Sunglasses Hut

thecremeegg

Hi all,
I'm posting because i'm furious with the treatment i have received from Sunglasses Hut when my watch broke.
18 months ago my girlfriend bought me a watch from Sunglasses Hut in Guildford. A month or so ago it started losing time very quickly. The other day I took the watch into where i bought it and asked for it to be repaired. I need to point out now that at the time of buying, my girlfriend paid extra for the 2 year warranty which covers new batteries and repairs. The girl at the shop told me she couldn't repair it, but if i took the watch to Timpsons, they would and Sunglasses hut would repay me. I didnt think this was acceptable, but as i wanted to wear the watch in the next few days, i did what she said.
Timpsons couldnt do it til after the weekend so I returned to sunglasses hut. the lady there suggestsed other places to get the work done but i decided against it and let the lady know my feelings.
Now that was the end of it until today when my gf took the watch back to try and get more sense from the sunglasses hut staff. The man there took the watch and removed the watertight seal (!) and said nothing was wrong. Now in the time it took to get home, the watch lost 25 mins....how is there "nothing wrong"?! Whats even more annoying is that the seal needs to be present for the warranty to be valid so now i probably havet got a warranty :mad:
Does anyone know what I should do next as i would like my watch to be fixed, but as fossil don't have a uk website or factory i cant contact them

I'm really annoyed and watchless and i would really appreciate some helpful advice
Sorry for the long post

Thanks

Egg

zappomatic

Fossil have two shops in London and one at Bluewater if that's any help.

Alternatively here's their UK contact details including a phone number for repairs:

http://www.fossil.co.uk/main.asp?pagename=Customer%20Care&showpage=uk_en_customer_care.asp&pageoption=1

http://www.fossil.co.uk/main.asp?pagename=Guarantee/Repairs&showpage=uk_en_guarantees_repairs.asp is specifically about guarantees and has an address to send watches to for repair.

Astaroth

To be honest I dont think what they initially did was too bad at all.

I bought a watch from a jewelers not long ago, had the same problem of losing time, so they said they could either a) send it back to the manufacturers to replace the battery (estimated 2 weeks to do) or b) take it to a local battery replacement shop of my choice, come back with the receipt and get a refund straight away.

I did option b and within 30 minutes my watch was fully functional again and I had the cash back in my pocket

Scully's_Girl

oohhhhhhhhhh, I wont get started on Sunglass hut. Lets just say after I got through with them I got my husband 3 watches as a result of their poor service, and I got myself a gorgeous fossil for my trouble, which I am happily wearing now. I went through a year of he11 with them. Their service is the pits.
Unfortunately, as it has been over a year the info is no longer in my OUTLOOK. But this is what you do. Call the main Sunglass hut number and ask for the office of the Managing Director. When you're put through to them, state your case. Do NOT deal with petty store managers, they have no power nor do they have the willingness to assist. Then, push it until you get restitution. Advise that you believe an irresponsible employee might have invalidated your warrantee, & you wont quit.
They might offer you a £50 voucher. I told them that wasnt good enough as all their watches start at at LEAST £55, so I was seeing it simply as a calculated way for me to admit defeat & spend more money in their store. My husbands watch that they ruined was no longer made, and after a long while they finally located one in Texas. They shipped it, and it had a scratch on it. So they sent us a 3rd one. It didnt work, so we took it to the large location on oxford street. Had a giggle with the staff about all the hassle we've been through, with the constant scratching of the watches, when all of a sudden, the guy working to reset the time put two huge scratches in it. I called the manager I had been working with on his cell phone in a tizzy. All in all, I must admit that Gerald, the area manager I worked with, did all he could, calling me even on his days off. So he was great.
Call the managing directors office & go through them.

kuohu

thecremeegg wrote:

The girl at the shop told me she couldn't repair it, but if i took the watch to Timpsons, they would and Sunglasses hut would repay me.

Sounds fair enough. If they don't have the staff to do it then I'm sure you wouldn't want someone unskilled having a bash at at?

thecremeegg wrote:

I didnt think this was acceptable,

Why not?

thecremeegg wrote:

but as i wanted to wear the watch in the next few days, i did what she said.
Timpsons couldnt do it til after the weekend so I returned to sunglasses hut. the lady there suggestsed other places to get the work done but i decided against it and let the lady know my feelings.

Again, this sounds a bit harsh. If someone wasn't available to do it then what else could they have done? She even advised on alternative places to get the work done. Did you want an A-Team task force, parachuted into the shop to fix your watch? If they don't have the staff then they don't have the staff.

And does the lady in Sunglasses Hut have responsibility now for the staff availability in Timpsons too?

thecremegg wrote:

Now that was the end of it until today when my gf took the watch back to try and get more sense from the sunglasses hut staff. The man there took the watch and removed the watertight seal (!) and said nothing was wrong. Now in the time it took to get home, the watch lost 25 mins....how is there "nothing wrong"?! Whats even more annoying is that the seal needs to be present for the warranty to be valid so now i probably havet got a warranty :mad:

Was this not back at Timpsons where Sunglasses Hut had advised you to go?

thecremegg wrote:

Does anyone know what I should do next as i would like my watch to be fixed

Well how about going to Timpsons, per the original advice?

Seems a lot of anger over nothing, to be honest. Get the watch fixed and have a beer.

Silent_Bob_3

Why should they take it Timpsons when they have a 2 year service guarantee with Sunglasses Hut?

In fact why are the Sunglasses Hut selling this service if they cant provide it.

I'd be asking for it to be sent off and repaired or a full refund on the service contract.

Astaroth

Hmm... so you can

a) take it to a watch shop, get it repaired there and then and get a refund all within 30 minutes

b) send it off under warrenty for it to have the battery replaced and have it back within 2 weeks.

Can really see why you would stand your ground for option b here.

thecremeegg

Right,
Thanks for all the replies (even the not so positive one )
I have managed to end the saga - girl in the shop agreed that I could have a new watch as they couldn't be bothered (her words) to send it off to be fixed. As the shop only sell one type of Fossil watch now, my choice was rather limited. A lot of nagging later I get the money refunded.
Have used it to buy a new one from somewhere completely different....customer service at Sunglasses hut needs improvement if a customer has to complain and nag to get a result!!
Oh well, all is fixed now

Cremey