Many of the oldtimers on PDML know I had a Pentax repair horror story a few years ago. Well, now I have a Nikon repair horror story, It goes like this, if you care to read it:
I hit a soft patch and performed a lo-speed semi-endo on my bicycle. I was on a little photo trek down the canal trail to a rural airport. I ended up with the imprint of a D100 on my ribs, and the D100 ended up dusty and gouged. No problem, I surmised, as I surveyed the damage and checked for broken bones, because the camera was covered by my all-risks insurance policy. I called the insurer, who said send the camera to Nikon for an estimate. I prepared a short but detailed list of repairs needed, and sent it along. A week or so later I get a form letter from Nikon estimating repairs at $741. The insurer agreed to pay all, so I was about set. But I know how bad communication can be, so I called Nikon and asked specifically would they repair the items on my list. I told the guy the outer body was gouged in several places and needed replacing. The person on the line said the $741 was a one-price figure which covered "major repair" and they would take care of everything. I still really didn't believe him, so I asked a second time would they replace the outer shell, and put the camera in like new condition. He again said they would. So a few weeks later the camera comes back. You guessed it - the outer shell still had major gouges in the grip area from where it hit the rocks. Not good. I was not happy, to say the least. If Nikon had told me in advance they would not or could not repair it completely, the insurer would cheerfully have bought me a new one. So I'm sitting with my ugly, damaged camera in my lap. I called Nikon. The Nikon employee initially didn't believe me when I said Nikon didn't fix it. She said, very defensively, "how do you know it's not fixed" and I said "because I'm staring at it in the box you sent me, and it still has gouges in the grip area." The Nikon lady was upset, but she recovered her composure and arranged for a recall UPS label sent to my email immediately. So after a few days, the camera is back at Nikon. I get another of their form letters. This time is says "repairs - cosmetic" with a zero dollar charge under warranty for the first repair. I didn't really understand the reference to "cosmetic." But I was soon to find out more than I cared to know. I called NIkon to make sure they were going to replace the outer shell for sure this second time around. This time I asked to speak to the repair manager, but after checking with several people and having me hold a few minutes the Nikon employee came back and refused to allow that. Said the repair manager does not take calls from repair customers under any circumstances. Whooie, that instills confidence. Now it gets hairy. The Nikon employee said, quite arrogantly and almost sarcastically, that Nikon never intended to replace the outer shell, because the damage was only *cosmetic*, and Nikon USA does not perform *cosmetic* repairs (their emphasis, not mine), no matter what the price. Whooie. I finally manage to get a supervisor on the phone, one from the intake department, not a repair manager. She says Nikon simply will not make *cosmetic* repairs. But this time they *are* making the "cosmetic" repair. Seems like I convinced them. Something to do with the very specific letter describing what I wanted fixed when it was first sent in for repair. Hopefully, the camera will be back in my hands in like-new condition within a couple of days. If it is not in like-new condition, I will probably file another claim with my insurance company for diminished value, or just get them to replace the damn thing. Nikon's repair philosophy is seriously flawed. They won't make cosmetic repairs? After I sent them a letter specifying cosmetic repairs? Then followed up with a phone call during which a Nikon employee confirmed they would make the cosmetic repair as specified? What the heck did they actually do for my $741? As far as I can tell for sure, they gave the body a wipe and cleaned the sensor. Pretty darn expensive if you ask me. Oh, and to add insult to injury, they kept the little plastic Nikon LCD cover from my camera. Good thing I removed the battery and strap and IBM Micro Drive or they might have kept those also. To their credit they are sending me another LCD cover. They probably have a lot of them laying around from other customers. Psst - Nikon - one more little thing: I sent you my camera with a beat up old Vivitar body cap. You sent it back with a nice new Nikon body cap. Thanks for nothing - I really liked my old Vivitar body cap. How the heck could you lose it? It was attached to the camera. Or did you decide to send me a new one, to make the camera look better... cosmetically speaking... -- John Mustarde www.photolin.com
