From what I can tell, this is just a lie anyway. I've yet to see any large dealer claim this. Its almost always those small sleazy shops that find any excuse they can to fleece you. EVERY mint and refiner I've looked into is actually saying there's a shortage and they can't GET ENOUGH silver to meet demands. I KNOW industrial refiners (IE the ones using it for industrial materials) are taking ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING they can get their hands on, regardless of purity, because of the global shortage going on.
From what I can tell, this is just a lie anyway. I've yet to see any large dealer claim this. Its almost always those small sleazy shops that find any excuse they can to fleece you. EVERY mint and refiner I've looked into is actually saying there's a shortage and they can't GET ENOUGH silver to meet demands. I KNOW industrial refiners (IE the ones using it for industrial materials) are taking ANYTHING AND EVERYTHING they can get their hands on, regardless of purity, because of the global shortage going on.