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Does Leica not stand behind their product? (1 Viewer)

ceasar said:
Brock,
Your ex-neighbors are all moving to the Poconos now. Corbett has a proposal to set up signs on Interstate 80 guiding them on to Jersey Shore, Happy Valley and points west way beyond Bayonne!
Bob
Click to expand...

True, and the Catskills. I have two aunts and uncles from NJ who retired to the mountains, one couple in the Poconos and the other in the Catskills. I bet their freezing their butts off right now and regretting they didn't move to Florida like my other aunt and uncle did (of course, their roof blew off in that last hurricane, "if it's not one thing, it's another").

For a while, NJ was dumping its garbage in PA since the Garden State was turning into the Garbage State. I believe they stopped that practice, but I wonder where it's all going now? Maybe in the Arthur Kill between NJ and Staten Island. The Arthur Kill is an apropos name since there are more chemicals than water in that "straight" so there's not enough oxygen in the water/chemical soup to support aquatic life.

On one of my early trips to Penn State as an undergraduate, I saw the sign for "Jersey Shore" after I had gotten off at a rest stop and gotten back on Route 80 and panicked when I thought I was going the wrong way and was heading back to New Jersey!

I pulled over and checked my map and realized that some joker named a town in the middle of nowhere "Jersey Shore"!

Btw, I forgot to mention the "gas-masks required" towns of Clark, Carteret, Rahway, Scotch Plains, Union, Westfield, and Woodbridge, NJ.

I had a friend who lived in Elizabeth. He had to keep his shade closed at night, because the flames shooting out of a nearby smokestack would keep him up.

He bought an Alpha Romeo Spider. He was a mail handler at the NY Bulk & Foreign Mail Center in Secaucus, NJ and worked 10 hours a day, six days a week like I did when I worked there with him so he could an afford an imported sports car. However, the air and rain were so acidic that within a year, the paint peeled off his import!

I wonder if Leica's warranty covers acid rain damage?

B.
 
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Hi all...
not using Leicas myself, but a friend here in Colombia just sent his Leicas (bought online from authorized dealer some years ago) to US for warranty repair after Leica staff directed him to to so by email, and he just received an email saying "Your repair reference number is XXXXX. I have attached the estimate" and the attached PDF file says (IN SPANISH):

"Leica USA normally does not repair equipment sent from other countries. but as your bins are already here, please call to our office to let us know how will you do your payment".. the estimated cost in that file is US 500,00!

UNBELIEVABLE!..

any comments on this?
THANKS!
 
Here is an explanation of Leica's Passport Protection Plan and Limited Warranty Plan from Company 7.

The binoculars had to be registered with Leica within 30 days of purchase for the Warranty to be valid.

This registration is in their computers. (I have Two Leicas and one Leitz. LEICA still has these registrations in their computer files.)

http://www.company7.com/leica/warbin.html

I think everyone knows that any warranty is not really free. It is factored into the cost of the Binocular. My guess is that the company protects itself by purchasing insurance to cover these eventualities. Or perhaps they "self insure."

Years ago I bought a very expensive Graphite Fly Rod from a famous manufacturer in Montana and, as requested, registered it with them. About 5 years later the company was sold and I received a letter from the new owners offering to put a no fault, lifetime repair or replacement warranty on my rod for a fee. The price they asked for this Warranty was $50.00.

Cordially,
Bob
 
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As has been stated before, when you pay a premium price for a Leica, Swaro, Zeiss, Kowa, etc you shouldn't have to screw with any warranty card, ever. Swaro and Leupold are two examples of how it should be done.
 
jgraider said:
As has been stated before, when you pay a premium price for a Leica, Swaro, Zeiss, Kowa, etc you shouldn't have to screw with any warranty card, ever. Swaro and Leupold are two examples of how it should be done.
Click to expand...

Agreed, and add to that Nikon's No Fault Warranty. No warranty, no questions asked, $20 repaired or replaced. With that deal, you don't need to wear deodorant when you go out into the field with your bins (though you might not attract as many hummingbirds :).

Brock
 
ceasar said:
Here is an explanation of Leica's Passport Protection Plan and Limited Warranty Plan from Company 7.

The binoculars had to be registered with Leica within 30 days of purchase for the Warranty to be valid.

This registration is in their computers. (I have Two Leicas and one Leitz. LEICA still has these registrations in their computer files.)

http://www.company7.com/leica/warbin.html

I think everyone knows that any warranty is not really free. It is factored into the cost of the Binocular. My guess is that the company protects itself by purchasing insurance to cover these eventualities. Or perhaps they "self insure."

Years ago I bought a very expensive Graphite Fly Rod from a famous manufacturer in Montana and, as requested, registered it with them. About 5 years later the company was sold and I received a letter from the new owners offering to put a no fault, lifetime repair or replacement warranty on my rod for a fee. The price they asked for this Warranty was $50.00.

Cordially,
Bob
Click to expand...

