Unimpressed with CEX (Birmingham)

GreenNinja67

GreenNinja67

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Terry
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Saw a Samyang 85mm f1.4 MF lens for Sony at a good price in CEX Birmingham so brought my A73 in today to test the lens out with a view to purchasing it.

Store chap let me try it on my camera and I took a couple of shots in the store.

When I asked if I could go to the shop door to take some shots in the sunlight I was told "No, you can't go any further than there" (proceeds to point 6 feet away from where we're standing).

If advised him I had bought a lens a couple of years ago and had no issue with being allowed to photograph outside the shop (accompanied by a sales guy) but he was adamant.

I asked to see the manager and suggested that as they thoroughly test all gear before paying the seller the same should be true before i pay THEM.

I was advised if there's an issue when I buy it to bring it back and I can get a voucher for the purchase price.

I left with some choice advisory words.


No idea if this is just the Birmingham branch's rules or if it's more widespread but be warned.
 
f/2.8 said:
Seem's a pretty reasonable approach from the shop in all fairness considering the high risk of someone just running of with their goods.
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I offered to leave whatever they asked for with them so that doesn't fly really.
 
With shoplifting at epidemic proportions and police indifference it's annoying but hardly surprising.
 
Measures can be put in place to prevent this at the time.

And people say shop local.

Online for me in future and only themselves to blame.
 
Interesting as I have found WEX Birmingham to be very good, if not excellent.

I have tested lenses outside when a staff member has been with me. I went in to look at the Oly 12-100 and 40-150 F2.8 earlier this week and was told that if I wanted to purchase them and take them home for a more thorough testing, I could just bring them back for a refund if I didn't want them, or they didn't fit the bill as they have a 40 day return period or something. I didn't do that and have never done that before.
 
Be aware of their refund policy too - depending on the circumstances they can give you a voucher rather than cash.
 
eoSimon said:
Be aware of their refund policy too - depending on the circumstances they can give you a voucher rather than cash.
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Yes, apparently if I'd bought the lens and it was faulty I could only have a voucher, not a refund.

Not sure that's legal but if it is I wouldn't be happy with that.
 
For them to say they would give you a voucher if
GreenNinja67 said:
Yes, apparently if I'd bought the lens and it was faulty I could only have a voucher, not a refund.

Not sure that's legal but if it is I wouldn't be happy with that.
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That's b******t.

You have the same rights for used goods as you do for new goods. 30 days to reject the goods and expect a full refund unless you were made aware of the defect at the time of purchase.
 
Adamcski said:
Interesting as I have found WEX Birmingham to be very good, if not excellent.

I have tested lenses outside when a staff member has been with me. I went in to look at the Oly 12-100 and 40-150 F2.8 earlier this week and was told that if I wanted to purchase them and take them home for a more thorough testing, I could just bring them back for a refund if I didn't want them, or they didn't fit the bill as they have a 40 day return period or something. I didn't do that and have never done that before.
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^^^^ I think you have your lines crossed.

OP is talking of CEX (Computer EXchange ) not WEX.
 
GreenNinja67 said:
Would you?
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Absolutely.....if a shop has something I wanted I would walk in and buy it ......I would trust their judgement if it is fit for purpose or not along with having a look at it and testing it . Then if it wasn't I would get a refund . I would be able to see if it's faulty or not inside the shop .
 
GreenNinja67 said:
So you could test the contrast of the lens in a dingy interior?

Fair play.
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Lol no as I said I would return it if I later found a problem . (Later , as in as soon as I got to the sunlight ) 99% of lens faults would be discovered within seconds of mounting it to the camera .
 
I really didn't want or need to have to have another row over demanding a refund instead of the voucher that was the only offer.

Even though their website says they will refund to the original method of payment within 30 days.
 
stumac said:
Absolutely.....if a shop has something I wanted I would walk in and buy it ......I would trust their judgement if it is fit for purpose or not along with having a look at it and testing it . Then if it wasn't I would get a refund . I would be able to see if it's faulty or not inside the shop .
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Exactly this. The o.p has had a nightmare here.

You wouldn't go into C.E.X to buy a games console and demand to see it working outside the shop before buying it, You would buy it based on their description, then return it for a refund if it was not as described.

Having worked in retail I feel sorry for the guys in C.E.X who had to deal with it.
 
Had a look in my local CEX in brum. I thought they were well overpriced. Ancient grubby Ipads for brand new prices, and the camera gear was higher than the most optimistic ebayer would ask for.
 
I don't think they have been unreasonable in saying you can't go out of the shop with the lens.
The only unreasonable thing is them saying they only will refund with vouchers, which I'm pretty sure is wrong even by their rules as you have rightly identified. They should refund to the purchased card as long as you returned within 30 days.
So you should have been able to just pay for it, take it outside, test it and return it for a full refund if unhappy.

