Hi all, I've been lurking on these forums for a while and after a few months of research I pulled the trigger last week and purchased a Speedmaster Pro (311.30.42.30.01.005). Due to being a 1st time watch buyer I decided against buying second hand or over the Internet and purchased the watch from an authorised dealer in my home city of Sydney. Really happy with the watch up until last night as I noticed the chronograph 'slips' when I push the start button from zero. It happens roughly every second time I start the chrono and slips to around the 5 second mark (the video attached shows this). I will of course take this back to the shop, however there are a couple of points I would be grateful to take advice on: 1- Should I take this back to the AD or go straight to the Omega boutique? I read another forum member 'Silver Eagle' recently had a similar issue and had a good outcome dealing with Omega directly. 2- Is this fault grounds to demand an exchange of the watch? I am quite disappointed with what's happened and would be even more disappointed to be told it was a 4 - 8 week wait to get this repaired (particularly having only got a chance to wear this for 1 week). In addition if someone has experience with a fault of this nature I would be appreciative if you could share what the underlying issue was. This may be of assistance when dealing with the shop staff. Any and all help appreciated, thank you
Unusual behaviour and something that I think I've seen before. Have you approached the AD you bought it from and discussed solutions?
Certainly something amiss there. I would press for a replacement at the AD where you bought it as a first step. Whether they do or not will depend on their goodwill and the consumer protection laws where you live. Failing that you can try Omega directly. Either way you will get it fixed as it is under warranty, just a question of how quickly it is repaired or replaced. Disappointing to have this right off the bat, but it does happen. Hope you get it sorted out quickly.
Have not approached AD but I will go and see them at lunchtime tomorrow. I've had a brief read through the NSW fair trading department department which looks after consumer rights in my state and as with a lot of these things rules and regulations can be open to interpretation. I've read some good things about this AD on various forums so hopefully things are straightforward tomorrow. Thanks for taking the time to reply.
Back to where you bought it show them. If its where i think you got it in Sydney they will be OK . Omega Service center in Sydney so if they warranty fix it will be a week at the most.
Sounds like a standard replacement policy will apply at the AD. I doubt you will need to get Omega involved directly, and I would definitely be firm about wanting a replacement.
I had warranty dealings with Omega some years ago, upon talking to them on the phone after their assessment I got complete satisfaction. I'm not saying it all went smoothly at first but Omega do honour their watches. Be patient and polite they will sort you out its no big deal to them they can fix it.
Visited the AD today they were quite unhelpful stating that they do not offer exchanges and are not watchmakers so they cannot confirm that what is happening is a fault with the watch. They mentioned they would send it to Omega in Melbourne with a wait time of around 4 weeks in order to confirm there is a fault with the watch. Visited the Omega boutique who were quite a bit more helpful and offered to have the watch repaired in 10 - 14 days locally. They've also stated, rightly so I believe, that if an replacement of the watch was to occur it would be the responsibility of the retailer. Working in the tech field (telecomms) I am quite used to companies replacing equipment without question when there is a fault, and perhaps what applies to electronic equipment does not apply to a mechanical timepiece which has discreet components that are able to be repaired. Having said that is is disappointing that a faulty piece of equipment has been sold. Will ring Fair Trading shortly to find were I stand and if a repair is the extent of my entitlements in this case.
You're right about Fair Trading - they were quite hopeless on the phone to be honest. It turns out Omega do have a 14 exchange policy in case of fault but only if purchased through their boutique stores. The authorised dealer " Swiss Concept " in Sydney have again stated they do not refund or exchange in case of fault. Their handling of this issue has been quite disappointing.
Sorry this is happening to you cdg03... its just one of those things, even with all the QC in place, there is the occasional new watch that is just not 100% right. I could almost see how this could have slipped through final checks, but its also possible something broke along its journey to the AD. It really bothers me when AD's don't go the full mile in situations like this, and I would have balked at 4 weeks as well. Sounds like the boutique is stepping up to cover you, not surprising, that's why so many of us LOVE our local boutiques and the customer service they provide all of us. I reward them with my business because I know I will be 100% taken care of, no questions asked. Hate to sound like I'm shilling for the boutiques, but this is my experience.
Thanks for your comment and sympathy repoman - completely understand that these things do happen and slightly defective watches would get through QC. By the same token I believed I was taking the safe path by buying from an AD and that if something like this happened (particularly in the first week) the AD would exchange the watch and take care of the 'back end' side of things i.e. return the watch to Omega and claim their purchase price back. Unfortunately this was a false assumption at least with this particular AD, also a failure by me to check their short term exchange policy. After expressing my disappointment to a member of the service team in the boutique they've agreed to have a look at it as a priority and will get back to me with a resolution within the next couple of days. Obviously I couldn't agree with you more about the boutiques and any future purchases will be directly through them.
I had a slight issue with my Speedy Pro bought from an AD. There was a bit of debris around the movement (I have the sapphire case back). I took it back to the Ads and they were very helpful. An exchange would've taken a while as they had to order in, so the sent to the UK Omega service centre who performed a full service. It was back with me in 2 weeks. I find it odd that your AD wouldn't entertain an exchange/refund. In the UK, if a product (any product) is found to be faulty or not fit for purpose, the buyer is legally entitled to either repair, exchange or refund. In this case, the AD shouldn't be worried about losing money as the manufacturer (Omega) should reimburse them for any costs due to a fault (which it clearly is!). I hope you get it sorted either way, but it sounds like your AD isn't really playing fair.
I've never seen that issue with the chronograph hand before. Like others have said, your watch being brand new is still under warranty and your AD will take care of you.
Unfortunately they have only offered to send it away for repair, which due to it being a brand new purchase I didn't believe was an appropriate response. Once I get the watch back from Omega I am going to inquire as to what their policy is with regards to accepting returns from dealers. I'd love to know if the dealer is not exchanging the watch just to save themselves the paper work and effort involved in returning a faulty timepiece.
Doesn't seem like very good service from your AD. Any time I've seen or heard of brand new timepieces with manufacturer's faults the AD has done a straight exchange with another new piece. Do you have any other dealer options near you?