I say write to the press - their attitude is disgusting. You first paragraph realy bothered me. I think getting in touch with a local MP may help? Find out who is in charge of those laws, and why they are 'apparently wrong'!

xx

Sorry to hear this Patch. Very dissappointing with a new camera but these things happen, they are after all machines.

I know it`s just a machine Dawn but it`s the principle of the thing as much as anything and the fact that I`ve been unable to use my camera, but it has also soiled the enjoyment I was having with it because now every time I go to use it in the future I`ll worry that the same thing will happen again

Anyhoo, the update so far : Bennetts collected the lens, [ a day after they were supposed to collect it ], so they had it last Tuesday, they said it would be sent to Nikon the same day or the Wednesday depending on if it got to them in time or not on the Tuesday.

Roll ahead by a week, I phoned Nikon this Tuesday - no lens had arrived with them...

Phoned Bennetts who said it had been sent the week before...

Nikon then phoned Bennetts on Wednesday to ask for proof of postage, Bennetts said it had only been sent this Tuesday, a full week after they picked it up....

Phoned Bennetts to find out what they were playing at, got nowhere, so I demanded to speak to someone with a brain cell instead of the call centre person who had insisted he was the highest person in the company to deal with these things, bypassed hi and got the name of a Company Director, left my number and waited.

The CD phoned me and said he had the call centre blokes version of events but wanted mine so I told him what a farce it had been, he said he was happy to authorise a new lens to be sent to me, I said `well thank you, at last, that`s all I wanted to hear ` to which he seemed very surprised and said ` really, you just wanted the lens replacing ??`, so goodness knows what rot the other bloke had spun him, though nothing would surprise me considering he had called me a liar as it was about the number of calls I`d had to make, the number of people, [ including their names ], who had given me the runaround, the fact that he had said, ` well I was going to send a new replacement but I`ve changed my mind so you`ll just have to accept a repair whether you like it or not`..... , and the fact that I had already received an email from Nikon telling me that from the description and the error message on the software that it was highly unlikely the lens would be worth or even possible for repairing so yes Bennetts would indeed be liable for giving me a new one !!!!

So anyway the CD said as soon as the duff thing was with Nikon a new one would be sent to me in exchange, and that the duff one was being sent that day - er, hang on, I was tol it was sent a week before, Nikon were told it was sent the day before, now I was being told it still had`nt been sent

He was very apologetic and said he would deal with it personally to make sure it went that day, [ Wednesday of this week ], and promised the bloke who had treated me like dirt would be dealt with in no uncertain terms, and that when the replacement arrives he wants me to ring him on his direct line to confirm when I have it and that he will extend the warranty period by way of trying to make amends.

[ I noted the serial number of the duff thing which I put on a receipt which I had the collection bloke sign for to make sure they don`t try sending it back to me instead of the new replacement ].

So I shall have to wait twiddling my thumbs hoping not too many days pass before the new lens arrives so I can get on with using the camera again, preferably this year please Bennetts

[ Guess where I will never buy anything from again as a result of this ridiculous situation, having previously been a regular customer of theirs for a good few years until all this farce got underway...... ]

Ho hum

Good to hear it is on the road to being sorted...

Patch that is disgusting, I can't help wondering if you had been a man they would have tried it on like that, perhaps so.

The Trading standards is wrong also, you do not have to accept a repair.

Did it turn out the camera is working alright and there is no problem with that like the rubber peeling off.

If you wish to change suppliers I would suggest SRS, I have never heard anything by praise about them, phone them up and a replacement is in the post a firm that still has customer service at the top of the list.

That's abominable behaviour! Glad it appears to be being sorted now. Good luck.
xx

Good girl Patch, stick to your guns!!! Keep us informed.

[ Long, sorry ]

The saga of Bennetts continues....

So what`s been happening regarding the duff lens on my Nikon D40......

Bennetts phoned me last Friday to say the standard lens is no longer in production, [ that`s news to Jessops and Nikon apparently....], so they offered the following options :

1] Swapping the Nikon for a [ lesser grade ] Sony
2] A refund which would be by cheque so would take considerable time for them to process it, post it, [ taking their record into account of holding onto the faulty lens for a full week before getting round to sending it to Nikon ], bank it, wait for it to clear, then try to find somewhere that still had a Nikon D40 on the shelf, [ as the model itself - not the lens - has been discontinued ].
3] A replacement lens of a different model, the Nikkor 18-55 VR, plus extended warranty, and a new camera bag `by way of making amends`.

