Lear Capital Review
Lear Capital Analysis ‘At a Glance’:
Lear Capital |  |
|---|---|
| Website | www.learcapital.com |
| Phone No. | 1-800-576-9355 |
| PERFORMANCE:* | |
| BBB (Better Business Bureau) Rating (Scale of A+ to F) | A+ |
| BBB Complaints | 38 |
| BCA (Business Consumer Alliance) Rating (Scale of AAA to F) | AAA |
| BCA Complaints | 7 |
| Trustlink Rating | 4.5 out of 5 Stars 300+ reviews |
| RETIREMENT FUNDS: | |
| Gold IRAs Offered (US) |  |
| Crypto IRAs Offered (US) |  |
| Gold RRSPs Offered (Canada) | |
| GENERAL: | |
| Preferred Depository | Brinks Los Angeles |
| Preferred Custodian | Self Directed IRA Services |
| Minimum IRA Purchase Amount | $10000 |
| Physical IRA Application | |
| Digital IRA Application | |
| FEES: | |
| Set Up | $275 |
| Admin (annually) | $100 |
| Storage (annually) | $150 |
| TIMESCALES: | |
| IRA Transfer Process | 5 to 30 business days |
| 401k Rollover Process | 30+ business days |
| Delivery of Metals | 15 days |
| PEACE OF MIND | |
| US Mint Listed Dealer | |
| ICTA Member | |
| TRUSTe Verified | |
| Norton Secured | |
| Special Offers | 30 Day Price Guarantee $500 Bonus on account opening |
Lear Capital Review:
Lear Capital’s Background
Lear Capital was founded by their current chairman, Kevin DeMeritt in 1997. Mr DeMeritt is well known for predicting the market crash of 2001 and the subsequent emergence of gold as a safe haven investment in his book ‘The Bulls, The Bears and The Bust‘.
Lear Capital is based in Los Angeles and has around 120 employees.They also trade under the alternate business name of The Metal Exchange.
They claim to have more live Web presence than any other gold site, with their site being manned by specialist staff daily between 9am and 6pm PST.
Mr DeMeritt is backed up in an executive role by their CEO John Ohanesian. Mr Ohanesian is an active member of the philanthropic community and is best known in the international business world for developing a small hair restoration company, Bosley, Inc. into a global name and an international brand.
Lear Capital’s Website
The Lear Capital website claims, not unreasonably, to be a one stop shop for learning about and setting about investing in gold and other precious metals.
The website includes a section where you can buy gold and silver coins online, another covering Gold IRAs and retirement accounts and a comprehensive News and Investor Resources section. There really is a wealth of information available, all of which is regularly updated.
By navigating around the site, which is well designed and user friendly, you will find access to live market charts for gold, silver, platinum and palladium, an option to get price notifications emailed to you by Lear Capital, an option to request a free investor kit, an online Learning Centre, a place where you can sell any coins that you might already own, a ‘Precious Metals Encyclopedia’ and a ‘Keeping You Informed’ video series.
Overall, this is an excellent website.
Products
Exclusive to Lear Capital are certain gold and silver coins such as the Orca, Snowy Owl, Arctic Fox , Falcon and Grizzly Bear. Lear are the only authorized US retailer of this coin series. These are issued by the Royal Canadian Mint, come in quarter and one and a half ounce sizes and are struck in .9999 pure gold and silver. They are eligible to be included in a precious metals IRA.
Lear Capital offer live coin pricing and 24/7 availability via their website. There they claim that nearly 99% of orders are shipped within 15 days.
Standard coins they have for sale include Eagles, Maple Leafs, Sovereigns and Kruggerands. Their premium coin selection includes Liberty Series, Indian Series and Modern.
Comprehensive information is given about each individual coin that they offer. This includes the coin name, the name of the designer, the issue date, and details of the composition, diameter, weight, bus mint and proof mint.
Lear Capital Reputation, Ratings & Complaints
Disclaimer: We are merely reporting below our findings on the consumer advocacy sites mentioned. None of this constitutes our opinion and we cannot verify the accuracy of the information shown on these independent portals.
Lear Capital BBB – Better Business Bureau
Lear Capital has been an Accredited BBB Business since 1997 and on a scale of A+ to F they have gained the highest possible A+ rating.
This excellent rating is somewhat marred by the fact that on our most recent check there had been 38 complaints closed within the previous 3 years and 13 closed within the previous 12 months. All of these complaints had been raised by customers about either issues concerning Advertising/Sales, Billing/Collections or problems with a Product or Service.
A closed complaint is one that has been raised by a customer then subsequently dealt with by the company to the customer’s satisfaction.
Also at the time of our most recent check 13 customers had posted reviews on the BBB site about Lear Capital, with an average rating of 4.15/5.
Lear Capital BCA – Business Consumer Alliance
Lear Capital has been a BCA member since 1997 and has achieved the top AAA rating there.
At the time when we last checked there had been 7 closed complaints recorded over the previous 3 years. The outcomes were that in 4 cases Lear Capital agreed to make an adjustment, in 2 cases they refused to adjust in accordance with the terms of the agreement and in 1 case they refused to make an adjustment. BCA’s conclusion is that the company gave proper consideration to complaints presented to them.
Also at the time of our last check just 1 customer review had been posted on the BCA site. This was very positive, giving a 5/5 rating.
Lear Capital Trustlink
Based on over 300 customer reviews Lear Capital come out with an average of 4.5 out of 5 stars at Trustlink. Very few recent reviews had been posted when we last checked but that should not distract from the fact that the majority of the reviews that were posted in the past were very positive.
Summary
There is a lot going for Lear Capital. The positives are that they have an excellent website, a varied and comprehensive product list and they are rated highly at the main independent consumer advocacy sites.
The negative is their track record of customer complaints, as evidenced at the Better Business Bureau and the Business Consumer Alliance. It is admirable that they have demonstrated their desire and determination to resolve all of these but it is inevitable that questions will be asked about why there were a considerable number of dissatisfied customers who felt the need to complain in the first place.
See How Lear Capital Compares Side By Side With The Best Gold IRA Companies
Reviewed by: Doug Young
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