Return Policy

[ExtraExtra]

This is perhaps something that we always forget to ask the dealer and maybe even afraid to ask. By the time we really need to know and understand, it is almost always too late.

So i recently purchase a nice avenger from a very good and loyalty worthy dealer. The watch arrives and immediately, i reported that there is something wrong with the movement. So it is sent back at my own cost for return shipping. Then it came back repaired and guess what? It has a new problem. The watch stops and the only way to get it started again is to start the chrono and stop - then the seconds runs again. So it goes back once again at my cost for return shipping and then it disappears into the bermuda triangle of lost mails. The package, as of today is lost. Did not arrive to destination nor did it come back. There's no tracking per the mailing instruction but it did arrive the destination on the first return. It's been 5 weeks since mailing the second return. I am offered a discount the next watch but I am out the original cost and the return shipping costs My point for posting this is to prevent or reduce this from happening in the future.

I guess the first question is what is reasonable and fair return policy? Should this be something that is agreed to up front i.e. terms and conditions?

[KB]

First up people need to understand that dealers that cover the cost of return shipping (such as myself) do so at their own cost.

Nothing, regardless if it is a minor fault, a smashed watch or you open the package to find a couple of 9v batteries, will make the factory agree to pay the return shipping.

The Chinese have 2 stead fast rules (1) We paid for shipping there, you pay for shipping back (2) Once they make a sale they refuse to end up out of pocket on it.

The OP is out of pocket by not only the original cost of the watch but also the cost of return shipping on 2 occasions, I'm guessing this is way more than a local watchsmith would have charged to fix the problem.

Sometimes I get the feeling that this hobby has become to commercialised.

Sometimes you get a lemon, that is the nature of the business but 9 times out of 10 that lemon can be fixed by you easier than by the dealer.

Ken

[Jkay]

I know that some dealers have in the past offered to partially pay for local repairs. Some absolutely refuse to do this. It varies. Before Chris at Eurotimez went bad, he sent me a brand new ETA 2836 in the mail to replace one with a bad calendar mechanism in my v5 dssd.

There is no need to try and force all dealers to have a "fair" return policy. Simply use a dealer who already HAS a generous and fair return policy, and don't use those who don't.