SRB Photographic service and poor attitude to faulty item

[alfbranch]

My daughter bought me some extension tubes from SRG Photographic as a Christmas present and they worked great up until recently. The tubes started to play up recently losing connection between the camera and lens which on my mirrorless camera led to a blank viewfinder.


I checked the contacts were cleana nd tried the on another camera same fault occurred so I contacted my daughter for the order info and they were bought last November.



I contacted the retailer SRB Photographic whith the order details and decsription of the fault and my checks.



The first thing I was told was "You have had them over a month in fact its nearly a year there is nothing we can do"


I asked are you kidding?


Answer what do you expect us to do?


repair or replace them


No questions were asked about the condition and treatment of the item just the stateent "You may have dropped them or anything there is nothing we can do"

I could have accepted some questions like have you dropped the item or caused it any damage in any way and could you send us photos of it now etc.



This entered into a circular conversation and then I was told I need to speak to my MD eventually I spoke to the MD to get exactly the same statements.


What to do next?

[Iansky]

Re: SRB Photographic service and poor attitude to faulty item

report to trading standards, long distance selling regs should cover that for you.

[Crazy Dave]

Re: SRB Photographic service and poor attitude to faulty item

Send them a link to this post indicating that the goodwill built up with members of this forum may be jeopardised?

David

[Bikie John]

Re: SRB Photographic service and poor attitude to faulty item

That is odd, I have had good service there in the past. Things change over time though, sorry you have been badly served Alf.

John

[Wee man]

Re: SRB Photographic service and poor attitude to faulty item

Query the warranty terms of goods, letting them know people on this site are waiting to see their customer service conditions.

[Steambuff]

Re: SRB Photographic service and poor attitude to faulty item

You should check what warranty they came with, also get your daughter to contact them as she was the original purchaser. (Warranty often does not transfer to a new owner)

I assume that you have tried them on another camera and lens?

Since these are usually sold in a set of 2 or 3 ... have you tried each one on its own? and do they all fail?

Dave

[Zuiko]

Re: SRB Photographic service and poor attitude to faulty item

That's another company I will be sure to avoid unless I hear of a dramatic change of attitude. What always amazes me is that companies such as this fail to appreciate the importance of providing good service and apparently place such little value on their reputations.

[raymondo]

Re: SRB Photographic service and poor attitude to faulty item

Hi Alf, I am sorry to hear you are having problems with SRB, the tubes are not very expensive to purchase, and would not put a big dent in the profits of SRB to just simply replace them for you, after all, you have only had them for less than a year, (and most people like yourself take really good care of their gear,)I would imagine now, SRB will loose a lot of potential custom from all the people who read these forums, word will spread like" wild fire" in the photographic realms about bad customer care and rudeness from SRB, as a member on here has already said, send them the link so that they can read the bad press that they are getting. I sincerely hope that they replace them and throw a little bonus in, as an apology to you ,and to rebuild our faith in them.

[Phill D]

Re: SRB Photographic service and poor attitude to faulty item

I've bought from them at the NEC shows in the past and been pleased. Not needed any after sales service though so this is pretty disappointing. Will be wary in the future.

[IainMacD]

Re: SRB Photographic service and poor attitude to faulty item

This is disappointing, I have purchased quite a few filters and other bits n bobs from them and always had good service, but like Phil I have never tested the after sales service; I hope it all works out fine in the end Alf.

[Wee man]

Re: SRB Photographic service and poor attitude to faulty item

When I contacted them about tubes I was told NO warranty! Only a thirty day return, strange I thought all goods had some form of warranty?

[DavyG]

Re: SRB Photographic service and poor attitude to faulty item

Thanks for the heads up, definitely a company to avoid.

It may be worth asking your daughter to contact Trading Standards for advice.

I hope you get this resolved.

Dave

[Ralph Harwood]

Re: SRB Photographic service and poor attitude to faulty item

When I contacted them about tubes I was told NO warranty! Only a thirty day return, strange I thought all goods and some form of warranty?

Just because they say things like "NO warranty" doesn't mean that they have a legal leg to stand on - camera tubes that fail within a year are clearly not fit for the purpose for which they are sold - so sale of goods act should kick in.

I hope you get this sorted Alf, but I for one am another who will be giving these guys a very wide berth!

Cheers,

Ralph.

[timboo]

Re: SRB Photographic service and poor attitude to faulty item

Just because they say things like "NO warranty" doesn't mean that they have a legal leg to stand on - camera tubes that fail within a year are clearly not fit for the purpose for which they are sold - so sale of goods act should kick in.

I hope you get this sorted Alf, but I for one am another who will be giving these guys a very wide berth!

Cheers,

Ralph.

sale of goods act used to cover up to 3 yrs, where u are entitled to some money back outside of 12 months taking into account use of the item so anything under 12 months should be bomb proof. my microwave was 18 months old took it back and got half my money back.The legislation changed recently to the consumers advantage have a read.

[Simon Bee]

Re: SRB Photographic service and poor attitude to faulty item

sale of goods act used to cover up to 3 yrs, where u are entitled to some money back outside of 12 months taking into account use of the item so anything under 12 months should be bomb proof. my microwave was 18 months old took it back and got half my money back.The legislation changed recently to the consumers advantage have a read.

Taken from the 'Sales of Goods Act'..........

Beyond six months, it's up to you to prove that the problem was there when you received the goods even if it has taken until now to come to light.
So, you may need to prove that the fault was not down to ordinary wear and tear or damage you caused, and that the product (or a component) should have lasted longer than it did.

link here .....

http://www.which.co.uk/consumer-rights/regulation/sale-of-goods-act#link-3

Check the original sales receipt for clarification on the 'period of warranty' as not 'all' goods are automatically covered by a 'minimum 12 month period' as many folk often believe they are. Whilst I have great sympathy, one must always check at the time of purchase what the given warranty period is, and ensure that it is either stated on the receipt or on an official warranty card which should be backed up with the sales receipt to validate it. However given the relative low cost of the tubes as already said it would surely have been a better advertisement for their service had they approached the problem with a more sympathetic tone and ear.

Hope it works out for you Alf

Kind regards, Simon