Grey Imports and Reparis

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jamesev

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Am i right in my understanding that if you get a grey import from far east sellers, it is unlikely that if there is a problem with it the UK Nikon service centre won't touch it?
 
Didn't Nikon fix the issues with the D600 and the D750 for free regardless of where people bought them from?
 
architectfadi said:
Didn't Nikon fix the issues with the D600 and the D750 for free regardless of where people bought them from?
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Do they manage global manufacturing issue or recalls different to general maintenance then?
 
There was talk they wouldn't handle repairs from other territories, but I think in practice, if you're paying it will still get repaired.
 
I bought a secondhand D7000 about 2 1/2 years ago. I hadn't realised when I bought it, there were some very bad oil spots on the sensor.

Sent it off to Lehmann's, Stoke expecting a bill. They got in touch to say it would be repaired foc as there had been a recall on D7000, sumot to do with the shutter mechanism, that was a grey import.
 
Grey imports only effects warranty i believe. You have to double check to see do your grey imports warranty is cover in the UK. If you are paying for repair, I don't think there is any issues at all.
 
Only the US set this 'we won't repair grey' diktat but IIRC even there it has been rescinded.
In practice, if you are buying from a 'good' grey dealer they will take care of repair issues for you, normally carried out in the UK but not always ... Nikon or their Authorised Repair Centres will always repair & charge if you don't have a warranty remaining.
 
Grey imports are not worth it anymore regardless. You used to save a worthwhile amount but now its pathetic.
 
GTG said:
Grey imports are not worth it anymore regardless. You used to save a worthwhile amount but now its pathetic.
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I thought grey imports usually avoid import duty and tax (provided you can get it shipped through customs without being picked up) and as such could be up to £500 on a £2000 purchase?
 
GTG said:
Grey imports are not worth it anymore regardless. You used to save a worthwhile amount but now its pathetic.
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jamesev said:
I thought grey imports usually avoid import duty and tax (provided you can get it shipped through customs without being picked up) and as such could be up to £500 on a £2000 purchase?
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Panamoz :

Nikon D810 DSLR Camera (Body Only)
£1,653.00

Cheapest in UK (Jessops) :

Nikon D810 Digital SLR Body

£2299.00


I'd say that the grey price is a substantial saving.
 
GTG said:
Grey imports are not worth it anymore regardless. You used to save a worthwhile amount but now its pathetic.
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sweeping statement, that. Example, Olympus e-m1 mk2 is £1849 here but the cheapest grey is £1239. That's £610 cheaper so not really "pathetic" IMO. Of course there are pros and cons of grey imports and I agree that if you add in an equivalent warranty, the saving often isn't as large but ( in the case of the Olympus ), you could still save over £400 and get a 3 year warranty.
 
Used to be much better.

I had a 6d back in the day for 50% less than shop price. £800.

You have to remember they cost a fortune to repair and the warranty is valuable.
 
not eveyrbody buys grey, no. Its personal choice - for some, the saving on the grey will pay for any repairs - for others, they want the piece of mind of the warranty
 
There was a time when Canon UK wouldnt repair during or outside of warranty any grey imports, regardless of who foots the bill. I guess if it's a manufacturing "fault" or a recall they would be legally bound to fix foc.
Dont know what their policy is now and as such I wouldnt buy a grey import if I wasnt sure any warranty or post warranty repairs would get done by Canon UK, just my personal view, others may differ.
 
GTG said:
Grey imports are not worth it anymore regardless. You used to save a worthwhile amount but now its pathetic.
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I bought 2 x 5D4 6 months ago, saving at the time £1,000 each. Not sure what kind of financial situation you are in but I wouldn't call £2,000 pathetic.
 
How do they tackle the repairs if someone for example live in HK and bought gear over there and then they move back to UK with their gear? Canon and Nikon is not going to repair because they now have grey import gear?

Personally I think warranty should be world wide cover and let the custom deal with import tax etc. If they can't catch people importing gear from another country and avoid tax. Who's fault is it?
 
I bought an import 5D4 2 months ago, canon cps website wouldn't let me add it to my gear, but i messaged them and they put it on.

They have repaired import bodies for me in the past, not sure if they would now though.
 
badboy1984 said:
How do they tackle the repairs if someone for example live in HK and bought gear over there and then they move back to UK with their gear? Canon and Nikon is not going to repair because they now have grey import gear?