I opted for option 3.

I was then told by Bennetts that Nikon had none currently in stock so it would take about 2 weeks to get it to me.
I accepted this. [ Not much choice obviously ].

At all times it was made clear that repairing the dud was not acceptable and that I did not have to accept a repair, this was agreed to by the person from Bennetts who had said said he fully understood and accepted that I would never trust it and was not prepared to go through this rigmarole again.

When they collected the duff thing I printed out a collection receipt which I had the collection bloke sign, it states he was signing it for Bennetts and the specific branch, and worded that he was collecting the lens which was to be replaced with a new one.

At no time did Bennetts query or disagree with that document during the time they held onto the lens nor since so as far as I`m concerned [ and trading Standards ], they accepted it on that condition and sent it to Nikon for the sole purpose of Nikon confirming that the lens had not been dropped nor otherwise damaged through negligence. On Friday I spoke both to Nikon and Bennetts to confirm yet again that I would not accept that thing back, [ Nikon initially told me they had been instructed to repair - Bennetts denied that and said Nikon were telling them one thing and me another.... ], the no repair stance was acknowledged by the Services dept manager at every single step through every single phonecall with him, Nikon have it in writing from me as well as Bennetts having the replacement only wording in writing from me [ and signed for ] on the collection receipt.

So, as of last Friday I have been counting the days for the VR lens to be sent to me.

Forward to today, [ date of this posting ] :

Bennetts left a message on my answerphone saying Nikon had repaired the duff piece of garbage and it was being sent to me.

Unacceptable !!!!!!!!!!

I phoned them back immediately and the same bloke, [ who had said he was happy to authorise the replacement and would take the previous bloke to task for how he had treated me ], recanted everything he said - including raising his voice at me and telling me this was all `just tiresome` now - and today he denied saying he would send the replacement full stop and is now claiming he said all along that he would only send a replacement if Nikon said the lens could not be repaired.

That is absolutely untrue, at no time did he say that to me and no way would I have accepted such a condition.

Next he says - knowing the camera is now off the shelves so I would`nt be able to get a complete replacement - that he would refund to my father, [ who paid for it on his debit card ], but that my father has to call him first - great, my father is elderly, not in the best of health, and is currently abroad for complete rest and relaxation so this is what he has to come back to in a few days time.....after I had deliberately not told him the problems I am having with Bennetts because I know full well he will feel responsible for getting it from them in the first place so would feel like he has let me down and will be extremely stressed over it especially if they talk to him they way I have been spoken down to, it is absolutely unacceptable.

I told Bennetts I want a copy of all their notes on the case to be sent to me including a taped conversation which I welcomed to be done on condition that I was sent a copy, no notes and no tape have been sent to me at the time of writing this post.

So now I am having to follow the steps advised by Trading Standards [ who do now say that I have not only the right to stipulate if I wanted replacement rather than repair and have stated categorically that Bennetts verbally offering and me accepting a new VR lens is a legally binding contract - they said it might be hard to prove that it was said - until I pointed out that I would not have known it was a VR they promised to send without them telling me so, [ as the original is not a VR ], and asking if that would be acceptable plus offering a camera bag and extended warrantly, and that they must have had clear intent to send it as they had spoken to Nikon to find out how long it would take to get it to me once ordered after Nikon confirming that the original piece of garbage had not been dropped - somewhat compelling on the evidence stakes.... ].

Trading Standards have advised me to put everything in writing to their MD [ well, there are three Directors so a CC to each of them ], and giving them a reasonable timescale in which to honour the agreement by sending me a new VR lens and if they don`t comply then I have to take them to court.


On speaking to Jessops today, [ while trying to find anywhere which might still have a D40 in stock ], they were appalled at how I`ve been treated and confirmed what Trading Standards have been telling me, Jessops told me the procedure they would follow in the same situation - most importantly that they would not have allowed the situation to get to this stage, that the faulty goods are between them and the manufacturer to sort out, not the customer to have to battle it out, stating that had the camera been from them if I walked in and put the duff lens on the counter they would have no doubt that it was a lens fault not a handler fault, [ they said it`s very obvious if a lens has been dropped as they mark or even crack very easily and as soon as I told them the initial problem with the servo auto focus being noisy and going really slowly she pretty much finished the sentence for me by predicting the rest of the scenario through product knowledge - after that I told her what Nikon had said also re the fault itself and she said yes absolutely no question they would have replaced the lens there and then, [ they have many of the standard one in stock which Bennetts claim Nikon told them was discontinued ] and that if it happened to be a lens they did`nt have in stock they would have sourced one as fast as possible even if it meant having to go to another retailer for it rather than allow this situation to happen.

