A couple sues the Green Hills jewelry store after the family heirloom ring was stolen

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) – A Nashville couple has filed a lawsuit against King Jewelers in Green Hills, claiming the store failed to insure their engagement ring containing a valuable Tanzanite crystal, which was later stolen from a FedEx truck .

Chelsea King and Dawson Blankinship’s relationship blossomed from friendship to romance. In search of the perfect ring, Dawson planned to propose a $9,500 Tanzanite crystal, hoping to place it in Chelsea’s heirloom ring.

“It’s an heirloom that has been passed down; my grandmother wore it. My aunt wore it,” Chelsea King said.

The couple paid King Jewelers $1,100 to prepare the ring, and the jeweler sent it to an outside gem cutter in Florida. But upon return the package was stolen. Chelsea and Dawson claim that King Jewelers failed to insure the items despite being told otherwise, and that the store refused to reimburse them.

“They told me they insured all the stuff for up to $100,000,” Dawson said. “What I didn’t know was that they were going to ship it to a gem cutter in Miami.”

Frustrated by the lack of a solution, Chelsea shared their experiences TikTokwhere their story quickly went viral.

The couple claims owner David King offered a replacement ring but no monetary compensation.

“They never contacted us behind the scenes, or our attorney, or offered any compensation,” Chelsea said.

Now Chelsea and Dawson are suing King Jewelers for more than $75,000 in damages, with Dawson hoping to warn others. “We don’t want people to go down this route and feel stuck and hopeless,” he said.

In response, King Jewelers posted a statement online, saying their initial offer was to create a custom ring or compensate the couple at fair market value.

A spokesperson for King Jewelers said: “Our goal from the beginning was to resolve this matter fairly and transparently.” They also suggested that the couple’s online statements constitute defamation and extortion and indicated that the company is prepared to file a counterclaim.

Despite the ordeal, Chelsea says they are focused on their future together. “I just wanted to get engaged and have a happy ending,” she said.

Here is the full statement from King Jewelers:

“We regret the ongoing situation and the way it has developed. Our goal from the beginning was to resolve this matter fairly and transparently, and we have offered several options to rectify the situation. These include making a custom engagement ring using a superior quality free gemstone, or alternatively reimburse the customer at fair market value.

Despite our efforts, the situation has escalated publicly and legally. While we respect our customers’ right to express their dissatisfaction, we maintain that we have followed the correct procedures. We are now faced with a legal issue that we believe involves defamation and extortion, and we are prepared to file a counterclaim to address the exaggerations and false information being spread online. This case was already rejected by the Better Business Bureau because we offered to help the client in any way we could, but we are not willing to be taken advantage of.

As a family-owned jewelry store that has been in business for over 100 years, we pride ourselves on staying true to our principles. We remain committed to providing quality service and transparency to all our customers.”

The lawsuit also notes that King Jewelers was sued and found liable in 2019 for allegedly selling counterfeit versions of Cartier and Van Cleef merchandise from trademarked collections.

Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at [email protected].

Road trip to see some of our neighbors best Halloween decorations

We’re just a few days away from Halloween. This year, Americans are expected to spend about $12 billion on candy, costumes and decorations. In the last few years it seems that more and more people are completely furnishing their homes. Forrest Sanders had the opportunity to visit several communities in the midstate to see some of those Halloween decorations.

-Lelan Statom