Personally I think warranty should be world wide cover and let the custom deal with import tax etc. If they can't catch people importing gear from another country and avoid tax. Who's fault is it?
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It isnt just tax but Canon UK make a profit by selling to retailers, that pays for Canon UK headquarters, spare parts stock, technicians etc. A grey import doesnt contribute to those costs at all, whereas a camera bought from a uk retailer that came through Canon UK has contributed and that is one reason why we pay more for a"genuine" UK camera, we get Canon UK backup.
If you buy a camera abroad, because you live abroad and then move back you are usually covered for warranty etc.
 
jamesev said:
I thought grey imports usually avoid import duty and tax (provided you can get it shipped through customs without being picked up) and as such could be up to £500 on a £2000 purchase?
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That's really black market rather than grey (which just means not imported by the official distributor). Dubious importers like to blur the distinction, though, and it's hard to find a grey importer you can be sure is paying the correct tax and duty all of the time. A common tactic is to make the purchaser the official importer (perhaps offering to refund tax and duty if an item is actually picked up by Customs).
 
GTG said:
So everybody buys grey do they ? It is such a good deal ?
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I don't and won't buy grey imports. I won't even buy over the interweb in Britain if I can find what I want in a shop.

That is partly down to being honest - I benefit from living in a civilised country so it is incumbent on me to help pay for it. The rest is down to me wanting British infrastructure to be there in the long term. If I don't support local businesses they will not be there when I need them.
 
john.margetts said:
I don't and won't buy grey imports. I won't even buy over the interweb in Britain if I can find what I want in a shop.

That is partly down to being honest - I benefit from living in a civilised country so it is incumbent on me to help pay for it. The rest is down to me wanting British infrastructure to be there in the long term. If I don't support local businesses they will not be there when I need them.
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But if you do buy grey you can avoid the "new product price hike" (....er....rip-off) that Canon (and possibly other mfrs) goes in for.

To the OP - this is a very hot issue on here.....
 
Retune said:
That's really black market rather than grey (which just means not imported by the official distributor). Dubious importers like to blur the distinction, though, and it's hard to find a grey importer you can be sure is paying the correct tax and duty all of the time. A common tactic is to make the purchaser the official importer (perhaps offering to refund tax and duty if an item is actually picked up by Customs).
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I think this is the example of what I was seeing in a particular instance.

jerry12953 said:
To the OP - this is a very hot issue on here.....
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I suspect so.
 
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MatBin said:
It isnt just tax but Canon UK make a profit by selling to retailers, that pays for Canon UK headquarters, spare parts stock, technicians etc. A grey import doesnt contribute to those costs at all, whereas a camera bought from a uk retailer that came through Canon UK has contributed and that is one reason why we pay more for a"genuine" UK camera, we get Canon UK backup.
If you buy a camera abroad, because you live abroad and then move back you are usually covered for warranty etc.
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I understand what you saying and I personally won't buy grey import because I know the hassle of warranty etc. Sometimes things happen and you end up buying a camera or lens while you on holiday abroad (outside UK or EU). When you come back to the UK and things goes wrong, you pretty much stuff. I know this is different situation then actually buying grey import, but taking the item to Canon or Nikon they can only see this as grey import right?
 
badboy1984 said:
I understand what you saying and I personally won't buy grey import because I know the hassle of warranty etc. Sometimes things happen and you end up buying a camera or lens while you on holiday abroad (outside UK or EU). When you come back to the UK and things goes wrong, you pretty much stuff. I know this is different situation then actually buying grey import, but taking the item to Canon or Nikon they can only see this as grey import right?
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If you buy it abroad through a genuine seller then I guess you have paid the relevant taxes in that country and it has not been transported across borders as a commercial sale. I thought some imports are at reduced cost because they are sold as a deliberate commercial transaction taking the risk of avoiding these additional costs of legitimately doing business.
 
jamesev said:
If you buy it abroad through a genuine seller then I guess you have paid the relevant taxes in that country and it has not been transported across borders as a commercial sale. I thought some imports are at reduced cost because they are sold as a deliberate commercial transaction taking the risk of avoiding these additional costs of legitimately doing business.
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Some places is duty fee so no tax on that i guess? or thats something different?
 
BTW, I bought all my Fuji gear in the UK.

Be aware of market prices, choose your poison. Some items are better deals off shores, some are not.
 
badboy1984 said:
Some places is duty fee so no tax on that i guess? or thats something different?
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Whether you paid local taxes or not is completely irrelevant to HMRC, which will want the due UK taxes, unless you buy in the EU and even then they might not be happy (OK with tobacco and alcohol).
 
damianmkv said:
not eveyrbody buys grey, no. Its personal choice - for some, the saving on the grey will pay for any repairs - for others, they want the piece of mind of the warranty
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You make it sound like the only issue is the price saving versus the warranty. This might sound old fashioned but some people think complying with the law (by paying import duty and VAT) has a role in it somewhere.
 
StewartR said:
You make it sound like the only issue is the price saving versus the warranty.
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It's not the price saving versus the warranty - it's the price saving plus the (3 years from Panamoz/HDEW / 1 year from UK retailers) warranty!
 
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