jondr Posted March 13, 2023 Share #1 Posted March 13, 2023 Advertisement (gone after registration) Hello I'm looking to buy a q2. My question is: how important is it to buy from a leica dealer. I have many cameras, On occasion, I've bought them from Gray importers, and shops on the fringes. I have done this to save money. I reasoned that if the worst happens, the item breaks down, I could live with the loss. Given the cost of the q2, is it best to go with an authorised dealer. Canon uk, for example won't do warranty work on Gray imports. How do leica respond to warranty requests for items purchased outside there dealer network. Many thanks Jon Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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andybarton Posted March 13, 2023 Share #2 Posted March 13, 2023 Buy from a dealer, like Stephens in Manchester, or RedDot in London (Others are available) Leica do haver a world wide warranty, but if you buy outside the dealer network and something goes wrong, you have to send the camera back to Wetzlar in Germany for them to deal with. 2 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuny Posted March 13, 2023 Share #3 Posted March 13, 2023 You would not get warrantee work, but you could get repair work. Just as the cameras are costly, so are the parts and labor, suggesting that you buy from Leica authorized dealer or Leica store. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted March 13, 2023 Share #4 Posted March 13, 2023 Authorized dealer. Nowhere else. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart Richardson Posted March 13, 2023 Share #5 Posted March 13, 2023 (edited) 32 minutes ago, stuny said: You would not get warrantee work, but you could get repair work. Just as the cameras are costly, so are the parts and labor, suggesting that you buy from Leica authorized dealer or Leica store. In my experience this is has not been the case. If the gear is authentic, and you have proof of purchase, it is my experience that they will service it for free. I know this because Iceland only recently got an authorized dealer, and I have bought things through a store that imported the cameras from Denmark. I have also bought grey market and it never seemed to be a barrier to getting it fixed. This is based on having to send it to Germany, however. I do recommend buying from an authorized dealer or store if you can, however. I don't think it matters much where it is located though, as long as it is authorized. I believe that Leica's guarantee is worldwide as Jaap and Andy said. Edited March 13, 2023 by Stuart Richardson 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrell Gallery Posted March 13, 2023 Share #6 Posted March 13, 2023 I'd personally buy used, Leica stores provides a warranty. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
andybarton Posted March 13, 2023 Share #7 Posted March 13, 2023 Advertisement (gone after registration) 22 minutes ago, Stuart Richardson said: This is based on having to send it to Germany, however. That's the point. If you are lucky to have an authorised dealer in your country (or in your city), then they will deal with all the "sending it back" stuff for you. They may also provide you with a loan camera and other support. If you've bought from a grey importer, or some dodgy back-street place, then you're on your own. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jondr Posted March 13, 2023 Author Share #8 Posted March 13, 2023 Hello Many thanks for taking the time to reply. It's answered my question. I am going to play it safe and go with a main dealer. I can manage the loss on a low end dslr, but at 5k, I'm not willing to take the risk to save £500. Many thanks Jon 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Viv Posted March 13, 2023 Share #9 Posted March 13, 2023 Buy from a Leica dealer. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaapv Posted March 13, 2023 Share #10 Posted March 13, 2023 You could buy taxfree from an airport dealership. They usually have guarantee arrangements. Ask. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
erniethemilk Posted March 13, 2023 Share #11 Posted March 13, 2023 If you're UK based, I'd look at either the Leica Store in London or the Leica Store Manchester. Both are relatively competitively priced and offer excellent customer service. I'd also use a Chase card or similar that offers a bit of cashback to save a few quid! 😂 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DenverSteve Posted March 13, 2023 Share #12 Posted March 13, 2023 (edited) I too have had great results with Leica Store Manchester - but that’s as a U.S. buyer. As a U.K. Buyer, for tax (VAT) ramifications, I would check Munich or one of the other E.U. dealers to see who would work best for you. Edited March 13, 2023 by DenverSteve Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobtodrick Posted March 13, 2023 Share #13 Posted March 13, 2023 I’ll weigh in as a Leica (and most major brands) dealer. Luckily I don’t deal with many clients who buy grey market…but sometimes I do, usually when they need help with an issue. I have no problem telling them to pound sand. You don’t want to support you’re local dealer…great…as long as you don’t expect them to support or help you. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirBlunder Posted March 14, 2023 Share #14 Posted March 14, 2023 On 3/13/2023 at 8:06 AM, andybarton said: That's the point. If you are lucky to have an authorised dealer in your country (or in your city), then they will deal with all the "sending it back" stuff for you. They may also provide you with a loan camera and other support. If you've bought from a grey importer, or some dodgy back-street place, then you're on your own. This is a bit confusing to me. I had an issue with my q2. Purchased from Leica Miami. I called them... and they said "we'll help you package it.. but you're better off just mailing it in and dealing with Leica (NJ) directly." That's what I did. They (Leica NJ) were very helpful and very quickly got me a loaner. My camera ended up getting shipped to Germany anyway. I was told that they "sometimes" help with repairs. Isn't this virtually the exact thing that would have happened had I bought a new q2 via Amazon (at a discount vs. an "authorized retailer")? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anakronox Posted March 14, 2023 Share #15 Posted March 14, 2023 Not in all situations. For most serious repairs, especially with the SL and Q series your camera goes to Wetzlar, full stop. If purchased from an authorized US dealer, you have the ability to send it to Leica USA in NJ, who will triage and attempt any repair that they are able to. Let’s say you purchased the same camera grey market and attempt to send it to Leica USA. They will kindly direct you to Leica Wetzlar and shipping will be at your expense. What your local non-Leica corporate dealer (including the Miami folks) do is their own policy. Most will help when purchased from them as it’s just good customer service and fosters repeat business. In my situation most of my gear was purchased outside of the US and classified as ROW (Rest of World) so I’d expect to deal directly with Wetzlar on most issues now that the Leica boutique in Moscow has shut down. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spike415 Posted March 14, 2023 Share #16 Posted March 14, 2023 (edited) I "rolled the dice" and bought mine through Amazon, saved $500.00 plus interest free loan on the balance. I hope it works out because my M4 has been in Germany for repair for 6 months! Edited March 14, 2023 by Spike415 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Camaro5 Posted March 14, 2023 Share #17 Posted March 14, 2023 One thing to consider is that if you buy new from a dealer you can register the camera on Leica.com and get a 1-year extended warranty plus a subscription to LFI magazine. Leica will also register pre-owned gear (and give you the warranty) if it hasn't already been registered or if you can get the previous owner to unregister it. All my new gear is registered and Leica Store Miami helped in getting a couple of things deactivated so they could be put in my account and given the warranty. Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
jplotkin Posted June 19, 2023 Share #18 Posted June 19, 2023 On 3/14/2023 at 11:22 AM, SirBlunder said: This is a bit confusing to me. I had an issue with my q2. Purchased from Leica Miami. I called them... and they said "we'll help you package it.. but you're better off just mailing it in and dealing with Leica (NJ) directly." That's what I did. They (Leica NJ) were very helpful and very quickly got me a loaner. My camera ended up getting shipped to Germany anyway. I was told that they "sometimes" help with repairs. Isn't this virtually the exact thing that would have happened had I bought a new q2 via Amazon (at a discount vs. an "authorized retailer")? What is the location of Leica New Jersey, and how do you contact them if you need a repair? Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corius Posted June 19, 2023 Share #19 Posted June 19, 2023 33 minutes ago, jplotkin said: What is the location of Leica New Jersey, and how do you contact them if you need a repair? Google "Leica New Jersey".... https://leica-camera.com/en-US/contact Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirBlunder Posted June 19, 2023 Share #20 Posted June 19, 2023 1 hour ago, jplotkin said: What is the location of Leica New Jersey, and how do you contact them if you need a repair? I spoke to them on the phone before, but the process is actually kind of funny. Filled out the form very carefully and just shipped it to them with that form in the package. Once it got there, I heard from them with a sort of virtual ticket and a contact (who was VERY helpful throughout the process, including getting me set up with a loaner). Seemed like a relatively simple repair to me (the misc. dial was busted and, from when I got the camera, one of the strap lugs was a bit loose, which doesn't appear to be that uncommon). Rep told me that usually they can do a fix like that out of NJ but that, for whatever reason, mine had to go to Germany. They had the camera for ~3 months. So it's by no means a quick process. Again, they did set me up with a loaner, so I was only without a camera for a couple weeks through the whole process. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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