Warning about Benro tripods as supplied by DigitalRev

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gpa

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Just thought i would give a heads up on the problem I am having finding a spare leg section for my Benro C3770T supplied in June by Digitalrev.

About ten days ago I manged to slip on a concrete embankment, cracking a rib and collapsing part of my lung, at the same time I broke the very bottom section of my tripod about 4 inches from the foot. I thought it would simply be an issue of contacting the reliant parties and ordering a new lower leg section to replace the broken one.................. how wrong I was:(

I contacted Benro sales at their HQ and was told I must going through the supplier and they could arrange for a replacement, having sent off an email with the relevant details i received an email back telling me to fill in a warranty form, I had already explained this was not a warranty issue as i broke the tripod in an accident.

I am then told that DigitalRev are not authorized dealers and are unable to help me. I then asked well if that's the case is my item covered under manufacturing defaults (only because I am now rather concerned there was no support for this item should a manufacturing defect occur). I was told that if the tripod developed a fault under warranty it would be sent away for repair......... Eureka I thought.

I asked again, so if you have a repair agent, can you give me their email so I can talk to them, thinking this should be fairly simple.... but no I got a further request to fill in a warranty claim, by this point i am pulling my hair out.

The upshot is......... Benro will not deal with me directly, Digital rev will not help me as they are not authorized dealers and this then leaves me to think that should my tripod develop a further fault due to a manufacturing fault, I doubt it would be covered by warranty.

So my advice to those shopping with companies like Digitalrev is to be very careful (buyer beware ) they may be cheap but when asked for help on a product they supplied they are completely uninterested............ I suspect this issue will will be pertinent to much of what is bought through them...... you have been warned.
 
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Have you contacted Julia Poon (eCommerce Marketing Manager) she is a member on this forum.
 
dinners said:
Have you contacted Julia Poon (eCommerce Marketing Manager) she is a member on this forum.
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No, just done a search on TP and it says "no user name" don't suppose you know her user name do you ?

Cheers
 
Why not just fill out the warranty info and have it done as such if they refuse to help otherwise.
You have been forthcoming in the first place stating that its not a warranty issue, but they have failed to help, so just fill out the warranty info and get the work done. Its not like you have lied to them and said it just broke.
 
TCR4x4 said:
Why not just fill out the warranty info and have it done as such if they refuse to help otherwise.
You have been forthcoming in the first place stating that its not a warranty issue, but they have failed to help, so just fill out the warranty info and get the work done. Its not like you have lied to them and said it just broke.
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Because they have already stated that if it is not a warranty claim afer sending it back to Hong Kong they will not repair it and I will have to pay for the shipping costs....... I told them from the get go I broke it.... all i want to do is buy a spare lower leg but no one will help....... see my frustration :D
 
gpa said:
Because they have already stated that if it is not a warranty claim afer sending it back to Hong Kong they will not repair it and I will have to pay for the shipping costs....... I told them from the get go I broke it.... all i want to do is buy a spare lower leg but no one will help....... see my frustration :D
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Yep, certainly do. Chuck a PM to Julia, hopefully she will help and get it sorted.
 
I don't see why Digital Rev are getting a bad rep for this ! The post heading is inflamatory and suggests that the Benro products they are selling are of dubious quality.

They like all retailers are obliged to replace faulty goods within the 12 month warranty period. You have stated this is not a warranty issue and that the damage was of your own doing. They have said they are not Benro agents and that if you need a spare part you should contact Benro, to me that makes perfect sense (am I missing something here).
Have the circumstances been explained properly to Benro because I think they are under the impression this is a faulty product warranty issue, hence there stance re. contacting the original retailer.

If I buy a Ford car from a local garage (not dealership) then I reverse into a wall can I then demand that the garage source me a replacement bumper as its there responsibility because I already contacted Fords parts department they told me to get stuffed and take it up with them !

I would get back in touch with Benro if I were you.


If Julia/Digital Rev sort this out for you I would be very very grateful to them because I don't really think its there problem.

Just my opinion. :thumbs:
 
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Gazamonk said:
I don't see why Digital Rev are getting a bad rep for this ! The post heading is inflamatory and suggests that the Benro products they are selling are of dubious quality.

