Lens Pimp

Impspeed

Impspeed

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David
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I thought I would give Lens Pimp a review on here seeing as no one else has.

I originally hired a Canon 400mm f/2.8 from Lens Pimp back in April (end of) for a trip to Skomer Island and The Loop. The price was better than quoted by Lenses For Hire and although I couldn't find any reviews I decided to bite the bullet and pay on my Credit Card (just in case...)

After a bit of consultation on here I decided (a week after hiring the lens) that a 500mm f/4 was more suitable and emailed Lens Pimp to see if changing the hire was possible - they replied very quickly and didn't charge me the difference in the hire rate (only about £5) or any admin fee (which was surprising).

About two weeks before I was due to go to Skomer I decided to see if I could keep the lens for a day longer (due to a change of plans - what a nightmare customer I must've been!). They did take a while to get back to me - didn't reply to emails and weren't available on the phone but in the end (after about 2 days of trying) I managed to speak to someone and arrange the payment of the small fee for an extra day's hire.

The day before the hire was due to start I had a telephone call from City Link to say they'd left a package on my doorstep for me!!! Don't think they'd realised they'd left a £6k lens without any signature - not a crit of Lens Pimp but have informed them they may want to change their courier!

The lens itself was immaculate. It was under 9 months old, came in the original hard case with instruction book and a brand new cardboard box for repackaging and sending back.

Faultless throughout the week of hire - nothing to report here...

Phoned up Lens Pimp on the Friday morning to arrange return and they confirmed City Link would be there the same day very quickly.

All in all, I was pleased with the service, considering what a dreadful customer I must've been ;), but there is still work to do to get them up to the excellent level of customer service I would expect from a top of the market lens hire company.

I will happily deal with them again and currently in the process of sorting another lens for 3 days in August, which is £75 cheaper all in than Lenses for Hire.

DB
 
have used this company (y) no problems at all, in fact very helpful
 
I have rented 17-40L from them as well now and didn't had any problems at all. Everything went very smooth. Definitely will be coming back!
 
Thanks for this will certainly try them next time due to my recent experience with Lens for hire:bang:
 
Yep used them and they were great - much cheaper than Lens for Hire and great condition lenses
 
I have used them twice to rent the 70-200 2.8 IS, with courier postage/pickup it worked out around £30 cheaper than Lenses For Hire and the service was spot on (even got an extra day as they couldn't pick up on a Sunday). Will definitely use them again, the 85mm 1.2 is just staring at me :D
 
Ooh, this is interesting.

I'm really glad to see that LensPimp are offering a good service. There are some companies in this line of business who don't, and that just spoils things for everyone. But if hire companies are reliable, the whole concept of hiring - which can be a bit scary the first time you do it - becomes more routine. That's good for all of us.

Obviously we watch our competitors' prices. LensPimp started off by downloading our price list and subtracting 3% from all the prices, but obviously things have evolved from there. Personally I think they're too cheap, especially for short hires. It wasn't until the end of the second summer at LensesForHire that I started to get a real grip on seasonality, utilisation, payback periods and suchlike, and I think LensPimp have probably got some nasty surprises coming to them when they get enough data to crunch the numbers. Or maybe not. Maybe I need to be looking to squeeze out more costs so that I can lower my prices. We'll see. Either way, competition is good because it forces us to keep on our toes, and obviously that's good for customers.
 
Briony said:
Thanks for this will certainly try them next time due to my recent experience with Lens for hire:bang:
Click to expand...
...? Have you had a bad experience, Nicki? I wasn't aware of any issues, but if you'd care to elaborate then I'd be happy to look into it.
 
Briony said:
Thanks for this will certainly try them next time due to my recent experience with Lens for hire:bang:
Click to expand...

and as I said 12 days ago..................:shrug:

I've not hired from them yet..but my initial enquires were answered promptly, with further info concerning taking 'their' lens through Customs on a trip
 
Do you have to pay a deposit to the full value of the lens with lenspimp?
Organised to hire a Canon 70-200. Then a day before the delivery they request id (understandable) and a deposit of £1800. Is this normal practice. This is my first lens hire.
 
I am involved in very similar asset hire industry. I am not about to tote what I do and where: it isn't directly photography related and I do NOT mix business with hobbies or do mates rates It always bites you on the arse.

Any well written t's and c's for technology hire probably include clauses allowing the hirer to request (post confirmation of order) : payment in advance, deposit and proof of insurance. You will probably also find clauses related to premature termination of hire by the hirer, collection and invoicing of additional fees such as repair costs and "roll over". We have to cater for worst case scenarios, it's a horrible thing but it is purely down to the risky nature of the transaction: you pay x and we send you something worth x times y on the basis you promise to give it back.

I would suggest you read t's and c's carefully before hiring kit. There should be nothing dodgy lurking there but it is very important you understand how the proposal is structured. Insurance, damages, all can be very important if something freakishly unexpected happens to you.
 
You're just too honest. If I had a call from City Link saying they left it on the doorstep.....
What parcel? It wasn't there when I got home...

But I deal with them and their like every day at work, they pile way too much work on their drivers and pay them a pittance and would probably charge the driver for the loss rather than claim on their insurance.
But still 6k, your word vs theirs, its demons on the shoulders time.......
 
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pbattams said:
Do you have to pay a deposit to the full value of the lens with lenspimp?
Organised to hire a Canon 70-200. Then a day before the delivery they request id (understandable) and a deposit of £1800. Is this normal practice. This is my first lens hire.
Click to expand...


You may find that 2 years later things have changed a bit!
 
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