Canon Negate Warranty

dotsman

Hey, just wondering does anybody have any similar experience?

I bought a Canon Digital camera last summer and everything was fine until I tried to use it over the Easter holidays. I hadn;t used it since Xmas and noticed that it was making a funny noise, then stopped working completely.

So I rang Canon, who told me to ship it to them (€9 insured) and then took 3 weeks to get back to me to say that it is not covered by the warranty because they think it might have been dropped. Now I didn't drop it and I don't see how it could have picked up that kind of damage. It would have always been kept in a case and would never have been unreasonably treated.

But saying that, it could theoretically have been dropped by a housemate or a visitor without my knowledge. At the same time, the damage may have been caused by the postman or one of the Canon technicians! All cases seem unlikely, but their the only explanations I can think of!

Anyway, what I want to know is where do I go from here? I don't believe I should have to pay for the repairs as I have done nothing wrong (Canon are quoting over €200 for the repair - it cost me €250 last summer).
I also am surprised by Canon's treatment (pretty much accusing me of fraud) and would have assumed that the benefit of the doubt would lie with the customer! Do people think that if this went to Small Claims that it would be up to me to prove it was not caused by being dropped (pretty impossible to do) of would it be up to them to prove that it was caused by being dropped prior to arriving in their care (again, pretty difficult to do)

On a side not, I've notice that Canon have discountinued this particular model (Would have been very popular only last summer when I bought it). Wonder if that has anything to do with it (maybe them no longer having the correct parts etc and just want to get rid of me)?

Gillo

Firstly, I hardly think they are accusing you of fraud and if you deciede to take it to the small claims court, wouldn't accuse canon of that. You'll just look like a ranting kn0b.

Ask canon to explain how they think it was dropped?
Are there any marks or scratches on the casing of the unit that could suggest physical damage to the unit.

If they can't give a satisfactory reason, then I'd say yeah go to the small claims court.

jor el

When you posted the camera by registered post, did you put a value on the receipt, and also did you keep that receipt? If you did, then you could claim for the damages off An Post's insurance if you believe it was damaged in the post. Get Cannon to send you back the camera, and the box it was shipped in, as you'll probably need all of these if you are to make a claim.

Of course, the first thing to do is get Cannon to explain how and why they believe it was damaged as a result of misuse.

dotsman

Spoke to the repair company in England who insist that the "optical has been forced inwards" and that this could only have been caused by force.

They said they have no reason to exaggerate as they get paid the same by Canon regardless (they don't work directly for Canon).

I did insure it for 200 in the post and have the receipt, but how do I know that this was caused by An Post? And how can I prove it?

I'll have to get back to Canon, but as I have said, I am very disappointed with their treatment. I have sent back electronic goods to other companies and have always had them repaired under warranty (even the one time where I admitted it was my fault - they said they would repair it for free anyway (that company was Archos by the way - legendary customer service!))

Ultimately, I see the problem that some "optical" has been dislodged internally (no external damage), and they are not willing to consider that it might actually be their responsibility ( I certainly question the durability of the camera - if I didn't drop it, and they didn't drop it, then it must be a very flimsy build!)

Guess at this stage, unless they give me any hope that they will reconsider (or partially pay for the repair - €100 of the quote is for labour!!!), I will take this to Small Claims and never buy a Canon product again.

This can also be a warning to people thinking of buying a Canon product. Although the camera was great when it worked, it didn't even last a year (with a non-existant warranty) and disgraceful customer service. I really hate companies like this (NTL springs to mind;)).

jor el

dotsman wrote:

I did insure it for 200 in the post and have the receipt, but how do I know that this was caused by An Post? And how can I prove it?

If you claim then it'll be up to them to disprove it. Be prepared for them to fight you on it as they don't give in easily. I made a claim before and it took months to resolve and I even had to send off the packing I had used the the item that was damaged (a DVD writer).

Small claims might not work out for you this time either as the independent repair company is backing Cannon in saying the damage is not covered under warranty.

311

Tell them to ship it back to canon ireland ,theres a repair centre in sandyford I think. I wouldn't except that response ,they obviously feel it's not worth fixing.