There are times when you happen to see a deal online that seems like it’s just too good to be true.
If you’re like most people, you probably jump at the chance to get something you need or want for a great price.
And one man just scored a pair of earrings worth tens of thousands of dollars for less than twenty bucks.
Man buys $14,000 Cartier earrings for $14
A 27-year-old Mexican man by the name of Rogelio Villarreal just snagged the deal of a lifetime.
The man posted on X that he was scrolling through social media back in December of 2023, when he noticed a beautiful pair of 18-carat rose gold Cartier earrings on an Instagram advertisement for an amazing price.
After clicking on the ad, the earrings were listed on the Cartier website for 237 pesos, or $14, instead of the correct price, which should have been 237,000 pesos, or $14,000.
When he saw the deal, Villarreal said he “broke out in a cold sweat” and ultimately decided to buy two pairs instead of one.
The reason for the extremely low price was simple: Cartier had made a massive mistake when posting the item on its website.
“I was amazed to see how much the necklaces cost and so on and I said, ‘Someday,’ until I saw the earrings,” he added to a post on social media.
The 18K rose gold stud hoops are embellished with 142 brilliant-cut diamonds and currently sell for $11,600 on Cartier’s US website.
Villarreal planned to give one pair to his mother when he bought the earrings and said he “Doubt[ed] that you would have missed the opportunity” when recounting the moment he hit the buy button in a post on X.
After he made the purchase, Cartier tried to cancel his order, but he refused, even after a representative from the company called him and offered him a leather item and a bottle of Cartier Cuvee champagne.
Villareal responded by submitting a contact form to the luxury retailer and citing a Mexican federal consumer protection law.
The law states that goods suppliers can be taken to court “by not respecting the terms and conditions” of a product or service that was already purchased.
Cartier caved
Corporate lawyer Jorge Lopez Zozaya told the New York Times that companies can face fines and other penalties, if they’re found to be at fault.
However, he added that companies will not be forced to change prices if the price difference was obviously due to human error.
As for Villareal, he filed a dispute with Mexico’s Office of the Federal Consumer Protection Agency (PROFECO), which says disputes can be brought to them for “conciliation.”
According to Villareal, the agency summoned Cartier for arbitration, which would have forced the company to attend a mediation hearing if they did not fulfill his order.
Eventually, Cartier sent the earrings to Villareal.
He posted a video of himself unboxing them online and said that “it feels great and it’s cool not to be the underdog for once in my life.”
Patriot Political will keep you up-to-date on any developments to this ongoing story.
