[weverka]

I got the estimate online for repair of a PENTAX LENS 24-70/2.8 ED SDM WR , $389. I agreed and sent in the lens.
They wrote me to say that now they want $200 more than that or they want $45 to send it back to me unrepaired.

Their terms and conditions say they can re-estimate the job, but that returns unrepaired cost $18.50.

Should I spend the $600 to repair ? , Demand they return it for $18.50, or pay the $45?

Frustrated,
Teddy


Terms and Conditions:
...
Repairs that are found to have physical damage or require major parts may be re-estimated. If an estimate is provided, your approval is required before repairs are performed. If you choose to decline this estimate your product will be returned to you unrepaired and you are responsible for the cost of return ground shipping only at $18.50 (Signature Required) plus any applicable insurance coverage. If you approve this estimate we will return the repaired product to you at the Ship-To address you furnished when you authorized service, once service is complete.

[UncleVanya]

The insurance may be the cost difference on the shipping. Did they explain what is broken?

[normhead]

If they hadn't seen the lens, how could they have anticipated what it would cost to repair it?

Only you could know what kind of life the lens has had, but if the lens has been babied, never dropped or knocked, I'd be hesitant to pay much for repair. The issues that cause an undamaged lens to fail are often missed doing a simple repair where they just bring all components up to spec. There are way to many reports of lenses that failed without cause once, failing without cause again after a repair. Repairmen can find what's damaged. They don't always find what caused the damage.

The problem with all repair services these days, is ti costs them money to put together an estimate, money they don't get back the lens is returned un-repaired. If you've ever worked repairing anything you know the issues.

[jpzk]

Cheer up ... my daughter sent her Pentax HD 150-450 that had a defective "collar"(where the lens attach to the body of the camera) and got an "estimate" of 800$, plus the "normal" other fees ... whatever.
So ... the lens went from the store in Calgary ... to Japan for the "estimate" ... she refused to pay that much and the lens was finally returned to her and she now has an expensive bookend!
They did, of course, charge her the usual estimate and shipping fees.

BTW, she has switched system to Nikon ... good or bad? Time will tell.

[blackcloudbrew]

I will say that yes, it's worth thinking this through but...my experience with Precision (which I assume you are speaking about), is that they have a fixed price for repair (which for me has covered almost all of the problems I've had with my lenses and cameras sent to them, at about one issue per year or so), but in one case my DFA 150-450 was estimated at about $300 initially (as I recall, this was 3 years ago too) when I sent it to them. Took a while but they came back to me with a similar issue the lens, which had physically separated into two pieces including all the internal wiring, had to be sent to Japan for repair at a cost of about $1100 (up $800 from the initial website quote I got before I sent it to them). I can tell you I initially gauged on that but given the state the damage to the lens (out of warranty of course), I had to admit that sounded more like what was required than there on line guestimate quote I first got. So, I paid the price and about 2 months later the lens came back in perfect shape and had no issues since then. Given that it would have cost me more to get a replacement lens, the fix was the only way to go.

If you like the lens and can't find another for better than the price of repair, just get it fixed and move on. There is no way to tell with only one repair place whether the price is low/high or about right. YMMV

[mee]

Cheer up ... my daughter sent her Pentax HD 150-450 that had a defective "collar"(where the lens attach to the body of the camera) and got an "estimate" of 800$, plus the "normal" other fees ... whatever.
So ... the lens went from the store in Calgary ... to Japan for the "estimate" ... she refused to pay that much and the lens was finally returned to her and she now has an expensive bookend!
They did, of course, charge her the usual estimate and shipping fees.

BTW, she has switched system to Nikon ... good or bad? Time will tell.

Good for performance and lens ecosystem. But they have reduced repair services over the past few years too to try to funnel it to them (and not 3rd parties). So if she ever needs repairs it could be a similar outcome (outside of having to send to Japan).

It seems like as the market shrinks, support service does too.

[normhead]

Cheer up ... my daughter sent her Pentax HD 150-450 that had a defective "collar"(where the lens attach to the body of the camera) and got an "estimate" of 800$, plus the "normal" other fees ... whatever.
So ... the lens went from the store in Calgary ... to Japan for the "estimate" ... she refused to pay that much and the lens was finally returned to her and she now has an expensive bookend!
They did, of course, charge her the usual estimate and shipping fees.

BTW, she has switched system to Nikon ... good or bad? Time will tell.

Tell her I'll give her $200 for it.

Years ago, someone asked my Commercial Studio teacher what the difference between a cheap and expensive camera was. "The expensive ones cost a lot more to repair." I suspect the same is true of lenses.

