# Do I need to authenticate a purchase from Tourneau?



## starryeyed (Jul 21, 2016)

I just purchase a Certified Pre-Owned solid yellow gold Cartier from Tourneau. Do I need to take the watch to Cartier to have it checked for authenticity, or is Tourneau solidly reliable?

The watch was advertised on their Lunar New Year sale for an unbelievable price. That makes me nervous. I also searched the online reviews and saw a post where someone claims to have been sold a fake Rolex by Tourneau. (I know online reviews can be bogus.) 

The nearest Cartier is about 80 miles away, so it's not easy to just pop in for a visit.

What do you think?


----------



## Tommywine0 (Nov 11, 2015)

Touneau is legitimate and would never knowingly sell an inauthentic watch. Tourneau is a Cartier AD, so I don't even understand why you'd entertain the idea that the watch could be fake. One of the steps of their CPO process is to verify the watch's authenticity. 
So- unless you have a specific reason other than "general worry" to question whether or not the watch is real, you can rest assured it is.

If this still isn't good enough, call the Cartier Boutique before you make the 80 mile drive. They likely won't authenticate a timepiece purchased elsewhere without a paid service or similar.


----------



## starryeyed (Jul 21, 2016)

Thanks Tommywine0. I appreciate your perspective and confidence in Tourneau.


----------



## Time Exposure (Aug 13, 2010)

I don't know how many "reassurances" you need from the crowd here, but add mine to the mix. My Cartier Roadster (granted it's "just" a steel model) came from Tourneau back in 2006. My least concern was the authenticity of a watch sold by Tourneau. It has since been serviced by Cartier, and there was no issue regarding it's legitimacy. I say buy with confidence with regard to authenticity.


----------



## sticky (Apr 5, 2013)

Touneau is a highly respected dealer so unless you have specific reasons to think that the watch may be funny or you just need your mind setting at ease I reckon you will be O.K.


----------



## Nokie (Jul 4, 2011)

You should have researched the seller first, then your question would not be needed.....


----------



## Chris Stark (Sep 21, 2015)

Yes, they are reliable. But if you are uncomfortable, perhaps Tourneau will provide you with the serial # and you can call Cartier to confirm its authenticity.

I would think the worst case scenario is that the watch is not authentic, or some part is not authentic, and they will refund you or credit toward another watch.

If you are looking at the watch online, please verify that you are actually looking at a real Tourneau website before giving them a deposit or whatever.


----------



## starryeyed (Jul 21, 2016)

Nokie said:


> You should have researched the seller first, then your question would not be needed.....


 Nokie, I googled "Tourneau reviews" and that is where I saw the "fake Rolex" claim. I also looked at the BBB site. Tourneau does not have an A rating currently. More like C-. There is a WatchUSeek thread from around 2011-12 about Tourneau as a shopping experience, but I didn't see anything else really relevant. A lot can change in 8-9 years. Is there another source I should consult?


----------



## starryeyed (Jul 21, 2016)

Time Exposure said:


> I don't know how many "reassurances" you need from the crowd here, but add mine to the mix. My Cartier Roadster (granted it's "just" a steel model) came from Tourneau back in 2006. My least concern was the authenticity of a watch sold by Tourneau. It has since been serviced by Cartier, and there was no issue regarding it's legitimacy. I say buy with confidence with regard to authenticity.


Thanks Time Exposure. I appreciate as many reassurances as I can get! I'm sure others who have a similar concern will appreciate reading them too. Wear that Roaster in good health!


----------



## starryeyed (Jul 21, 2016)

sticky said:


> Touneau is a highly respected dealer so unless you have specific reasons to think that the watch may be funny or you just need your mind setting at ease I reckon you will be O.K.


Thanks sticky. Coming from someone with well-over 50K posts, I bet you've seen a lot. Your endorsement carries a lot of weight.


----------



## 6R15 (Mar 3, 2015)

Start a thread on the Cartier subforum and ask. Never hurts to double check. If you bought it directly from Tourneau, you should be fine. I have seen, though, fakes using 'Tourneau' printed on warranty cards.

https://www.watchuseek.com/f481/


----------



## starryeyed (Jul 21, 2016)

Chris Stark said:


> Yes, they are reliable. But if you are uncomfortable, perhaps Tourneau will provide you with the serial # and you can call Cartier to confirm its authenticity.
> 
> I would think the worst case scenario is that the watch is not authentic, or some part is not authentic, and they will refund you or credit toward another watch.
> 
> If you are looking at the watch online, please verify that you are actually looking at a real Tourneau website before giving them a deposit or whatever.


That is an excellent point, Chris Stark, about the authenticity of the website!!! I agree with you 100%. There are so many scams out there. I actually was connected to the store and dealt with a salesperson over the phone. I have the watch already and it's beautiful. They say that replicas are getting very good, so knowing you think they are reliable helps put my mind at ease.


----------



## mitc5502 (Mar 7, 2019)

Not a fan of Tourneau as a place to shop, but I wouldn't even consider that they'd *knowingly* sell a fake watch. If the price was unbelievably low, it's probably because they paid a low-ball offer when they bought it and then were having a hard time selling it.


----------



## starryeyed (Jul 21, 2016)

6R15 said:


> Start a thread on the Cartier subforum and ask. Never hurts to double check. If you bought it directly from Tourneau, you should be fine. I have seen, though, fakes using 'Tourneau' printed on warranty cards.
> 
> https://www.watchuseek.com/f481/


I wouldn't want to get in trouble for a double-post, 6R15, but appreciate the idea. I'm wondering more about Tourneau than Cartier. That's really interesting about the fakes carrying a "Tourneau" warranty card. I received on of those with the watch, actually bought from Tourneau. These scammers are so clever!


----------



## starryeyed (Jul 21, 2016)

mitc5502 said:


> Not a fan of Tourneau as a place to shop, but I wouldn't even consider that they'd *knowingly* sell a fake watch. If the price was unbelievably low, it's probably because they paid a low-ball offer when they bought it and then were having a hard time selling it.


I think there are quite a few people who feel the same way about Tourneau, mitc5502. Some of the reviews are brutal. Your assessment is what I'm hoping. The model in YG was discontinued by Cartier. They are still selling the WG and SS versions. The sale price was about 20% less than the lowest price I could find. The regular price was in keeping with asking prices.


----------



## Watchbreath (Feb 12, 2006)

No!


----------



## starryeyed (Jul 21, 2016)

Watchbreath said:


> No!


How that for definitive! Thanks Watchbreath. And somehow, this thread was magically moved to the Cartier forum.


----------

