Swaros Sent In For Repair

[Esq]

Sent my 20-year old SLCs in for repair. $49 shipping with insurance. Probably paid too much for the insurance since priority medium box flat rate mail was only $15 from Oregon. I filled out their online form in advance. 4-days later they emailed to confirm receipt and two days after that they sent an email detailing that all 4 exterior lenses have scratches, 2 of which ar cosmetic and 2 that are affecting optical resolution. I called their repair dept and after a 23-minute hold had a good conversation with a rep. I was curious why they didn't mention the internal fogging, the reason I sent them in the first place. He said that the internals would be corrected free under warranty so it wasn't put on the repair estimate. Each lens is $75 to replace and with a 4 lens replacement they will put on new armor at no extra cost. So, for $300 plus the one way shipping, I'll have new Swaro 15x56 slcs. I'm pretty happy with that. Assuming they are sent back in a reasonable time I'll be very happy with the customer service and value.

 

[Jacob Chapman]

Doesn't sounds like a bad deal at all, thanks for the report!

I'd assume they are putting the newest tech into the lenses as I can't imagine they produce the older ones anymore right?

 

[elkguide]

I sent a pair of Kahles in for the same reason last summer and had the same results. Was told to expect a 4 - 6 week turnaround but had them back in less than 3 weeks. Also sent in a pair of ELs and they readjusted the lens alignment and rearmoured them and they are truly like new.
Swaro fanboy here for sure!

 

[Trr15]

I’ve had similar experiences with 2 different sets of ELs I sent in for service. The only slight disappointment I’ve had was last month when I got my 12x50s back. They cleaned and serviced them, but didn’t replace the armor. When I got them back I noticed a slight tear in the armor near the left ocular lens. I’m sure it was simply an oversight and I’m not willing to pay the shipping to have them correct the issue. I’ll just use them as is.

 

[Holocene]

I sent a pair of 10x42 EL for service last year. The diopter teeth had stopped engaging. Needing them in a hurry, I paid $50 for expedited service and got everything handled within 1-2 weeks. No extra charges. I was happy with their customer service -- everything from the packaging, conversations with reps, turnaround time, cost, and quality of work.

It will be interesting to see how their warranty/repair work changes now that their policy has softened and Leica has strengthened theirs.

 

[tdhanses]

I sent a pair of 10x42 EL for service last year. The diopter teeth had stopped engaging. Needing them in a hurry, I paid $50 for expedited service and got everything handled within 1-2 weeks. No extra charges. I was happy with their customer service -- everything from the packaging, conversations with reps, turnaround time, cost, and quality of work.

It will be interesting to see how their warranty/repair work changes now that their policy has softened and Leica has strengthened theirs.

Truthfully doubt you see much of a change from Swaro, Leica has definitely upped their warranty and customer service the last few years.

 

[Esq]

I sent similar vintage 10x32 Leicas in about 3 months ago. They were slow in communicating and ultimately sent the binos to Europe. They came back here about 2-weeks ago and I swear they are brand new. Didn't charge me anything and never told me what was wrong with them. I didn't expect free. Other than taking a bit of time, I couldn't be happier.

 

[Brooks]

I just send mine in to have a rattle from inside them repaired this is what they emailed me……….


Dear Valued Customer,

Thank you for giving us the opportunity to be of service to you. We have received and evaluated your EL 12 X 50 BINOCULAR based on the reported problem(s). The reported issues will be repaired free of charge, under warranty coverage. After close examination of your product, we would like to make you aware that we’ve found cosmetic wear on the body or lenses of your product as noted below. These blemishes are not affecting the optical performance or clarity of your product at this time; however, any scratches to a lens surface coating can eventually lead to direct exposure of the glass surfaces to damage over time. We are offering you the opportunity to have the cosmetic issues noted below repaired while your product is here undergoing service.

Our technicians note the following cosmetic wear on your product:

“Standard clean and check will be conducted under warranty coverage. Please Note: Swarovski Optik technicians are very thorough and do a full evaluation of your product in addition to checking the deficiencies you’ve asked us to look at. We do this to ensure you receive back the highest optical clarity and quality that is expected out of your product. Examination reveals both objective lenses are cosmetically scratched. Replacement of these lenses is strictly optional as the scratches don't affect optical clarity. The cost to replace both lenses will be $250.00 Cosmetic Repairs are not recommendations. We are merely making you aware of a cosmetic blemish so that you know that we did our due diligence and checked all the scratches. Replacement of the lenses is not mandatory and replacement is of your own choosing. Please contact customer service at the number below to let us know how you'd like to proceed. The repair time of your product is affected by how fast we receive your response. If you decide to proceed please have a Visa or MC ready at the time of the call. If you only wish to proceed with warranty service, that is completely fine please either reply to this email and let us know or give us a call. If we don't receive a response this service order will continue to process 7 days from now.”

Additional state sales taxes may apply to the costs quoted above.

Please note this estimate only contains costs for cosmetic lens wear/replacement(s) or other cosmetic issues which are not repairable under warranty coverage and the reported product issue is being repaired under warranty coverage. Please also note that your immediate response is needed so we can return your product as soon as possible. We will wait 7 days from the delivery of this email to begin servicing your product without performing the lens replacements offered above if we don’t hear from you. Please note if after 7 days you wish to perform the lens replacement we will do our best to coordinate this with our repair department prior to returning your product to you.

If you would like to approve this lens replacement estimate please contact customer service at 800-426-3089 option 1 at your earliest convenience. Please have a Visa or Mastercard ready at the time of the call.

Thank you for having chosen Swarovski Optik for your sport optic needs.

Best Regards,

Your Swarovski Optik Repair Team

 

[Tesoro]

I have had great luck with swaro repairs. the last thing I did was send in a 1980's 8x30 habicht bino that I bought in a garage sale for 200. They replaced 2 lenses, armor and all rubbers for 150 or so. They came back like new. Sold them for 600.

 

[tdhanses]

I sent similar vintage 10x32 Leicas in about 3 months ago. They were slow in communicating and ultimately sent the binos to Europe. They came back here about 2-weeks ago and I swear they are brand new. Didn't charge me anything and never told me what was wrong with them. I didn't expect free. Other than taking a bit of time, I couldn't be happier.

I sent in my HDB-2200’s in mid Nov, they provided an online tracking tool for the status for tracking but would also respond within a day to emails, they ended up sending mine back to the factory and let me know they were doing that. So far communication has been great with Leica. I think the Leica factory is in Spain.

They also told me no charge, everything will be covered under warranty.

 

[justin davis]

Got to love Swarovski. They have great customer service

 

[BSimmons]

Sounds like a great experience. I've had nothing but pleasant interactions when I've needed service.

 

[Rstien321]

I’ve used Swarovski, Leupold, and Leica’s service.

Swarovski is by far the best in terms of communication and setting expectations. Their service portal is also really slick. They do charge for some things (as noted by others experiences).

Leupold is right there with Swarovski when it comes to speed and ease of initiating service. Their communication isn’t quite as detailed, but they hit the expectations well.

Leica did great on completing service, but there wasn’t a great communication flow or a setting of expectations. When I did send notes, they were quick to respond though. Definitely took the longest to complete.