Procamera shop

It's a grey import, so no UK warranty.
 
Thank you, So i gather its not such a good idea
 
It's a good idea if your £200 could be spent elsewhere. I have used ProCameraShop to buy a Canon EOS M and a Canon EF 300mm f/4 IS recently and I have had excellent service each time - worth considering IMHO.
 
What happens if you have a problem with anything you buy?
 
chopsie said:
What happens if you have a problem with anything you buy?
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Search the forum, there have been a few bad stories, you might get it fixed, you might have to pay for the repair and try and claim the money back from them, you might have to post the item back to Hong Kong (at your own cost).

You might also get stung around £250 for import vat and admin charge when it initially arrives as well.
 
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Thank you Dave for your help, Thank you Kev too
Might go with HDew
 
I've just been through a bit of research on them, seem to generally be fine with a few horror stories. I spoke with them, they have UK staff/number. They work some tax loop hole to basically supply products 20% less, the legalities of which are a bit shady. There are lots of companies that do similar things, mostly based in Hong Kong. All their products sit in a warehouse in the UK. The products mostly come with a warranty in the country they were bought (could be anywhere, not just China). Procamerashop then covers any repairs in the UK, you get a quote for a repair and they pay, or you send it back to them and they repair it. You can't claim any UK benefits such as cash back or VAT back for business use, obviously.
 
anthonys said:
I've just been through a bit of research on them, seem to generally be fine with a few horror stories.
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Like many others, I've bought from Procamerashop and Panamoz several times with no issues. You'll find that a couple of posters will pop up with negatives every time buying grey with a Hong Kong link crops up.
 
Ive made a few phone calls today, I rang procamerashop,Panamoz and a couple of others, I feel the saving outweighs a UK warranty. Looking at saving around £250 and the shops will all give you there warranty.
I will think about it for a few more days before rushing into it
Thank you again for all your opinions
Mick
 
Put the £250 in the bank (real or pretend!) and treat it as a self funded warranty. If you've not needed to use it in the first 12 months then you'll be in the same position as anyone who didn't buy grey (out of warranty) but will be £250 better off than them.
 
chopsie said:
Ive made a few phone calls today, I rang procamerashop,Panamoz and a couple of others, I feel the saving outweighs a UK warranty. Looking at saving around £250 and the shops will all give you there warranty.
I will think about it for a few more days before rushing into it
Thank you again for all your opinions
Mick
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not sure if your card provides it but my Barclaycard gives a 1 year extended warranty on electricals so I buy my grey imports using that so ive at least got some coverage :)
 
Just to add my experience with ProCameraShop.

I have used PCS twice previously with absolutely no problems. The 2nd purchase I took advantage of the 3% discount by paying via BT.
Before I made my 1st purchase from them I spoke to a UK person on the phone. They never claimed their items were UK sourced, I always assumed they were 'grey market' because of the low price.
I am currently waiting for a lens I have ordered at a cost of £817.00 (paid via BT) this lens is more expensive at WEX !
I always receive emails updating me with delivery info and tracking numbers.

As for the comment "It's a grey import, so no UK warranty."

I know many buyers deal directly with the manufacturers but strictly speaking warranty repairs are the responsibility of the retailer ergo if I have a problem and PCS get it sorted do I really care where it's repaired ?

All companies get it wrong occasionally and I'm betting PCS have made mistakes but my experiences are all positive.

Roy
 
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Just received UPS tracking number for a Sigma 18-35 1.8, it's hard enough to find places online that stock them yet but I've managed to get this one for €652 delivered to Ireland. Replied to both my emails too. I got a bit nervous reading some of the feedback here and elsewhere but fingers crossed all will be well and I'll be shooting with my new lens tomorrow.
 
I just took delivery from procamerashop of an order I put through 3 days ago. I paid by bank transfer - though admit I was a little nervous after reading some negative reviews (though the positive reviews out numbered them). Anyway, they dispatched the next day and it arrived the day after (today). I guess the real test will come if I have to make a warranty claim with them!
 
Just to update my earlier entry:

My lens arrived today 1 week after I placed my order. This is slower than usual but i received an update email saying
" sadly last weekend our warehousing team had a crash on their systems creating a knock on effect to orders this week."
The next day I received an email informed me my lens was dispatched for delivery the next day, incl tracking info.
Another 100% satisfactory purchase from this company.


Roy
 
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badlywornroy said:
.

As for the comment "It's a grey import, so no UK warranty."

I know many buyers deal directly with the manufacturers but strictly speaking warranty repairs are the responsibility of the retailer ergo if I have a problem and PCS get it sorted do I really care where it's repaired ?

All companies get it wrong occasionally and I'm betting PCS have made mistakes but my experiences are all positive.

