HDEW CAMERAS anyone used them?

Dave1 said:
I'm surprised it took a long discussion, Canon have refused warranty for non EU sourced products for a number of years now.

A quick look at the terms of the EWS (Europe Wide Service) warranty on the Canon website would have shown that:
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I think part of the problem is that they are not consistent with their answers and give out mixed messages. I also don't think the part of the conditions you quoted is covering what boristhemoggy appears to have posted about.
 
The reason it took a long discussion is partly because many people claim that their warranty has been accepted by Canon, including some in this thread.
Also, as the cameras all originate from the same factory and are sold by the same manufacturer, I fail to see why the warranty would be different.
 
boristhemoggy said:
The reason it took a long discussion is partly because many people claim that their warranty has been accepted by Canon, including some in this thread.
Also, as the cameras all originate from the same factory and are sold by the same manufacturer, I fail to see why the warranty would be different.
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I am one that has had their 5D MKIII repaired under warranty. Before I bought it I enquired through Canon to see if it would be covered, my enquiry was general, about buying from certain suppliers etc and they asked who I was buying from, I mentioned HDEW as one of the possibles and they said it would be covered, Flash Camera was the other. They then offered to confirm this via email which they did. This was in May last year.
 
Hi graphilly
Is it possible to get a copy of that email so I can try and push them into honouring mine too?
If so can you inbox me please to swap emails?
 
boristhemoggy said:
Also, as the cameras all originate from the same factory and are sold by the same manufacturer, I fail to see why the warranty would be different.
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FWIW, Canon's warranties are underwritten by each country/regional divisions, which are each separate companies. Each of the Canon companies in each country set their sales and profit targets, based on the goods that they sell and support.

Canon UK buy from Canon Japan and set an SRP and their wholesale pricing based on their expectations of the number of warranty repairs that they expect to arise from products that they sell in the UK.

Canon Hong Kong will do similar and set appropriate pricing for their market, but the costs of labour and taxes, etc. in Hong Kong are (almost certainly) considerably lower than those in the UK.

When you buy from Hong Kong, the cost of a repair in the UK was never factored into the price that Canon Hong Kong sold it at.

Clearly, Canon UK do not want to encourage people to buy Canon cameras and lenses and bodies from abroad, yet still have to service and support them, as it hits their bottom line. Warranty terms are one tool they have to encourage you to buy from Canon UK and dissuade you from buying abroad.

EU single market legislation means that warranties for Canon products sold in Germany must be honoured in the UK, and vice versa, but no such legislation exists to compel companies to honour a warranty on goods bought from Canon HK.

In the past, Canon offered a worldwide warranty on their L lenses (but not camera bodies, nor consumer lenses). Presumably, either the costs of warranty repairs were either recharged between the various divisions of Canon, or (possibly more likely) simply absorbed by the local company that actually performed the repair.

However, that policy was changed several years ago, probably as a result of the wider trend of people buying from retail channels in markets outside their own country.
 
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boristhemoggy said:
Excellent, I'd appreciate that
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I don't have the email any more unfortunately. Deleted in an earlier clean-up probably and it's no longer in back-ups either. Have you tried taking it to or contacting one of the service centres and seeing what their criteria are for fixing under warranty. That's what I did with mine at the end of the day and never had to produce the email. I use Johnstone's in Glasgow.
 
boristhemoggy said:
Also, as the cameras all originate from the same factory and are sold by the same manufacturer, I fail to see why the warranty would be different.
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I'm not sure that's the case, it certainly hasn't been historically with Canon. My first dslr was an American model Canon 300D and there were differences internally with different specced parts. The ir blocking filter over the sensor was a different size for example which made repairs problematic.
 
Musicman said:
FWIW, Canon's warranties are underwritten by each country/regional divisions, which are each separate companies.....
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Excellent explanation. Thanks.
 
I think it's strange that Canon are refusing cameras bought from HDEW - as you are buying from a VAT registered UK company so you should be covered, it's no fault of yours that the camera didn't originate from the UK.