---------- Post added 08-21-20 at 11:37 AM ----------

I've known a few repair technicians. They have lots of "ridiculous customer demands" stories. There's two sides of every story. The issue is their right to income. People seem to think they should work for free based on an insufficient initial estimate made without an inspection. I saw it installing Kitchen cabinets, where we would remove the old cabinets, find structural damage that made installation much harder and possibly unsafe, and somehow, that was our fault. Not all dissatisfaction with repair service is justified, in fact, most of it is just folks trying to get someone else to pay for what is essentially their problem.

---

Last edited by normhead; 08-21-2020 at 08:42 AM.

[DennisH]

FWIW, I just paid $675 for a used copy from B&H, which so far seems to work well. I’m not sure I’m going to keep it, but there are lenses out there in that price range. Lens Authority has one for $660.

[Wasp]

Sounds like Precision is not doing the Pentax brand any favors.

[normhead]

Sounds like Precision is not doing the Pentax brand any favors.

Why would a private company do anyone any favours?

What does that have to do with Pentax?

If you want to give some example compared to ther service they perform that Pentaxians are getting the shaft, I'll take a look. If not it was simply an irresponsible thing to say.

[Wasp]

It's a figure of speech. Precision giving Pentax owners bad service damages the brand's image in the eyes of the consumer.

[normhead]

It's a figure of speech. Precision giving Pentax owners bad service damages the brand's image in the eyes of the consumer.

And where did we determine they were giving people bad service?

[c.a.m]

They lied on the terms of service. That is bad service.

It must be disappointing that the cost to repair your lens is considerably more than the first online estimate.

What did the company say when you asked them to explain the $45 shipping cost? The Terms and Conditions shown in your first post indicate $18.50 plus insurance coverage. Did they tell you the cost of the insurance coverage for your particular lens? Or, is there confusion concerning the mode of shipping -- i.e., ground vs express?

As to the cost of the repair, I guess the question would be how much are you willing to pay for a working 24-70mm lens? The price you paid originally for the lens is sunk; is a functional one worth $600 now? A fully-repaired lens should be like-new (except for minor wear and tear), so $600 would be about half the price of a brand new one. Assuming you trust their repair work, half-price seems like a good deal to me.

- Craig

[Not a Number]

https://www.precisioncamera.com/ricoh/terms-conditions_Ricoh.html

3. Payment: Unless your product is repaired under warranty or extended service contract without any charge, you will promptly pay Precision Camera & Video Repair, Inc. the estimated charges identified on the reverse side plus any additional charges subsequently agreed to by you. Your payment is due prior to the product being returned to you by Precision Camera & Video Repair, Inc. Unless specified otherwise, the estimated amount includes all parts, labor, any transportation required for the repair of the product, and any applicable tax. You may, in Precision Camera & Video Repair, Inc.’s sole discretion, be responsible for a diagnostic fee and/or return shipping charges, plus any applicable tax, if Precision Camera & Video Repair, Inc. inspects your product, provides an estimate for you, and you do not authorize Precision Camera & Video Repair, Inc. to undertake the repairs for the estimated charges. If Precision Camera & Video Repair, Inc. determines, while inspecting your product, that repairs are needed due to failures of parts that are neither supplied by the distributor nor distributor branded or are needed due to damage caused by abuse, misuse or misapplications, Precision Camera & Video Repair, Inc. reserves the right to return the product to you without repairing it, and may hold you responsible for a diagnostic fee and return shipping charges, plus any applicable tax.

[jpzk]

I will say that yes, it's worth thinking this through but...my experience with Precision (which I assume you are speaking about), is that they have a fixed price for repair (which for me has covered almost all of the problems I've had with my lenses and cameras sent to them, at about one issue per year or so), but in one case my DFA 150-450 was estimated at about $300 initially (as I recall, this was 3 years ago too) when I sent it to them. Took a while but they came back to me with a similar issue the lens, which had physically separated into two pieces including all the internal wiring, had to be sent to Japan for repair at a cost of about $1100 (up $800 from the initial website quote I got before I sent it to them). I can tell you I initially gauged on that but given the state the damage to the lens (out of warranty of course), I had to admit that sounded more like what was required than there on line guestimate quote I first got. So, I paid the price and about 2 months later the lens came back in perfect shape and had no issues since then. Given that it would have cost me more to get a replacement lens, the fix was the only way to go.

If you like the lens and can't find another for better than the price of repair, just get it fixed and move on. There is no way to tell with only one repair place whether the price is low/high or about right. YMMV

I suppose it would be a good thing for me to have her lens sent to me, have it fixed for 800$ and get a "new" lens at a "discount" !