Roy
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The point is a) if the retailer goes tits up you won't get any satisfaction out of canon (etc) uk b) If you have a manufacturer warranty you know it will be repaired to standard, with a retailer repair it could be anyone and take ages (especially if it has to go back to HK) and c) with a manufacturers waranty you know it will get done, with a retailer waranty you have only a promise from some guy based thousands of miles away who may or may not keep their word.

theres also the tax issue - even if you are ethically okay with not paying your import tax (which I personally am not) theres also the issue that horney mentioned on the Drev thread ie that customs are cracking down on grey electrical , and if you get stopped it could be months until you get your camera.

that applies to all grey retailers except those with uk whorehouses who do the importing themselves and supply to you from a uk base (with a VAT receip and an import tax receipt)
 
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big soft moose said:
that applies to all grey retailers except those with uk whorehouses who do the importing themselves and supply to you from a uk base (with a VAT receip and an import tax receipt)
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Another cracking autospell correction! :eek:

:lol: :lol: :lol:
 
.. I always prefer to buy my gear from the local pimp, he does great prices :lol: (bloody autocorrect :bonk: )
 
big soft moose said:-

" The point is a) if the retailer goes tits up you won't get any satisfaction out of canon (etc) "

You make some fair points but holiday firms go " tits up " and people lose money. Many UK investors lost big money in the banking fiascoes of recent years, etc etc

Putting your money down is rarely 100% safe. As always Caveat emptor. Do your homework, make your choice and live with the consequences :'( ...... or not :)

" even if you are ethically okay with not paying your import tax (which I personally am not) "

Don't know what you are implying ? I am always happy to pay my taxes.


Roy
 
How often is a warranty repair required?

I know that I have only had to contact Canon once, and that was for an overhaul of a used 5D Mk II that I bought from a member on here a few years ago and which was accepted without documentation; due to the length of time since the model was released.
 
badlywornroy said:
big soft moose said:- said:
" The point is a) if the retailer goes tits up you won't get any satisfaction out of canon (etc) "

You make some fair points but holiday firms go " tits up " and people lose money. Many UK investors lost big money in the banking fiascoes of recent years, etc etc

Putting your money down is rarely 100% safe. As always Caveat emptor. Do your homework, make your choice and live with the consequences :'( ...... or not :)

" even if you are ethically okay with not paying your import tax (which I personally am not) "
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Don't know what you are implying ? I am always happy to pay my taxes.


Roy
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If you want to quote someone, click the "Quote" button to the bottom right of each post, if you want to quote something not from another post, click the little speech bubble when on the "reply to thread" page.

It will automatically drop the
[ /QUOTE] tags needed to make something appear in a quote box.

I've used the
tags to show you what the post should look like.

Your way just makes posts rather confusing.
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Well my Sigma 18-35 F1.8 arrived today from ProCameraShop - no issues whatsoever. Saved around E150 compared to buying same lens in Ireland.
 
did you pay the irish import tax ?
 
Price on p-shop site (£548 & in stock in 2-3 weeks) is about £100 cheaper than WEX, Mifsuds, UK Digital etc. so £100 cheaper, not £150. I'm sure there are cheaper places too.

Also p-shop add a tenner for delivery to Aire.
 
how much is the eire import tax and vat equivalent ?
 
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OldCarlos said:
Price on p-shop site (£548 & in stock in 2-3 weeks) is about £100 cheaper than WEX, Mifsuds, UK Digital etc. so £100 cheaper, not £150. I'm sure there are cheaper places too.

Also p-shop add a tenner for delivery to Aire.
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in the uk that would attract £12.60 in duty and 112.12 Vat - for total payable to HMRC of 124.70

so if you don't evade tax (or if you try to and get caught) your item will actually be 24.70 more expensive than it would be from a uk retailer, plus you'll have to wait several weeks rather than getting it straight away :thinking:
 
OldCarlos said:
Price on p-shop site (£548 & in stock in 2-3 weeks) is about £100 cheaper than WEX, Mifsuds, UK Digital etc. so £100 cheaper, not £150. I'm sure there are cheaper places too.

Also p-shop add a tenner for delivery to Aire.
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We deal in Euro not pound so it's a E150 saving, same lens is 800 quid here in a retailer ;)

Not sure how much the tax would be, I'm not too bothered either. I pay my normal income tax, my extra earnings income tax, a household charge, hefty VRT on any new car I buy, soon to be water charges and a disgusting universal social charge to bail out greedy bankers, all before I get to spend the money I work hard for every month. If I get the odd sneaky lens at the expense of revenue, I will sleep ok at night.
 
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I'm going to be dealing with procamerashop's returns facility this week. Got my lens but a little concerned about the focus motor noise. I spoke to them about it and they told me to send it to their repair/warranty shop for inspection. As I'm within the 14 days they were happy to either refund me or send a replacement whether they find it faulty or not. I've given them the option of supplying another lens - will update on how long the process takes and how I find their service for those interesting in buying from them.
 
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