A MUM who took her daughter to get her ears pierced at Claire's Accessories was shocked when she was charged a total of £68 for the service.
Expecting it to cost half of what she paid, mum-of-two Joanna Lovell, from Hull, was happy to take her six-year-old daughter Jasmine to get her ears pierced as a birthday treat – until she heard the price.
She told Hull Live: "I chose Claire's Accessories because they market themselves as the 'world's leading ear piercing specialists' and have been piercing for over 40 years.
"I didn't research the price before we got in the shop – but I expected it to cost somewhere in the region of £20 to £30. In hindsight, I clearly should have looked first."
Visiting the store in Princes Quay, Hull, Joanna was told she didn't need to make an appointment and was handed a board of earrings to choose from while they waited in line.
Options on the board included different materials, including stainless steel, yellow gold, gold plated metal and titanium, just to name a few.
But to her confusion, the parenting blogger found that there were no prices alongside any of the choices – leaving the mother and daughter to pick blindly.
"At this point Jasmine was starting to get nervous, so my focus was on her and not on the price," Joanna continued. "But we still weren't given any guidance.
"I thought the 18ct gold looked good, so when it was Jasmine's turn she pointed to the ones she wanted from the box, which also had a 3mm crystal."
It wasn't until mum Joanne was presented with the paperwork to sign that she found out the sparkly pair would set her back £68.
She said: "The assistant got the earrings out and showed us them – at this point she told me they were £68. I thought I'd misheard her, but when I questioned, she confirmed the cost.
"She could tell I was shocked, but as she didn't go on to tell me about any cheaper options, I assumed the prices for all the earrings must have been similar. So I found myself muttering 'that's fine'."
Too embarrassed to ask is there was anything cheaper, before she knew it, Jasmine's ears were pierced, and Joanne was left £68 lighter.
To make matters worse, Joanne was also encouraged to splash out £10 for their rapid cleaning solution – pushing her total even higher.
"It was only after I looked online and saw prices start from just £15 – so I do feel robbed that there are much more reasonable options available that weren't pointed out.
"If I had seen the prices, I wouldn't have gone for the cheapest £15 stainless steel option, but instead of the 18ct gold, I might have chosen the 24ct gold plated at £30.
"Even though my daughter loves her earrings, I'm sharing this in the hope of helping another parent not to make the same mistake I did."
A spokeswoman from Claire's Accessories responded to Joanne: "Our prices are based on the cost of the metal and any stones used. 24ct gold plated earrings cost from £20-30, titanum from £22-30, 9ct gold from £35-50, 18ct gold from £48-68 and the 9ct gold diamond are £90."
In other news, this mum raged online after her ex-partner pierced their 9-week-old daughter's ears without telling her.
While an expert claimed that ear piercing can tackle migraines, hunger and period pains.
And this psychic hairdresser who predicted her child would be born with a full head of hair gives birth to baby girl with locks so thick she's mistaken for a doll.
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