SD Bullion has been part of the precious metals market for a decade, but they've grown hugely during that time. Today, they have thousands of customers across the US. In fact, they're one of the fastest growing companies not just in the US, but also in the entire world.
But a fast-growing company isn't always the best one to work with. What do past customers have to say about their experiences with SD Bullion? What should you really know before you get started?
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About SD Bullion
SD Bullion was founded in 2012 and has been listed as one of the top 500 fastest growing US companies. The founders are a pair of doctors who are concerned about the financial health of their customers. Since opening, SD Bullion has garnered mostly positive reviews from professionals and clients alike.
SD Bullion sells precious metals. These are available on both a casual and investment basis. You can purchase gold, platinum, and silver coins and bars. More than $1 billion has moved through the company due to precious metals sales, with over $150 million in revenue annually.
SD Bullion states that the company goal is to provide better customer service than the competition. They want to leave their customers happy and satisfied with the service.
It's certainly impressive that the company has grown so much. This can be partially attributed to the dedicated management team. In fact, the company has received multiple awards for its customer service and dedication.
Gold IRAs
There are precious metals IRA services available through the company. These allow you to secure your retirement future in an IRA. You have the option of purchasing gold, silver, platinum, or palladium. But your purchase must be compliant with IRS regulations.
There isn't a lot of information about how involved SD Bullion is with the IRA process. Some companies have an in house team of IRA experts to walk you through the paperwork. But most just put you in touch with a custodian, and the custodian walks you through everything. Your custodian will maintain your account until you're ready to take distributions.
You can fund your IRA using the existing funds in your 401(k) or another IRA. Either an SD Bullion representative or your custodian will walk you through this process.
Then you can purchase IRS-approved precious metals from SD Bullion. Once you know what you want, you'll contact the company and lock the price in. They will ship your metals to the depository, where they will be unloaded by your custodian.
SD Bullion works with a huge number of different custodians. Some of their partners include New Direction IRA, Provident Trust, Goldstar Trust, Kingdom Trust, and Equity Institutional. While this does give you many options, it can also be a little overwhelming.
Depository
SD Bullion has some secure depository options. When you deposit your precious metals, they are guaranteed to be safe. This is a good option for people who want to store their metals somewhere more secure than their home.
The price for storage is calculated on a percentage basis. This is a slight disadvantage over flat fees, since you'll pay more if you add more metals. But the rates are very reasonable. For gold you'll pay 0.29%, for silver 0.39%, and platinum 0.29% per year.
This is a segregated depository, which means your items are held separate from everyone else's. They are also fully insured for their whole value.
Is SD Bullion a Scam?
SD Bullion is not a scam. There's no question that this company provides the services that it claims to. In fact, thousands of customers have left reviews online. Most of those reviews have been positive. On third party websites, the company generally has more than 4 out of 5 stars.
For example, on SiteJabber, the company has 4.27 out of 5 stars based on 283 reviews. On TrustPilot, SD Bullion has been verified and holds 4.5 out of 5 stars based on 2,018 reviews. On the Better Business Bureau website, SD Bullion is accredited with an A+. They also have 4.77 out of 5 stars based on 579 customer reviews.
Overall, these are staggeringly positive numbers. They indicate that the vast majority of people who work with this company are satisfied with their experience. Not only that, but people are satisfied enough to write praise about the company.
However, there have been some complaints. A few of the reviews online have not been happy. In addition, there have been a whopping 77 complaints filed with the BBB over the last three years. Thirty of them were filed in the last year.
Now, compared to the thousands of positive reviews, less than a hundred complaints isn't bad. Any company of this size can be expected to have a decent amount of complaining. But the content of the complaints can tell us a lot about how they operate. It will show us whether there are patterns of complaint, as well as how the company management responds.
We can't examine every single complaint posted to the BBB. But we can look at some of the most recent ones.
Customer Complaints
Unwanted Self Promotion
One customer left a review on March 17 of 2022 to say that they were unhappy with a purchase. They had bought a certain number of silver rounds, but were instead sent SD Bullion branded silver rounds. This was the wrong product. The customer did not expect these rounds, because they were not what was shown on the product picture.
The customer said that they were sent eight rounds despite only ordering two. None of the eight rounds were the product that they originally wanted. They said that when they called the company, the customer service agent rudely argued about the order.
The customer added that the item they purchased is approved for use in an IRA. Silver rounds like the SD Bullion round aren't. The customer said that if they had known that the SD Bullion round was part of the package, they wouldn't have ordered it.
