Certificate of Origin does not match watch. Off by 1 digit

[pk552502]

Hi All, I wanted to get some opinions on this predicament I'm in. I purchased a Patek 3802 about a month ago and I was very happy with the purchase and the watch is in great condition. I have another post with detailed pictures if you're curious to see the watch which came as a full set.

It was running slow, which was expected and I sent the watch to the Patek service center in New York for a routine service. The movement number and case number on their service estimate does not match the certificate of origin and it is off by just one digit. The service estimate shows 3xxxx96/4xxxx32 while the certificate of origin shows 3xxxx97/4xxxx33. I asked Patek to confirm they wrote the numbers down properly on the estimate and they had their watchmaker open the watch again and double check. They confirmed the numbers on the watch do not match the certificate of origin and it is off by just that last digit.

Since it's only off by one digit I think there must have been a mix up at the time the watch was originally sold. I do like the watch and it's in great condition. However, the fact the certificate of origin does not match the watch significantly affects the value.

I contacted the seller and asked for a partial refund and I'm waiting to hear back. Honestly, I think I would prefer to have a partial refund and keep the watch. Patek confirmed the watch is genuine so there's no issues with the watch itself.

The Ebay authentication card does match the certificate but I'm assuming they just copied the number from the listing and didn't actually check it against the watch. I have to believe Patek over the Ebay authentication.

I'm trying to come to the best solution with the seller and I have not moved forward with the service yet until I hear back from them.

I'm curious how the seller will respond. I think the value is affected by about $1k. Any thoughts from the group?

[ChetBaker]

If Patek issues the wrong certificate of origin when selling the watch couldnt they exceptionally issue the correct certificate?

[pk552502]

Originally Posted by ChetBaker

If Patek issues the wrong certificate of origin when selling the watch couldnt they exceptionally issue the correct certificate?

The rep had asked me to send some pictures of the certificate when I first noticed the discrepancy. Then a couple days later they confirmed the numbers don't match. On the phone I asked if it was possible the wrong certificate was issued upon original purchase and could they investigate that possibility further. She basically said the distributor is responsible for issuing the certificate and they wouldn't investigate further since I wasn't the original purchaser. She never indicated anything looked off about the certificate.

I'll probably just keep the watch and hope to receive a partial refund for my troubles. It stinks though to have a full set with an asterisk.

[HL65]

It happened to me once many years ago. I ended up getting a full refund from the seller. I would not be ok with that myself knowing that I had the wrong cert. After that, I always double checked them prior to purchase.

[cascavel]

If your watch is over 10 years old you can order an Extract from the Archives. Assuming you want to keep the watch. You may need pics of the movement and case numbers.

[1William]

Very interesting. I will be following this to see what the seller offers.

[Chiboy]

I'm not someone who cares if my name is on the card, or who would pay a big premium to buy a watch from an AD. But I would be uncomfortable with a Patek that had a certificate of origin with different numbers than the watch, and I don't think $1,000 would matter. Assuming I just paid pretty big money for a Patek Phillippe I really wanted, I would not want there to be any "issues" like this. Plus, if you ever wanted to sell it, you would have to find someone like yourself who would be ok with this issue if they got a small price concession.

[brandrea]

Originally Posted by cascavel

If your watch is over 10 years old you can order an Extract from the Archives. Assuming you want to keep the watch. You may need pics of the movement and case numbers.

Interesting, I didn’t know that