Bob:

I am wondering if you quickly sent a check in to the new company for the
Fly rod warranty. I am thinking not.

My experience with binocular warranties, deals with both Swarovski, and Nikon,
and I feel I have been treated very well by both. These are both companies
that are very customer oriented, provide top optics, and great to deal with.
For me that means a great deal in thinking of a future purchase.

Jerry
 
Ok Guys,

It doesn't matter what they cost. You are all old enough to know that there is no such thing as a free lunch.

Warrantys cost money. The companies have to maintain a staff to do these repairs. They have unique skills and they need to be paid accordingly.

Suppose Swarovski knocked 500 bucks of their ELs and SLCs. Would you still buy one if they told you that after 3 years of use, whether in the Amazon Jungle or from your deck in Cape May that you would then have to pay for any repairs that your binocular needed, whether from abuse, overuse, or bad luck or some tick you have that makes you keep spinning the focus wheel constantly or fiddle with the eye cup mechanism? Or would you decide instead to buy the newest state of the art Swarovski at the new inflation increased price?

Why are they any different than the cars you drive? And your life depends on cars working properly.

You buy a Rolex or a Patek Phillipe and 5 or 10 years later it needs some work. Do you think it will be free? About 5 years ago I needed a new band for my Rolex Explorer. I bought it in 1980 for $600.00. Rolex charged me $150.00 for the new band. Damn thing should have been under warranty you say! It only lasted 25 years! Cheapjack company you say! Right?

A wealthy friend of mine recently showed me a watch with a fancy name that he owned for years. Can't remember the name off hand but it was expensive. He had it cleaned and restored by the manufacturer. It looked great! And you had to wind it by hand too! It "only" cost him $300.00! He was a happy man! And he didn't take it on Safaris or run through woods wearing it.

And then on top of it you all gripe because the Optical Companies don't upgrade their lines to state of the art every year!

Good Grief!

Bob
 
NDhunter said:
Bob:

I am wondering if you quickly sent a check in to the new company for the
Fly rod warranty. I am thinking not.

My experience with binocular warranties, deals with both Swarovski, and Nikon,
and I feel I have been treated very well by both. These are both companies
that are very customer oriented, provide top optics, and great to deal with.
For me that means a great deal in thinking of a future purchase.

Jerry
Click to expand...

No I didn't. I decided to put it on a new "state of the art" graphite rod!:king:

Bob
 
What part of Leica charges a premium price and delivers below average service don't you understand? Freaking Zen Ray does a better job (No offense Charles, that's intended as a compliment).
 
I understand it completely.

Just don't buy them if you don't like the way they do business or if they haven't handled your problems to your satisfaction or if you don't trust them to stay reliable. Buy a Zen-Ray instead.

If I was in the financial position to chose between them I'd take the Leica every time and take my chances with their warranty service. Otherwise I'd buy the Zen-Ray and not because I thought it would be better or more reliable or had a better warranty. It would be because I could afford them.

Bob
 
jgraider said:
That's why I bought a Kowa Prominar 884 spotter, and a Swaro bino.........damn sure not Leica.
Click to expand...

here in europe the service from leica is improved over the years,
A friend of me has dropt his leica HD out of his backpack on the ground and the Hd was repairt for free !! ;)
 
pimpelmees said:
here in europe the service from leica is improved over the years,
A friend of me has dropt his leica HD out of his backpack on the ground and the Hd was repairt for free !! ;)
Click to expand...

I'm hoping so. I've just sent back a pair of 13 year old BA's because the lens coatings appear to be coming off! The shop has sent them back under warranty and I'm hoping for a no charge scenario!
 
Craig H

Good luck with this. I sent my almost 10 year old and still in warranty BAs back to Leica at the end of October for the same reason. I was told that the repair was 'cosmetic' and therefore not covered by the warranty and would cost 354 Euros! Despite my protestations, Leica wouldn't budge and I'm now awaiting the return of my unrepaired bins.
Mark
 
M Edgeller said:
Craig H

Good luck with this. I sent my almost 10 year old and still in warranty BAs back to Leica at the end of October for the same reason. I was told that the repair was 'cosmetic' and therefore not covered by the warranty and would cost 354 Euros! Despite my protestations, Leica wouldn't budge and I'm now awaiting the return of my unrepaired bins.
Mark
Click to expand...

That is not particularly encouraging!!! :C I'm afraid there is no way I'll be paying that. I was going to buy a new pair of bins after xmas and any cash I have is going to those. I had my eye on the Ultravid HD's but if theyre going to play silly beggars I'll be going for the Swaro's instead.
 
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Craig H said:
That is not particularly encouraging!!! :C I'm afraid if there is no way I'll be paying that. I was going to buy a new pair of bins after xmas and any cash I have is going to those. I had my eye on the Ultravid HD's but if theyre going to play silly beggars I'll be going for the Swaro's instead.
Click to expand...

The reason why I would never buy anything made by leica!!
 
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