They like all retailers are obliged to replace faulty goods within the 12 month warranty period. You have stated this is not a warranty issue and that the damage was of your own doing. They have said they are not Benro agents and that if you need a spare part you should contact Benro, to me that makes perfect sense (am I missing something here).
Have the circumstances been explained properly to Benro because I think they are under the impression this is a faulty product warranty issue, hence there stance re. contacting the original retailer.

If I buy a Ford car from a local garage (not dealership) then I reverse into a wall can I then demand that the garage source me a replacement bumper as its there responsibility because I already contacted Fords parts department they told me to get stuffed and take it up with them !

I would get back in touch with Benro if I were you.


If Julia/Digital Rev sort this out for you I would be very very grateful to them because I don't really think its there problem.

Just my opinion. :thumbs:
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"The post heading is inflamatory and suggests that the Benro products they are selling are of dubious quality."

Not what I am saying at all.


Let me ask you this..... how many products are bought through Digitalrev ? then if any of those products are damaged accidentally the customer has no means of getting it fixed.... effectively writing off the product because they are not an authorized distributor....................... yet they appear to have a repair route for warranty claims, That is my point.

Had I bought a different make of tripod in the UK from an approved dealer i am sure they would help me with a name of a contact I could speak to.

I am now in catch twenty two, I cannot get my 3 month old tripod fixed :( something that other buyers should be aware of when buying specifically Benro equipment from Digitalrev, if it's warranty you may be lucky but anything else you may as well throw it in the bin.


Oh and I'm as peeved with Benro as i am with anyone else, if Julia is able to help then i would be immensely pleased and write a glowing report on their stellar customer service, after all I bought from them on recommendations seen on TP.
 
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Gazamonk said:
I don't see why Digital Rev are getting a bad rep for this ! The post heading is inflamatory and suggests that the Benro products they are selling are of dubious quality.

They like all retailers are obliged to replace faulty goods within the 12 month warranty period.
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Are they? Under which laws? How easy do you think it would be to sue them in a HK court?
 
So if someone bought a second hand benro tripod would there be any way of getting it fixed or obtaining a spare? If not this is more of a warning against buying benro and expecting any kind of support (ho ho)
 
Why don't you find an authorized dealer and ask if you can order it (spare part) through them?
Seems logical to me. :shrug:
 
It appears that kenro (a completely seperate company) are the sole uk distributor for benro
http://www.kenro.co.uk/productgroup...ods.html?PHPSESSID=7sb8b7nojn9g1139j7dbf5b7d0

they give a full list of uk stockists here http://www.kenro.co.uk/custom/kenro/downloads/Benro_Stockists_List_July_2011.pdf

maybe worth a call or email to one of them to see if they can help

It might be worth not mentioning you got it via digital rev though as uk stockists tend to frown on grey imports at the best of times.
 
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hollis_f said:
Are they? Under which laws? How easy do you think it would be to sue them in a HK court?
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They are not under any obligation to fix it, i had hoped to get a little direction as to how to get a spare leg.
 
wontolla said:
Why don't you find an authorized dealer and ask if you can order it (spare part) through them?
Seems logical to me. :shrug:
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Already spent the best part of a day doing just that, no joy.
 
big soft moose said:
It appears that kenro (a completely seperate company) are the sole uk distributor for benro
http://www.kenro.co.uk/productgroup...ods.html?PHPSESSID=7sb8b7nojn9g1139j7dbf5b7d0

they give a full list of uk stockists here http://www.kenro.co.uk/custom/kenro/downloads/Benro_Stockists_List_July_2011.pdf

maybe worth a call or email to one of them to see if they can help

It might be worth not mentioning you got it via digital rev though as uk stockists tend to frown on grey imports at the best of times.
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Already done, no help
 
Ok I'll make it simple. I think that people should be aware that if you buy a Benro product form Digitalrev and you break it, there's currently no way of getting it fixed or buying spares, to me an important issue especially now, a point others should consider before hitting the buy button.
 
Update, I dropped the tripod off to a local specialist and they have just called me with a solution. They can fix the broken leg by squaring off and re gluing the foot bung back in, they can trim the other two legs to match. So I loose 3 inches overall off the height which i can live with. Not the solution I really wanted but the only option currently available to me, I've asked them to give me a couple more days to exhaust all avenues before i give them the go ahead.
 
