Local warranty - scam?

[splatt]

I bought an Ixus 400 for my wife this weekend, and came across something I haven't met before.
The shop told me that the price was $28 more with a local warranty, compared to an international warranty!
Ordinarily I would assume that this is a scam, since I have come across all the usual tricks, like missing or overpriced accessories, attempting to push other camera models, 'forgetting' GST.
But the shop in question was AP, who are normally honest, and the price ($728 incl. GST) was confirmed by two other sources: CP was $10 more, and a Singaporean lady (I am an Ang Mo) who was just about to buy when I walked into the shop.
So to the wise camera shoppers on ClubSNAP:
Why would a camera with Singapore warranty be more expensive than an international one? Is this something like 'gray' imports in the US? I can't see that it would make any difference to the shop, because I think you have to make returns to Canon directly.
And do you think that some shops purposely 'plant' some local buyers of popular models at an inflated price to provide reassurance to any foreigners/inexperienced buyers who walk in? Or am I being paranoid?

 

[Astin]

In Singapore common terms,
- "International Warranty" means "grey import" or "parallel import"
- "Local Warranty" means "Official Import from Canon"

As for your other questions, I think many CS members will be very helpful to explain to you later.....

 

[ivor]

Yeah, it is scam and dishonest representation.

 

[offspring]

I do not think we can call it a scam. Maybe being opportunistic of you being an ang mo to earn some extra $$.

Nevertheless, AP is a good and reputable shop and many photographers get their equipment from them. Price inconsistency will always be present.

Bottomline pal, get your IXUS at 728 flat with local warranty.

 

[splatt]

Yeah, it is scam and dishonest representation.

Thanks for replying Ivor, but this doesn't help v. much.
What do you mean? Which specific situation is a scam? Are you suggesting that AP are scammers? If so, you can be accused of libel.
Do you have a personal experience of a scam? Or have you worked in a shop like this so that you know how the local warranty is handled?
Or is this just your general opinion, which you cannot substantiate?

 

[vince123123]

Check to see if the international warranty is "international" or "foreign country". after satisfying that its international, call up canon Singapore to see if they honour international warranties. by right if a warranty is truly international, it should be honoured regardless of country, thats why its called international in the first place.

of course if the shops call it international but sell you a parallel import set with warranty belonging to timbuktu, then u better be careful.

 

[Darren]

Why would a camera with Singapore warranty be more expensive than an international one? Is this something like 'gray' imports in the US? I can't see that it would make any difference to the shop, because I think you have to make returns to Canon directly.

You are correct in surmising that this a a gray import, thus its cheaper. Why cheaper? Think of your $28 extra as "insurance" against malfuntion where Canon Singapore is legally obligated to provide maintenance and service for the local-warranty set. The International Warranty may or may not give you the same level of support and service from Canon.

And do you think that some shops purposely 'plant' some local buyers of popular models at an inflated price to provide reassurance to any foreigners/inexperienced buyers who walk in? Or am I being paranoid?

If you are talking about the major retailers like Alan Photo and Cathay, very very very sure that they do not 'plant' products or people to entice buyers. On the other hand, you may encounter ClubSNAPper's in the shop quietly murmuring buy!buy!buy! ... :bsmilie:

For what its worth, at least Alan Photo was up-front in giving you the choice between an international warranty (eg gray import) vs a local warranty.

 

[splatt]

Thanks for your replies!
By the way, based on my previous experiences with AP and their good reputation, I did buy the local warranty version for peace of mind.

As a follow-on, has anybody tried to save some money by buying the international warranty / grey import version, and then had to make a return? If so, what was your experience?

 

[finkster]

There is a difference in the applicability for international warranties and local warranties for digital products and film products. Digital refers to DSLR's and some Prosumer digicams, whereas film products refer to film bodies and lenses.

For DSLR's for example, there are only two types of warranties, Local and Grey market/Parrallel import. Local is the usual warranty that we know it, and the grey one has absolutely no warranty coverage, other than the shops own 7-day return/exchange policy if they have. Bring your DSLR to other countries and u will still be charged for any servicing even if u only bought it a week ago. No international warranty for DSLR's, as far as I know.

Film bodies and lenses normally have two types of warranties, namely international and grey. If u pay for the authorised version from Canon SG or Nikon SG, it should have international warranty coverage. Grey market products are the same for digital stuff. No warranty coverage.

As to whether buying grey is advised, depends on how much u save by doing so, and the odds of the product spoiling within the warranty period. I've had grey ones going good and fine, and local warranty stuff giving me headaches before, so maybe I've been lucky so far....

 

[Bobo]

You can check out Canon singapore's website. There is a page where they showed us how a local warranty card looks like. Mine look exactly like it! wheew...!

 

[Luv_dance]

Hi,

I may be wrong here :-

The International Warranty is for tourists who after buying their cam will be leaving Singapore therefore there is no need for them to be using a local warranty card.

Tourists may prefers not to send it back to Singapore for repair in case of failure because of the extra transport time and cost.

I am not too sure if the International Warranty card is effective overseas or not.

 

[Winston]

Thanks for your replies!
By the way, based on my previous experiences with AP and their good reputation, I did buy the local warranty version for peace of mind.

As a follow-on, has anybody tried to save some money by buying the international warranty / grey import version, and then had to make a return? If so, what was your experience?

I guess it depends on the price and also the "complexity" of the product or "the likelyhood of failure"

For example, in my ophinion, a flash, like SB-80DX has less complex parts compared to a camera like Canon's G5?

And the probability of failure within 12mths is probably less than a G5.

 

[Dennis]

Actually local or international warrenty the product that you get is the same. It still comes from canon or whatsoever. You can still get it repaired at Canon except that you will have to pay for it. So it is not a imitation set etc. The difference is the processing of the warrenty and normally international means only 3 mths and not a full year, enough time for you to get peace of mind that the product is working fine for a start. Some brands don't even have international warrenty and also depends on the type of product that you buy. Try buying products in Japan, they don't even service it out of the country.