I mentioned about the battery being missing from the box right at the start - Jessops told me it`s usual practice for cameras which are going on display to have the batteries removed and that it`s not uncommon for ex-display things which might get handled a lot `to suffer in some way as a consequence`
[ I can`t help but wonder, food for thought as to the lens failing perhaps....? ]

The manager at Jessops was lovely, not in a gloating at Bennetts way but a very genuine dislike of the way I`m being treated, and very helpful indeed for confirming my rights and vendors` obligations from their point of view as a retailer, they have asked me to keep in touch with them to let them know what happens [ no they were`nt just being nice to get me to buy a replacement from them if Bennetts do refund, [ I don`t want a refund, just the flippin` lens ], as Jessops no longer stock the D40 and no way can I find over a hundred quid extra to go with a refund to get the D90 instead so there is no financial gain for them - though obviously for future purchases if and when I want enhancements / gadgets they will be high on my list ], so it`s the biggest thumbs down to Bennetts at this stage and a massive thumbs up to Jessops for being helpful and quite frankly making me feel a lot better simply by treating me like a human being instead of being treated like pond scum a la Bennetts.


I really don`t need this upset and hassle, however `what`s right is right` and I will take whatever legal steps I have to in order to get the damned replacement lens from them.

So much for a joyous introduction to photography, I have a few shots I have`nt posted which I took before the lens failed but have`nt yet had the heart to post them, might put them up later if I can stand to look at them, feeling somewhat demoralised about anything photographic right now thanks to Bennetts

[ If you got this far down and stayed awake thank you for reading/listening ].

ps in the previous post I had been led to believe the person who was dealing with it was a company director, however when asking the name of the top most MD I need to write I was told there are three Directors, his name was`nt one of them, I queried it and he`s a Service Manager not a Director..........]

It might not be the perfect solution in your eyes any longer as I'm sure you would love that VR but I think I'd be inclined to just get the lens back and get on with your photography. It's an issue for sure but sometimes it's worth taking a step back and being philosophical about the whole thing. It's a lens, you expected the standard lens and you are getting it back fully rebuilt and calibrated by Nikon. It will probably be better than before. They are technicians used to broken professional lenses and likely better than a Chinese production line issue you had before.

Apologies if this sounds not quite what you want to hear, I have every sympathy, but a load of sympathy won't help your situation and sometimes it's best just to get on with it. Bennetts are a load of tossers obviously, Jessops can smell a sale, meanwhile your photography and mental health suffer. I'm a great believer that sometimes you have to just draw a line and preserve your own dignity and sanity. As I said before, they will probably be down the pan soon. Spread the word...

Understand what you are saying BC but they have gone too far, they are treating me like a mug which is one thing I won`t stand for.
Still no lens, no returned phone calls or emails since they reneged on their promise to send a new lens, [ and I`m scared stiff of what my phone bill will be like frankly, they can flippin` pay that back too ! ], Nikon refuse point blank to give me a written report on the lens fault, also they claim they sent the duff crap thing back to Bennetts on the 6th of June so why is it now the 16th and still no resolution in any way - they had their chance to rectify the situation but have chosen to behave disgracefully instead, I feel like my photography interest, [ as it was anyway ], is being held to ransom.

If they want to have to explain to a judge why they think their behaviour over the matter is ok then so be it, I`ll see them there, no matter how big a name they think they are and no matter how much money they have available to try to squash insignificant little nobodies like me I am prepared to take them on in court for how they are treating me, a new fully working replacement lens instead of a piece of tat is what I am entitled to, they are not getting away with it.

On a personal level you are right, my photography has suffered, not just through not being able to use the camera for a month now but because I`m starting to feel like a complete fool now for thinking it was something I could really get in to and have a chance of being reasonably good at, this whole business has sapped the joy out of it for me, they have tainted it, at the moment I feel like I might as well just put the D40 in a box then in a cupboard out of sight, leave it there, and just stick to taking snaps on my compact