I contacted Canon before I purchased my 5D MKIII & was told if you can provide proof that you purchased it from a reseller based within the UK, e.g. a VAT Invoice for you purchase you are covered under their UK warranty. Anyone having problems, I would contact HDEW and see what they say about it, might be able to sort it out for you.

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Also, just found this on HDEW's site -
"Are all products guaranteed for UK repair?

Yes. All products can be repaired in the UK. If a product purchased from us develops a fault give us a call and we can give you the instructions for the appropriate repair centres."
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So, I presume this means if Canon won't fix it, you can contact them and they'll have a local company do it for you.
 
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All HDEW's repairs go back to Johnstones in Glasgow. Where do a large amount of CPS repairs go....Johnstones! Saying that I don't think Johnstones actually do repairs. I think they simply administer them.

hate that you can't delete a post grr
 
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I've bought a 5D 3, a 70-200 is ii, and a 24-105 from HDEW, and every purchase has been delivered quickly. Given the money I've saved on these items I'm more than happy with their own warranties offered.
I also bought a 7D from Panamoz, and when that developed a fault three months down the line they had a replacement out to me within the week.
 
I got my 6D from them at June 2013. It has just developed a fault - Error 30 if shutter speed is lower than 1/30. I have emailed hdew yesterday and today they replied with instructions to send the camera to Johnstones. That was quick response and so far so good. Finger crossed this will go through smoothly. Will update with the outcome here. At the end of the day a company is as good as how it handles customer's issues.
 
RainMaker said:
I got my 6D from them at June 2013. It has just developed a fault - Error 30 if shutter speed is lower than 1/30. I have emailed hdew yesterday and today they replied with instructions to send the camera to Johnstones. That was quick response and so far so good. Finger crossed this will go through smoothly. Will update with the outcome here. At the end of the day a company is as good as how it handles customer's issues.
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Will be interested to hear how it all goes. I've bought a camera and lenses from HDEW in the past and have ben happy with the service and products but nothing has ever gone wrong which is the true test of a retailer's service.
 
justinminns said:
Will be interested to hear how it all goes. I've bought a camera and lenses from HDEW in the past and have ben happy with the service and products but nothing has ever gone wrong which is the true test of a retailer's service.
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Me too, great service but as you say Justin ive had no problem with the products to date...
 
Well, the feedback will be postponed for now. The issue with the camera disappeared in its own and after discussing with the service they have advised to use it and contact them again if the error comes back. Hope it will not...
 
Just thought I'd chip in - my camera is currently being repaired/serviced under the three year warranty from HDEW - no quibbles at all. There was dust in the viewfinder - not a huge problem, but really glad that it is being sorted. I've bought a few lenses and 2 cameras off them now and have always had great service. I've had to send my camera off and should get it back in a couple of weeks - maybe that timescale is worse than under the Canon warranty? I'm not sure, but I'm happy.
 
13/4/2014
I've used them, ordered on Monday delivered on Thursday cannot beat that from Hong Kong. Saved a packet!

Ordered Monday online received two emails one confirming order the other to confirm payment, Tuesday received another stating that when the order is processed, delivery will be next day. Received email Wednesday stating delivery dispatch No with Fedex and tracking number. Received lens mid Thursday morning!

What did I order Nikon 70-200 f4 VRIII to replace ageing sigma 70-200f2.8 that's starting to back focus at 180-200mm
 
Hdew are local to me and i actually went to there "shop" and collected my camera. they originally started out as a high street family run electrical outlet in wallington but then branched out to the camera side of things and they run the business out of a unit in the industrial area there where you can actually go along to and go in. They were very helpful with me, my standard !8-135 Kit lens hadnt come in so they gave me a non kit canon 60D and a free upgrade to an 18-135 STM lens which has performed flawlessly.
yes the camera are "grey" imports as such but as they offer a 3 year warranty i can only give them thumbs up for there service during the time ive dealt with them
 
I'm interested in ordering an OMD EM5 from them. The product page for the EM5 says free delivery but when I add it to the cart it charges £9.99 :confused:
 
I bought a Canon 5DII from HDEW a few years ago and found them to be a very helpful and professional outfit. I did not trust them initially after having a bad experience with Simply Electronics (purchase from this bunch at your own peril). The main thing that allayed my initial skepticism was that I could go to their outlet which was based in Hackbridge, Surrey and pickup the camera and check it out.

