In the Kitco context, scrap metal includes gold, silver, platinum and palladium in any form that is not usually sold on Kitco’s online store. This includes precious metal bars that bear the stamp of any entity other than a refiner named on an industry-standard Good Delivery List, jewelry, watches, metal filings, silver tableware and decorative items, dental gold, etc. This section of the FAQs pertains to the sale of scrap metal to Kitco. For further information on selling coins, bars or Kitco Rhodium Sponge, see our Selling precious metal bullion products FAQs.
To sell us scrap metal, you must represent a business whose activities have a logical link with the sale of scrap metals. Examples of such businesses are jewelers, pawn shops, antique dealers, manufacturers, dental laboratories, etc. Private individuals cannot sell scrap metal to Kitco. As an individual or a private customer, if you do send in scrap metal, it will be returned to you at your own cost.
Kitco buys a wide range of scrap metal from businesses whose primary activity pertains to precious metals. To see a list of what we buy, click here. If you have any other items not on this list that contains precious metals, please contact us at 1 877 775-4826 or 514 313-9999. Our business hours are from 8:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. ET, Monday to Thursday, and 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET, on Friday.
Yes, you can send material in just for testing. The fees for testing are as follows:
- A $70 handling fee
- A return shipping fee (if the tested material is not collected in person) that depends on the weight of the sample and the method of shipping
- Any applicable processing fees (i.e. melt and assay fees)
Note that any material sent to be tested will NOT be sent back in original condition due to the methods used to test your material. We can only test material belonging to customers holding an existing Kitco business refining account.
You are free to check our references at any time. A full list of potential referees can be found here.
A price confirmation is a binding agreement between you and Kitco Metals Inc. under which we agree to purchase your scrap metal at the relevant price that prevails at the time when this agreement is made. Confirming a price in this manner helps you to eliminate the uncertainty of the market. Note that all such price confirmations are binding and are subject to our terms and conditions. Failure to comply with these may result in you incurring subsequent charges.
Because markets change frequently, metal prices may change from the time you confirm a price for your sale to the time we receive your shipment. You will therefore be responsible for any charges incurred as a result of defaulting on sale. If the amount of pure metal received by Kitco is less than the amount of pure metal that you confirmed a price for, you will be charged for the difference (see here). However, if we receive more pure metal than you confirm a price for, Kitco will buy only the originally reserved quantity at the confirmed price. The surplus metal will be bought at the relevant market price prevalent at the time of settlement.
You can confirm a price for a sale by calling 1 877 775-4826 or 514 313-9999 between 8:30 a.m. and 10:00 p.m. ET (Monday to Thursday, and 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET on Friday). You may also send in your material and confirm a price at any time up to the moment when Kitco contacts you to settle the material. Kitco requires a 20% deposit on account to act as collateral for any sale of scrap up to $100,000. To know more about funding your account, see “How can I add funds to my account?”
No, it is not mandatory to confirm a price for all sales. If you do not pre-confirm a price, Kitco will finalize the material using the market price that prevails at the time of the settlement. If no prices have been confirmed, there will be no charge should you finally decide to not send the material.
Once a price is confirmed, you enter into a binding agreement with Kitco for the specified quantity and purity of precious metal. Any failure to meet the following requirements will result in the cancellation of your sale and the imposition of an administrative fee and market loss repayments. If you confirm a price, you must:
- Ship and postmark your material within two business days of confirming your price
- Ensure that Kitco receives your package within ten business days
- Provide us with your package tracking number within two business days by calling 1 877 775-4826 or by emailing info@kitco.com
- Ensure that the quantity of pure precious metal sent is not less than the amount of pure precious metal for which a price was confirmed
Kitco reserves the right to refuse a sale when the confirmed price is incorrect due to computer-related problems.
Yes. If you have completed your online packing slip, Kitco will send you a confirmation email upon receiving your package.
Kitco will scratch test your scrap metal by using a touchstone and acid. If the precious metal content of your material cannot be determined by this method, Kitco can melt and/or assay the materials at your request.
The assaying process is destructive and materials that are subjected to it cannot be returned to you in their original condition.
Note that Kitco's tests can accurately determine purity only up to 18 Karats. Material believed to be purer than 18K must meet the test criteria for 18K and have a recognized stamp. If the material scratch tests at 18K, but bears no stamp or an indistinct stamp, we will purchase the item at the 18K scrap price.
Whenever your material is melted, the impurities in it (including alloying metals) are eliminated. This leads to a decrease in its weight. A decrease in weight may also occur when gemstones, enamel and other imbedded metals are separated and retained in borax (a cleansing substance).
The average loss in purely metallic material (without gemstones) can be as much as 1%. This will increase for items that include gemstones. Materials such as gold filings can lose up to 30% of their weight, depending on how clean they are — the greater the contamination, the higher the melt loss. Melt loss can also vary depending on the presence and amount of extras such as teeth and composites from dentures.
To aid in the melting of substances containing palladium or platinum, copper may need to be added to dental melts. In such cases, the melt loss is difficult to estimate and will vary from case to case.
Yes. Upon verification of your material, we will contact you to review the contents of your package and to ensure that your package is finalized according to the payment option indicated on your packing slip.
NOTE: An agreed payment option cannot be changed once a price has been confirmed.
In case of any discrepancy between the weights you supply and those that we determine, the weights determined by Kitco will be applied. Should these be found to be less than the ones indicated by you when your price was confirmed, you may be charged for the difference (see “At what point will market loss repayment fees be applied?”) All the scales that Kitco uses are legal for trade and are calibrated in accordance with government regulations. You can rest assured that the final weights that we determine and apply are highly accurate.
If we reject a package that you send us after you have confirmed a price, we will contact you to advise you of the rejection of your package. Your confirmed price will still be honored by Kitco provided that you advise us of the new shipping tracking number, and that Kitco receives the package within 15 days of the initial rejection. If these conditions are not met, your sale may be cancelled and you may be liable to pay administrative fees and market loss charges as described in our Confirming a price FAQs.