"The post heading is inflamatory and suggests that the Benro products they are selling are of dubious quality."

Not what I am saying at all.
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Didn't say you were just stating how it reads at first glance.

Let me ask you this..... how many products are bought through Digitalrev ? then if any of those products are damaged accidentally the customer has no means of getting it fixed.... effectively writing off the product because they are not an authorized distributor....................... yet they appear to have a repair route for warranty claims, That is my point.
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You say "If any of those products are damaged accidentally the customer has no means of getting it fixed" A pretty sweeping statement, I'm sure they have a route for repairs to most of there products via the OEMs for (warranty claims) and in many cases they would probably issue a replacement and then take up the repair with the OEM. The main point here is that Benro (who charge an arm and a leg for there products btw) appear to have very poor after sales support and had you bought anything else from Digital Rev other than Benro we wouldn't be having this discussion.

Had I bought a different make of tripod in the UK from an approved dealer i am sure they would help me with a name of a contact I could speak to.
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No doubt, I agree with you. However by your own admission you have spoken to the premier UK approved distributor for Benro and got nada. So again I cannot see what Digital Rev can do to help in that case when your own efforts at approaching the UK distributor have got you nowhere.


I am now in catch twenty two, I cannot get my 3 month old tripod fixed something that other buyers should be aware of when buying specifically Benro equipment from Digitalrev, if it's warranty you may be lucky but anything else you may as well throw it in the bin.
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Agreed and please don't think that my posts are unsympathetic, far from it but I just think that your anger and frustration (justified or not) is being aimed in the wrong direction re. Digital Rev since it seems the result of your search for spare parts would have been the same no matter where you bought it. Benro is the naughty boy here. I wish you good luck in getting an amicable resolution to your problem.
 
Gazamonk said:
No doubt, I agree with you. However by your own admission you have spoken to the premier UK approved distributor for Benro and got nada. So again I cannot see what Digital Rev can do to help in that case when your own efforts at approaching the UK distributor have got you nowhere.
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chances are though that if the OP'd bought it from kenro they would be able to help - they reputedly have excellent customer service - but why should they help someone who's bought stuff for a grey market thus underccutting their sales ?

Digital Rev with the best will in the world are a grey importer , that why they are cheap - but if you buy grey you cant expect the same level of service you get in the light economy.

I would expect that DRs service is pretty much the same as other traders like kerso and URgalaxy , because the supplier doesnt recognise them as an approved retailer theres not a lot they can do.
 
Gaz

I was talking abut products such as mine that have appear to fallen into this category. I went on to state in a later post the following "

"Ok I'll make it simple. I think that people should be aware that if you buy a Benro product form Digitalrev and you break it, there's currently no way of getting it fixed or buying spares, to me an important issue especially now, a point others should consider before hitting the buy button.
 
Back on the isue of fixing the OPs tripod, what abouty finding a uk comapany that works with carbon fibre (or even glass fibre or metal) and just getting the part made - tripod leg sections arent exactly complicated to fabricate
 
Before resorting to the hacksaw, I'd ask Digital Rev if they could contact Benro China in Chinese and see if that yields any different results.

However, if Benro policy is to only supply to authorised dealers regardless of country, you do have to ask how exactly DR are getting hold of them if DR can't help. IF they're not authorsied dealers full stop, then they are taking advantage of selling a sought after product with no support. And in that case they should make that clear. It's one thing to sell products that you can legitimately source locally, but quite another to sell on stuff you acquired by unofficial means.

Most of us understand that buying grey means that to resolve any problems you may have to return the item to the country of origin, but it's quite different again if you're going to get no support at all. If DR aren't authorised dealers, then even if it was a warranty repair it sounds like DR would be unable to help unless they themselves were to replace the item at their own expense.

Ultimately I have to say it's not great "service" by Benro to not even offer paid for help to customers. It's hard to see what they have to lose there.

Manfrotto for example I think offer excellent after sales support for spares in the UK. They'll happily sell you any part that they have available at reasonable prices and very quick delivery if in stock.
 
Have you tried to speak to Kenro direct ? They may just be able to help .
 
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