As for testing contrast faults etc, indoors or outdoors, couldn't really tell properly on a small camera screen anyway. That'd have to be tested at home on a larger monitor
 
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oh well lesson learnt.

If you want decent customer service go to a reputable photographic establishment.

Having also worked in retail a long time ago I didn't think it an unreasonable request to be honest.
 
GreenNinja67 said:
So you could test the contrast of the lens in a dingy interior?

Fair play.
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From looking at the photos of the shop, it is certainly not as you describe it to be, so anything you have to say, I will take it with a pinch of salt.
 
I always have a look in the window of the local CEX if I'm passing, and if I have time I have a quick squizz inside too. Occassionally found a couple of bargains (eg a decent Wacom tablet at a good price), but I usually exit empty handed.
 
Irishman said:
From looking at the photos of the shop, it is certainly not as you describe it to be, so anything you have to say, I will take it with a pinch of salt.
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I stated dingy, I should probably have said nowhere near as bright as full sunshine.

FYI, images can be made to look brighter than they were at the point of taking the shot.
 
I dont see a problem with them not letting you take it outside/near the doors.

They also cant give you a voucher if it's faulty if you want a refund. But by the sounds of it by this time you were already angry and a pain in the arse customer.

If there was any issue with the lens, you would know straight away when you put it on the camera and if its an issue you cant see, taking it to the doors will make no difference, you will only find out later.
 
While CEX's prices are not the lowest, they do give a FIVE YEAR warranty on second-hand goods.

I don't know of many/any other retailers of second-hand photographic goods who offer this.
 
GreenNinja67 said:
oh well lesson learnt.

If you want decent customer service go to a reputable photographic establishment.

Having also worked in retail a long time ago I didn't think it an unreasonable request to be honest.
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How many times when you worked in retail did you allow customers to remove goods from the premises without paying for them first?

Your request was completely unreasonable.
 
I think you may have over reacted here Terry , c.e.x is not a camera shop it’s a used goods junk shop . The sales staff are not versed in the nuances of photographic gear , but there prices usually reflect that. Had a couple of bargains online from them in the past like a four thirds lens with a genuine Olympus mm.f3 adaptor fitted for the price of the lens i.e £50 ish .
If the price is right go for it buying in a shop gives you at least the chance to evaluate the item as well . But you were there and I guess that something made you suspicious in this case so leave it there
 
While there are strong rules under distance selling regulations when buying online, there's not for buying in store so Cex do not have to offer any refund for unwanted goods so they're legally allowed to only offer vouchers within two days. They do have to fully refund to the original payment card if the item is faulty. When buying online from them you have 14 days and can get a full refund on the original payment method for unwanted items. To be fair to them I wouldn't expect them to allow a lens to be taken further away especially since they're frequently busy and don't have that many staff.


I find Cex is really a massive gamble and unpredictable in pricing and condition. They clearly have some of pricing algorithm which needs a good amount of data to work with so often popular items are far too expensive and rare items are cheap, even within the same range their pricing doesn't always make sense. I find their condition is a complete lottery as well with some items far better than I'm expecting and some far worse. I bought a Grade B Samsung Galaxy Tab S3 4G (unlocked) which was listed as not having the pen or accessories, despite being the most expensive version in the range since it was cellular and unlocked they priced it below the cheapest version plus it arrived fully boxed with all accessories. Another good buy was a DJI Smart controller which had an RRP of £600 but after being discontinued I'd seen them selling for £700+ on ebay, I bought a grade B one from CEX for around £340 and it was absolutely immaculate looking like it had never been used and complete in box.

On the other hand I bought a grade B Sony A7SII and the condition was absolutely shocking to the point it should never have been sold. The camera looked like it had been dropped multiple times with damage all round the outside and the sensor was an absolute mess, the camera appeared functional in that it would power on and take photos but I couldn't believe they sold it like that and as grade B. I bought a Samsung Galaxy Tab A8 case since their pricing for these is usually well below the ridiculous official prices but received an absolutely wrecked Tab S2 case (probably around eight years old at that point) which wasn't even the right size.

I've never had any issue with refunds though usually through my local store and had the refund shortly after I've left the shop.

I will use Cex in the future but the price needs to be good to be worth the potential hassle since it's a lottery each time whether I'm going to get something in suitable condition or not. I've not used them again for camera equipment since it's more difficult to quickly tell if a lens or similar doesn't have any issues and I don't trust Cex to properly check them.
 
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CEX don't grade lenses so I just buy them online and take the gamble - online purchase is better than in-store as it's no fuss 14 day returns, but if you email them and say you intend to return it - they extend that to 28 days

You can then return to your local store if condition isn't as expected

instore want to give you voucher refund after a few days which is obviously not good

5 year warranty on all goods purchased now, too.

Take the gamble if the price is good - if it's close to other places, and you can't be bothered with the potential hassle - stick to the dedicated places
 
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