DETROIT – There is a new trend going around this holiday season: People cashing in the old coins grandpa may have given them for cash.
The problem: There are some scammers out there to take advantage of you if you don't know what to expect.
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Cyndee Harrison, of Grosse Pointe Farms, was recently trading in her coins at the Diamond Vault in Troy. She made the trip there because she trusts them and knows she will get the value of her coins
"It was really nice to have everything gone through right there at the table in a comfortable environment and I left like I was educated as part of the process," said Harrison.
Randy Cole, of the Diamond Vault, said 80 percent of the people who are holding silver coins have no clue what they have.
"They just see it as money," Cole said. "They see it as a quarter. They see it as a dollar."
Cole warns coin sellers to be careful of traveling coin shows which promise you cash for your coins: You might be scammed.
The Defenders decided to test it out.
This past weekend, a traveling coin show stopped at the Comfort Suites Inn in Southfield. Our undercover producer brought seven coins worth $142 to see how much the coin show would offer.
At the first booth we stopped in we were offered $42 for coins that were worth $142.
The Defenders also went across the street to Ziedmans Jewelers. There we were offered $100 for our coins that were valued at $142.
Advice for consumers: If you are going to trade in your coins, go somewhere you trust and a place that has a good record and reputation. Otherwise, you could be losing out on lots of money.