That says it all... PM me if you happen to have one to sell.  The last one on Rebelscum sold for $200, the last one on eBay for $240 - so that's my target price range.

I understand their position with the disclaimers, but if you aren't paying them to stand behind their assessment, what are you paying them for? I agree that having a 3rd party evaluate a product to help determine condition has a place in any market where the parties don't interact personally and the purchase can't be inspected by the buyer prior to purchase. Their cost should include them taking some of the risk of errors. But AFA has now shown that their model does not provide any certainty anyhow.
Now to send them some absolutely mint kubrick logray figures for grading before they shut the doors.    (inside joke for kubie junkies)

This has been obvious from day one.  What are you paying them for?  An acrylic case and an opinion.

They literally can't offer a guarantee or assume an liability, because the whole thing is a matter of opinion.   It's as subjective a thing as there is, and if they didn't have all the disclaimers alleviating themselves of responsibility for mistakes or differences of opinion, they wouldn't stay in business very long.  Something like this disaster with Toy Toni's fakes would certainly be enough to put them out of business if they could be sued for it.  Smartly, they covered their asses from the get go.

I don't like that they open up vintage figures for U grades.

That's always struck me as blasphemous, even if they are usually ones that are pretty beat up.

That is sad. Especially considering the amount they charge, you'd hope that would equal the quality of customer service. Guess not.

what do they charge on average for a 3 3/4" scale Star wars figure?

Nope.  I have tried several times through the year.  I'm sure they have had things in stock at points, but not much and clearly never for long.  The coupon expires in a week and there's nothing available.   

I'd just email them.  Explain all that, and see if they'll extend it for you.  They're pretty good when you get Chris or someone on the case.

You were already teaching right?

So if I have that right, you did all this in your spare time?

I've been a member since it started.

The membership more or less pays for itself with the free gift, assuming that there is a free gift that fits your collecting interest.  Since I only collect SW mini-busts from them, I look at it as more like paying $10 or $20 for the year. 

But, the $30 coupon pretty much pays for the rest.  I've always found a way to use mine.  One year I used it on a Mars Attacks Mini-bust just for the hell of it.

Additionally, you now get points on purchases that can be turned into gift cards for their website, so when I bought the outrageously priced Fett, I was able to knock the price down by about $35 just base don points that I didn't know I had (this may have nothing to do with the Guild, not sure).

The benefit I like the most though is the access to convention and PGM exclusives.  They do put out product that is only PGM and the only way to get it is to be a member or have a friend who will help you out.

Basically, if the perks are something you can use, the program is basically free, even though it's gone up by $10 every other year or so.

Also, they do one-off things every now and then... a few years ago they were raffling off the chance to buy limited quantities of really old stuff that they had lying around, and I'm pretty sure that was a PGM thing.  I was able to get the ESB Vader Mini-bust for $60 shipped when they were selling for more like $180 at the time.

Somebody posted the AFA legal disclaimer on their certificates.  It basically said "This is our opinion.  If it's wrong you're SOL."  There isn't an legal recourse against them.

Nor should there be unless someone could prove that they were doing it intentionally, at which point it becomes fraud.