, such as for a wire transfer, that information is encrypted and transmitted in a secure manner. Once processed, all handwritten notes, faxes, emails, etc. are shredded or deleted to guard against misuse.

Selling Products to UCPM – United Coin & Precious Metal’s buy prices are clearly posted for all popular bullion products. If you have a bullion product you wish to sell and it is not listed on our website as something we typically buy, call us. In most cases we should be able to quote you a buy price over the telephone once we identify the item. If you wish to sell numismatic items, in most cases the items will need to be seen and appraised before an offer can be made.

• If you are not able to bring the item into our showroom, you can ship it to us via USPS registered/insured mail. Once received, an offer (or non-offer) is communicated within 24 hours. If accepted by you, a company check will be sent that same day.
• If you stop by in person, offers for items we are interested in buying are made on the spot. If accepted you will have the option to be paid in cash or by company check. The same protocol applies to jewelry, scrap gold, sterling, flatware, etc.

Shipping to UCPM – Prior to shipping anything to our office, contact us so we have a description of what is being sent and when it is being sent. The USPS represents the safest and most secure way to ship high-value shipments. All shipments should be wrapped tightly so nothing rattles or shakes inside. All shipments should be sent by registered/insured mail. We will coach you on safe shipping techniques, protocols, etc., when we collect the description of what you are sending prior to shipment. Remember to be discrete. Don’t advertise what you are shipping!

Drop in Or Call

For fastest service, give us a call at 858-412-6462 (toll free at 1-855-253-0642) or stop by our downtown La Jolla, California store. We’re happy to discuss any treasures you’re looking to buy or sell. If you stop by, we invite you to browse our collections. In addition to our popular items in stock, you never know when something rare might find its way onto our shelves. UCPM is located at the intersection of Silverado Street and Girard Avenue.