The cameral developed a problem after a few months where the lens lock would not work. I took it to their warrantee/repair facility in central London and after two days instead of repairing it HDEW decided to replace it. The replacement has now served me exceedingly well, registering well over 120K shots it still performs well and has only had one service at Fixation. I am now in the process of upgrading to a 5DIII and am returning to HDEW to spend my hard earned cash in-spite of seeing other tempting deals, it's a case of better the devil you know. Because of the reassuring service I received from them–not to mention great price–I have also recommended them to other folk, and just two months ago a fellow 'togger has just purchased a Nikon D800 and 70-200mm lens who is also infinitely pleased.

I have no problem in recommending them and pray that they remain trustworthy and competitive.
 
I thought it might be worth reporting back. I got my camera (Hdew purchase) back with the dust in the viewfinder problem 95% sorted. I'm happy with that, but it did become apparent that had this not been a third party warranty I might have got better service from Canon. Apparently the 5DIII is a trickier camera to work on than some of it's predecessors. Mine was not a problem that stopped me using the camera, so it was not a big deal really - perhaps they might have replaced it in that instant, but it did bring home the fact that maybe the original Canon warranty might be of more use sometimes.... on the other hand maybe Canon would have done nothing!
 
Just ordered my 70d from Hdew can't wait for it to arrive. Fingers crossed won't have to wait long.
 
Just received my 70D with 18-135 lens this morning (6 days after ordering) Email comms etc were accurate. Camera boxed and sealed; everything as it should be.
Pleased as punch with the service i have received and saved approx £200 to boot. Would use them again :clap:
 
Just received a Canon 5D Mark iii body from Hdew, within 3 days of ordering. Service was faultless. It looks brand new, has no actuations, came with UK manual and plug, but the box was not sealed. Is that usual? Just want to be sure, its my first time ordering from them.
 
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Most importers/sellers of grey goods just open the box to remove the warranty card.
 
Pure21 said:
Just received a Canon 5D Mark iii body from Hdew, within 3 days of ordering. Service was faultless. It looks brand new, has no actuations, came with UK manual and plug, but the box was not sealed. Is that usual? Just want to be sure, its my first time ordering from them.
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Box is opened to put a UK plug in as far as I am aware... nothing to worry about, ENJOY (y)
 
OldCarlos said:
Most importers/sellers of grey goods just open the box to remove the warranty card.
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Dark Knight said:
Box is opened to put a UK plug in as far as I am aware... nothing to worry about, ENJOY (y)
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Thanks for the helpful responses, it's put my mind at rest- Hdew are not answering the phones this morning. I love the new camera, specially with the focusing improvements compared to my mark ii. Hdew refunded me £60, after a price drop the day after I placed my order, so I got it for the current price of £1769. A great saving! :D
 
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That was very good of them, my Father-in-law used them to get his new body and was concerned that it was delivered unsealed, they explained it was opened to add the correct cables etc. Enjoy your new camera :)
 
Blu3fire said:
That was very good of them, my Father-in-law used them to get his new body and was concerned that it was delivered unsealed, they explained it was opened to add the correct cables etc. Enjoy your new camera :)
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Maybe it's just with the Mark iii's. My friend who bought a Canon 6D from Hdew is sure her box was sealed. And I saw someone on here who bought a 7D that was also sealed. Anyway, the camera is great, so I'm happy.

*Just to update, Hdew confirmed they check the camera and put in the correct plug etc, as others have said to me on here. They also mailed my VAT receipt, so all in all, very positive experience. I will be recommending them to my photographer friends.
 
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Bought a Tokina 11-17 lens off Hdew a couple of months ago. No problems at all. Price was cheapest of anywhere I could find (including all the grey importers) and came with a VAT receipt (which I had requested).
 
Anyone bought anything in the last few weeks from HDEW?
Considering going to them for an EM-1 (or Panamoz)

Am swaying toward HDEW - even though they are 60-80 quid dearer (the bacs thing) as they have what seems to be a more established UK presence.

Opinion?
 
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