Customer QC, faults on optics, who pays the return cost? (1 Viewer)

Since it seems to be less QC at manufacturers and possibly vendors also, the QC is pushed out to the customers.

So shall the customer who do QC and finds a brand new product bad also pay for return shipment?

Some companies pays the return shipment cost if they agree that there was a fault on the product.

I returned a bad Vanguard scope to Optics planet, USA and they paid the return cost due to faulty product. My hat off for OP…:t:

I returned a Viking bin yesterday to VOC and they say they will pay return cost if they agree on the faults I mentioned. I will get back to you on this.

Zen ray, I returned the Prime a couple of times but got no refund for return cost. They don’t have this kind of return policy, they state:
- If you receive a defective product, we will closely work with you to solve the problem that you are experiencing, either through repair or exchange. For international orders, the customer is responsible for shipping costs for both ways.
So a little warning here at least to international customers !!!
ZR is not going to get more business from me, as an "international customer", I can´t afford doing their QC. My hat stays on….

What is your experience, have you some good or bad experiences to tell us, any recommendations of companies paying for returns of faulty bin/scope ?

I have no problem paying for return cost on a non-faulty product.

Anders

Hi Anders. When I used Uttings recently they refunded the cost of postage with no quibbles whatsoever.

Rich

Hi Rich,

Were there any faults on the product ?

Anders

Returning faulty optics.

Had a serious accident with my Leica Scope and Leica emailed me with a attachment to print off parcel labels then UPS came and picked the parcel up from the house.
First class service by Leica in Germany.

Binoseeker said:

Hi Rich,

Were there any faults on the product ?

Anders

Click to expand...

Yes, a faulty product. I e-mailed them to inform them and had a new unit in 4 working days I think it was from when I posted it back. Pretty good IMHO:t:

Rich

Hi John,
You got lucky didn't have to go through the company you bought
it from unless you bought it used from a person s t s. Hat off for Leica...

Anders

Binoseeker said:

Since it seems to be less QC at manufacturers and possibly vendors also, the QC is pushed out to the customers.

So shall the customer who do QC and finds a brand new product bad also pay for return shipment?

Some companies pays the return shipment cost if they agree that there was a fault on the product.

I returned a bad Vanguard scope to Optics planet, USA and they paid the return cost due to faulty product. My hat off for OP…:t:

I returned a Viking bin yesterday to VOC and they say they will pay return cost if they agree on the faults I mentioned. I will get back to you on this.

Zen ray, I returned the Prime a couple of times but got no refund for return cost. They don’t have this kind of return policy, they state:
- If you receive a defective product, we will closely work with you to solve the problem that you are experiencing, either through repair or exchange. For international orders, the customer is responsible for shipping costs for both ways.
So a little warning here at least to international customers !!!
ZR is not going to get more business from me, as an "international customer", I can´t afford doing their QC. My hat stays on….

What is your experience, have you some good or bad experiences to tell us, any recommendations of companies paying for returns of faulty bin/scope ?

I have no problem paying for return cost on a non-faulty product.

Anders

Click to expand...

Cool or not, writers have a propensity for quoting themselves.

Bill

24 “I GOT A ‘NO FAULT WARRANTY’ WITH MY BINOCULAR, SO I NEVER HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT ANYTHING.”

The Fallacy: A “no fault warranty” assures you, you’re getting a good product.

The Fact: “No fault” warranties come on binoculars of all qualities.

No Fault Warranties have become popular in recent years and people are buying increasingly from companies offering them. Even so, I have a different understanding of the phrase, “No Fault Warranty,” than most consumers. It goes:

“We’re making so much money off these little suckers, we can afford to hand out two or three replacements, and still turn a profit. Besides, we know most people won’t recognize a problem or contact us at all. That means we can layoff our in-house repair techs, give you a brand new instrument, and make you think you made out like a bandit, even though the second or third unit might not be any better than the first.”

Are all “No Fault Warranties” like this? No! No! No! But, “Buyer Beware” is a phrase of ever-expanding importance.

A STORY

As an optics merchant, it would be foolish to turn away sales of a popular binocular. Yet, that is exactly what I once had to do.

A particular instrument kept arriving from a prominent importer out of collimation—right out of the box. Therefore, the next time I received a shipment, I set aside time to check each one before putting it away. When the first eight were out of collimation—by even the most lenient of industry standards—I decided not to waste any more time on the project, and sent the entire shipment of 20 back to the importer.

