Grading Guarantee

Legacy Currency Grading Guarantee of Grade and Authenticity 

Legacy Currency Grading, Inc. (“LCG” hereafter) guarantees that all notes submitted to it shall be graded in accordance with the LCG grading standards and under the procedures of LCG.

In the event the purchaser of a LCG graded note believes that the note has been overgraded with respect to such standards and procedures, or is non-authentic, he or she may submit such note to LCG through the LCG “Guarantee Resubmission” procedures and LCG will re-examine the note to determine the note’s grade and authenticity.

If the grade determined under such “Guarantee Resubmission” procedures is lower than the grade originally assigned to the note, or if the note is found to be misattributed or non-authentic, LCG shall pay the current market value for the note in question at the originally assigned grade, or at the owner of the note’s option, the difference between the current market value for the note in question at the newly established grade and the current market value of the note in question at the grade originally assigned. LCG will also refund the regrading fee and postage and insurance costs incurred by the note’s owner in sending the note to LCG. It is understood that LCG will be the sole determiner of the current market value of the note and that current market value is defined as dealer replacement value, i.e. the price a dealer would most likely have to pay to replace the note.

This guarantee shall not apply to any note as to which an obvious clerical error has been made with respect to the description of the note. This guarantee shall also not apply to any note which has been removed from the LCG holder or any note for which the LCG holder or label shows evidence of tampering. Further, this guarantee shall not apply to any note which has been environmentally damaged due to improper storage or natural disasters such as fire and flood.

In addition to grade and authenticity, the LCG Guarantee also covers the attribution of varieties, but does not cover obvious clerical errors in the description of the variety.

The LCG Guarantee also covers all notes graded and authenticated by K3B, Inc. under the brand name PCGS Currency under license from Collectors Universe, Inc., from February 4, 2009, to January 30, 2019.

How to Use the LCG Guarantee

If you have a note that you feel is overgraded, misattributed, or counterfeit, call LCG Customer Service and they will help you fill out the proper submission forms. Turnaround times for “Guarantee Resubmissions” are approximately two to four weeks. After LCG examines your note, if LCG feels your note has been overgraded, misattributed, or is counterfeit, you will be contacted by phone or email and given the current market values so you can decide which of the repayment options you wish to use. If LCG determines that the original grade is correct, your note will be returned to you with the original grade and you will be responsible for the regrading fee and postage charges.

What the LCG Guarantee Does Not Cover

The following is further explanation of what the LCG Guarantee does not cover.

Clerical or “mechanical” errors. LCG occasionally makes clerical errors in inputting data which is shown on the insert in the LCG holder; consequently the LCG Guarantee does not cover obvious clerical errors, what we call “mechanical errors.” Examples would include the following:

1. A date or catalog number listed on the holder that does not match the date or catalog number of the note. For example, if you had a Fr. 237 $1 1923 Silver Certificate, but the LCG label showed the catalog number and date as a Fr. 239 1923 $1 Silver Certificate (a much more valuable note), this note would not be covered by the LCG Guarantee as the attribution of the note itself is obviously incorrect—the printed signatures on a Fr. 237 (Speelman and White) are obviously not the same as on a Fr. 239 (Woods and Tate).

2. A grading designation that is obviously incorrect. For example, if you had a note that is graded with a “PPQ” designation on the label, but there is an obvious flaw in the note that should have warranted an “Apparent” grade, this note would not be covered the LCG Guarantee as the flaw would be obvious and the error was obviously clerical in nature.

3. An obviously misidentified note. For example, if you have a Silver Certificate, but the LCG label showed the note as a Gold Certificate, this note would not be covered by the LCG Guarantee.

4. A variety attribution that is obviously incorrect. For example, if you had a normal Fr. 37 $1 Legal Tender Note (Elliott-Burke), but the LCG holder showed the note as a much rarer Fr. 37a with reversed signatures (Burke-Elliott), this note would not be covered by the LCG Guarantee as the signatures are obviously normal.

5. A blatantly obvious clerical input mistake with respect to the actual grade of the note. For example, if you had a Fr. 64 $5 1869 Legal Tender Note and the LCG holder showed the note as Gem New 65PPQ (a Gem quality note), but the note’s edges were so beat up and frayed, or the centering was so imperfect that the design was partially cut off, that it would grade New 60 at best, this note would not be covered by the LCG Guarantee as this would be an obvious input error. The rule of thumb here would be a difference of more than two points on the grading scale.

Notes that have not transferred ownership. Any note for which ownership is retained by the original submitter to LCG, or that was submitted to LCG by an agent of the current owner, will not be covered under this guarantee. It is a condition of being an Authorized Dealer of LCG, and of membership in the Legacy Rewards program, that we are notified of any errors in grading, attribution, or authentication, for which LCG would be otherwise liable under the grading guarantee after the sale of such item.

Notes Removed From LCG Holders. The LCG Guarantee does not apply to notes removed from LCG holders. There are no exceptions to this policy. You remove a note from a LCG holder at your risk.

Notes that have tampered holders or labels. Unfortunately, some unscrupulous people occasionally try to defraud people by removing notes from LCG holders, replacing them with less valuable notes and then resealing the holders. Most of these “reholders” are crude and obvious. Some are more sophisticated. The LCG Guarantee does not apply to notes that are in holders that have been tampered with.

Notes that are environmentally damaged. The LCG holder, while excellent for long term storage and protection, does not protect notes from harsh environmental conditions. Consequently, the LCG Guarantee does not apply to notes which have been environmentally damaged. For example, if your notes are damaged in a flood or fire, the LCG Guarantee would not apply to those notes.

Revised 5/1/2019.