They wanted to be given a shipping label to return the coins. But the company said that they would not take a return unless the customer paid themselves for the shipping. The customer said that the website stated that shipping would be paid for refunds, and that they were disappointed with their experience.
SD Bullion responded the next day with an explanation. The customer had ordered a package called "Design Our Choice." With this package, SD Bullion would send any silver round in stock. This allows customers to purchase silver rounds at a discount when they don't care much about the design on them.
When the customer placed their order, the Freedom silver rounds were all that was available. The company representative copied and pasted the item description to show that a number of different rounds might be sent.
The representative apologized for the confusion but said that they make an effort to be clear in their product descriptions. They also pointed out that the rounds the customer received actually were shown on one of the product photos.
The customer rejected the response because they said that the photo of the rounds was well hidden. They added that they were unhappy because they had multiple silver rounds they didn't want, and no way to get rid of them. They said that this had been one of their worst customer service experiences and that they would not be purchasing again.
The representative responded to say that while they understood the frustration, the product that was shipped was exactly what the customer ordered. The customer rejected this response to say that the photos were misleading and that they couldn't be expected to know any better.
Bank Wire Transfer Mishap
One customer filed a complaint on March 16 of 2022 about an order they had attempted to place. This was their first time working with SD Bullion. They bought about $11,000 worth of platinum coins and were going to do a bank wire transfer. There should have been no problem with that, since their spouse had done that the previous day.
But after the customer placed their order, the wire transfer option was no longer available. The company wanted a regular transfer, which the customer's bank did not offer. The customer tried calling SD Bullion, but at that time it was a half hour after closing.
The next day, the customer called and said that they would be willing to pay through a check or electronic wire transfer. But the company representative said that they needed to pay a $400 fee for order cancellation. The customer said that they would no longer do the transaction and that they wanted to totally cancel the order. According to the company, that cost $800.
The customer said that they would not pay the cancellation fee. The representative told them that in that case, the balance would be sent to collections. The customer would eventually end up needing to pay $2,000 or more.
The company responded to say that orders are locked in when they are submitted because of how prices change minute to minute. This contract involves cancellation fees. When you cancel an order, the fee is either $35 or 5% of the total, depending which is greater. The customer is also responsible for paying market losses.
The representative said that they offered the customer every available option. In addition, they made an offer to work with the customer so they would pay a low amount to cancel just one order and keep their second one.
There is an e-check limit of $10,000 for first time customers. That was why the transfer option became suddenly unavailable. The customer would have had other options available instead. The company said that they appreciate the business and apologize for the confusion.
Missing Package
One complaint was filed on March 7 of 2022 about a missing package. The customer had purchased some items on February 22. The package was sent through FedEx at a slightly higher cost to the customer so they could receive the items early.
FedEx said that the package should have arrived by 8 PM on March 1. But the package hadn't showed up by then. The customer then called both FedEx and SD Bullion. SD Bullion said that even though the package was lost in the mail, the customer would be charged a restocking fee if it was found.
The customer said that on top of this, SD Bullion had made no offer to replace or refund the order. They had paid over $1,100 for the order. FedEx had said that they needed ten days to investigate. The customer was especially upset because they had paid to get the expedited shipping and felt cheated.
SD Bullion responded to say that the company was going through its lost package procedure. One of the top managers was communicating with FedEx to find the order. The customer had been emailed a form that would need to be filled out.
They also stated that there is no restocking fee for lost packages. The restocking fee only applies if the customer received the package and decided that they would return it.
The company said that they had told the customer to be patient during the FedEx investigation. Once the package was confirmed as lost, then the customer would be able to get a reshipment or refund through an insurance claim.
SD Bullion did apologize for the trouble and said that they would work to resolve the matter as soon as possible. They further encouraged the customer to reach out if anything else was needed.
Pros & Cons of SD Bullion
Pros
Cons
Final Thoughts
SD Bullion is a solid choice if you want to purchase precious metals online in the US. In addition to having items available for basic purchase, they also have some precious metals IRA services. This is an extremely popular company that has thousands of positive reviews from satisfied customers.
There have been some complaints filed with the Better Business Bureau. However, these pale in comparison to the positive feedback. In addition, it seems like most of the complaints have been related to misunderstandings. The company has always apologized, explained the situation, and made an effort to make things right.
This is why they've maintained their A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau. They also have top marks with organizations like TrustPilot and Consumer Affairs.
Overall, we can recommend this company. Just be aware that they might not have the most streamlined precious metals IRA process in the world. In addition, they aren't the best to work with if you live outside the US.
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