Advice on Digital Camera Scams on Tenerife

Greyman_2

Costa Adeje, Playa Del Americas resort.

While staying for one week in Playa Del Americas, Tenerife, my wife and I fell victim to a digital camera scam.
Due to Tenerife being a tax free island, the prices of some of the camera equipment is too good to be true?
While walking through Puerto Colon, San Eugenio, we looked at a Sony DVD camcorder for 50 euros, it was to good an offer to miss.
On paying for the camera and getting extra dvd's, totaling 94 euros, we where given a demonstration on how to use the equipment by a shop assistant. The shop assistant went thhrough a process of showing the pitfalls of the Sony and then proceeded to demonstrate a Smart JVCAM. It looked good and the sales pitch made it looked the best available. We agreed to part with another 300 euros. The salesman recommended throwing away the packaging, before we got home?
As part of the sales pitch, we where advised that the Smart JVCAM warranty was worldwide.
On getting back to my hotel and playing around with the camera, I noted that none of the camera parts had JVC logo's or markings. On looking at the instructions booklet, it was very poor and not what I expected from JVC.
I logged onto the Internet in the hotel and checked out the Smart JVCAM warranty, no trace, but hits on people who had been duped. Alarm bells started ringing. I then proceeded to see if the camera existed with JVC no luck.
I returned to the shop the following day, to ask for my money back. The assistant was taken a back that we had assumed it was a JVC camera, he and his colleagues had never claimed it was. He also stated it had been registered with Curry's in the UK, for the warranty. There was no offer of refund.
Not happy with this, I called my credit card company, who stated not to worry, they would look into it and refund the money, but would investigate the shop. I contacted my son in the UK and he checked with JVC and Curry's and neither had heard of the Smart JVCAM or the warranty.
On conducted further internet searches, I found a reference to the Consumer Advice in Adeje. It transpires, they have more power than the Police, to deal with fake goods.

The address for the Costa Adeje office is as follows:-
Ayuntamiento de Adeje
Area de Politica Turistica
Sanidad y Consumo, Relationes (OMIC)
C/Grande, No 1, 38670 Adeje, Sta, Cruz de Tenerife
Tel. 922 75 62 00
Fax 922 78 06 06

I took a short taxi ride up to Adeje in the mountains and the lady in the Consumer Advice Office was very helpful.

She examined the goods, the warranty and then made a telephone call to the shop, advising them of my complaint and to refund all the money to me.
The lady completed a compliant form, which I signed and it's important to have your Passport with you, as details are required for the form. The form is then logged at the Town Hall.
I was advise to return to the shop and the shop would have to fax through a signed receipt that they had refunded my money, in order to get the compliant withdrawn.

I returned to the shop with all the goods and to say their tone had changed was an understatement. They refunded the money as agreed.

I was lucky, some people had not done their research and I can only warn people of the dangers of buying fake goods on Tenerife?

phatbear

A quick story relating to this, a while ago I pounced on a passenger from tenerife who had far to many cigs anyway whilst seizing his goods I noticed he also had a brand new camcorder in his bag, I asked if he had bought it in tenerife which he confirmed he did then asked how much he had paid for it and he claimed he had paid over £600 for it, probably worth £200 top whack, anyway it was obvious that he had been fleeced so instead of charging him the vat and duty i sent him on his way with a warning, see I am human after all.

Anyway this is well known scam and goes on around the world, go to orlando and you will get fleeced on international drive, go to ny and you will be fleeced by most of the electrical stores in and around times square, alas it goes back to the fact that if it looks to good to be true it probably is.

Just re-read your post and I was wondering if you did ask advised and threw the packaging away and if so why?

all the best

the bear