I could have collimated them. However, that could have caused other problems. First, it would have been a waste of time and money for my company. Then, too, how could I know the instruments would hold their collimation and not soon cause problems for my customers? Knowing it would cost more in handling and shipping to return individual instruments to the importer, than it would to simply return the lot and remove the model from inventory, I felt that was the best option. Popular or not, that model was a waste of money.

Then, when I saw the binocular being treated as the neatest thing since sliced bread on a certain Internet binocular forum, I felt I was obliged to make other participants aware of my findings. I was quickly reminded that no good deed will go unpunished and that you can’t save some people from themselves.

Anders, sorry to hear about your bad experience with ZR. I generally only deal with domestic companies, because the better ones in the US will usually pay return shipping on defective items. My experiences with Opticsplanet parallel yours. I had to return a couple of defective bins to them, and they paid the shipping no questions asked. Similarly, I've returned items to B&H with free return shipping as well. Along with Eagle Optics, these retailers cover return shipping costs whether or not the item is defective.
My strangest experience with a return was with a defective Bresser Everest that I bought from Optics Camp, which is a small online retailer. Rather than issue me an RMA (a Return Merchandise Authorization, which is the free postage) to return it to him, he got me an RMA to send the binocular back to the distributor. He then tracked the package back to the distributor, and when it got there, he sent me a new binocular from his inventory. A bit unconventional, but it worked out.
About ZR, I think it's good customer relations to offer free postage on the return, but I do have sympathy for their position. They're a pretty small company, and might not be set up to deal with international orders as efficiently as domestic orders.

Binoseeker said:

Hi John,
You got lucky didn't have to go through the company you bought
it from unless you bought it used from a person s t s. Hat off for Leica...

Anders

Click to expand...

Both agreed it was quicker to send direct to Leica Germany
first class service from Leica.

Bill,
I like to read your “no. xx wisdoms” , thank you.

Peatmoss,
ZR is close to produce very good products, but often stumbles on the QC-line.
They have their own factory in China now, I think, so they can’t blame anyone else longer…but themselves.

Eagle Optics doesn’t sell abroad, at least not to EU, i think. Otherwise good of them paying for return cost in USA.

I tried a quick look at B&H homepage, found this, maybe the customer have to pay return cost in any case:
Returns & Replacements: If you return a product to us, you will be the exporter from the destination country. Title and risk of loss transfer to us upon our receipt of the merchandise. UPS will assist you in recovering your taxes and duties for a fee. Please contact UPS directly to initiate this service.


John,
Ok, I understand.

Anders

I feel ya there Binoseeker...

While I can see this point, I can't speak from a binocular standpoint, I did purchase a handgun from a newer company about 10 years ago at the same time as a friend. While this brand was well thought of in the gun magazines, and fairly expensive for it's new place in the market, we both had problems within a few weeks. They issued a RMA for my buddy and he paid the shipping (firearms have to be shipped overnight in the US-they say for better security-I feel it's for better profit). They did send him a free magazine back with the gun (about a $30 value) but he was still about $25 in the hole. I stood my ground and demanded they pay for shipping and they did-issued a "call tag" for Fed Ex. The cost was about $56 I think. I was really livid at the time thinking I would have to pay that for a blatant problem from their end.

Zen-Ray sent me a RMA but also mentioned including $35 for return shipping and handling, which to me is kind of crazy as shipping to them is about $10, and the issue I have (poorly attached rubber armoring peeling away from the body in several location as well as the focus-knob deconstructing itself) are related to quality control as opposed to user neglect.

As much as I like their optics, it gets ever more difficult for me to recommend Z-R products to others.

Justin

I have a very cheap pair of Vanguard 8 x 36 that lost the ability to set the diopter correctly after they were three years old. I was going to throw them away, but decided to call Vanguard and the answer was quick. We will fix or replace, you pay shipping to us and we pay shipping to you. I had a new pair in two weeks.

jremmons said:

Zen-Ray sent me a RMA but also mentioned including $35 for return shipping and handling, which to me is kind of crazy as shipping to them is about $10, and the issue I have (poorly attached rubber armoring peeling away from the body in several location as well as the focus-knob deconstructing itself) are related to quality control as opposed to user neglect.

As much as I like their optics, it gets ever more difficult for me to recommend Z-R products to others.

Justin

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That is troublesome, I think I will amend some of my recommendations as well.