DSLR camera repair

rainbow_carnage

I have a Sony Alpha A200, which I bought almost two years ago on the recommendation of the good people on this board. My plan was to use it for a few months while I saved up for a Canon 5D, then sell it. Sadly, that didn't happen. The pound tanked, camera prices went up and I lost my job. So I've been using the Sony. I've bought a few decent second-hand lenses, and it's been ok.

Then something happened. I don't really know what. I don't remember dropping the camera, or banging it against anything, but maybe I did. As a result, something inside it is misaligned. It could be the sensor, or the mirror. Either way, the image in the viewfinder doesn't match the photos. I keep forgetting this and chopping off the tops of people's heads.

I googled it, and it seems to be a pretty common issue with the Alphas. The camera is long out of warranty, so I'm going to have to pay to have it fixed. That's a problem. I'm about to start an MA. All of the money I had (plus a credit card) went to pay for that. I'm beyond skint. But I need the camera.

I looked up a bunch of repair places in London. They all seem to get awful reviews. I called three. One guy said he's never heard of the model. Not a good sign. The other two were rude and unhelpful, if not blatantly dishonest.

There's one shop in Soho that's the exception, but it's really expensive. I used them once to clean mould off a lens. They did an excellent job, but it cost about 80% of the value of the lens. I'm sure the same will be true for the camera.

Is there a good, reasonably priced DSRL repair place anywhere in England? I'd be happy to post the camera body, as long as I know I'll get it back safely. I really don't want to send it to Sony. They have a minimum charge of about £120.

I feel like I'm going to end up spending over a hundred quid to fix a camera I didn't really want in the first place.

imho

Can you claim from your house insurance ? I googled your problem and like you said its a common fault. You could always call Sony and say its a common problem with these cameras and see if they will fix it for free.Worth trying .

Trinitrotoluene

I have a Sony Alpha A200, which I bought almost two years ago on the recommendation of the good people on this board

Did you buy this new? If I were you I would be exercising my rights under the Sales of Goods Act. Regardless of whether it was under warranty or not it is still covered for the periods relevant in the act. Where did you buy the camera from? I advise contacting sony and see what they say. If they admit it is an inherent fault with the camera then you have extremely good grounds to push ahead and exercise your rights under the sales of goods act.

rainbow_carnage

Thank you for your replies.

I bought the camera new from Amazon.

I've phoned Sony. Unsurprisingly, they don't acknowledge it as a known fault, even though it's clearly a common problem. They're willing to take a look at it, but I'd have to pay £114.56 upfront. The woman I spoke to made a point out of saying that it's a freepost address, but didn't even mention the cost of registering the repair. I had to specifically ask about it.

I'm not very familiar with the Sales of Goods Act. From what I understand, my claim would be against Amazon, not Sony. It seems very vague. On the one hand, you have up to six years to make a claim if a good is faulty. On the other hand, once you go past six months, it's up to you to prove that the fault was present when you bought the item, and that it's not just normal wear and tear. How on earth does one do that?

It seems obvious that a DSLR should last longer than two years. There are no dents or scratches on it, but that's no proof that it wasn't dropped.

It sounds pretty hopeless.