Timpsons - massive ripoff

richdim

I went to a high street jeweler to get a new battery for a watch. I was quoted £8.50 for the battery installed, but they did not have the right one so suggested I go to Timpsons.

In Timpsons, I was quoted £21.50 for the battery installed. Apparently the excessive price covers resealing the case. What does this mean? Is it necessary? As far as I can see, the seal is a thin rubber ring.

I bought a new battery from an online retailer for 44p and will fit it myself.

I was also quoted £150 by Timpsons for replacing some numbers that had fallen off the face of the watch - ridiculous.

Unless there is good reason for such excessive prices, I will be avoiding Timpsons from now on.

Do you feel Timpsons is too expensive

WolfSong2000

The resealing will be to ensure that the watch remains splash/waterproof (depending on the watch). Also, not all watch batteries are created equal, plus some watch batteries are trickier to replace than others (depends on the watch!).

As for replacing the numbers on the face...yes, that would be an expensive job. Sadly in today's throw-away society it's often easier and cheaper to just replace things than fix them .

Just for the record, I don't work for Timpson's and have had little to do with them in the past, but I used to work in a jeweller. Speaking of which, if you want to avoid the hassle of watch batteries, buy a Citizen Eco Drive watch - they don't use batteries. Instead the face acts as a solar panel. I have one which I adore and will now never consider any other brand of watch. And no, I don't work for Citizen. lol.

richdim

I have bought a new battery for the watch for less than £1. It took me approximately 5 seconds to open the watch with a penknife and another 20 seconds to change the battery. And the only seal that I can see is a rubber ring around the interface. Is there any other kind of sealing mechanism that can justify the expense?

As for the other watch with the loose numbers, for which I was quoted £150. Part of the reason I was quoted so much was because "the mechanism was not working", according to the guy in the shop. I put a new battery in and it works fine. And even if they needed to replace the mechanism, a new VD55B mechanism (as per what is there now) is less than £20. So how it gets to £150, I do not know.

Fridaycat

WolfSong2000 wrote: »

Just for the record, I don't work for Timpson's and have had little to do with them in the past, but I used to work in a jeweller. Speaking of which, if you want to avoid the hassle of watch batteries, buy a Citizen Eco Drive watch - they don't use batteries. Instead the face acts as a solar panel. I have one which I adore and will now never consider any other brand of watch. And no, I don't work for Citizen. lol.

I also have a Citizen Eco Drive watch, have had it for a few years now and it's a good as it was when new. And I don't work for them either

OP- I've never had anything but great service from Timpson. Mind you, not used them for watch repairs.

s_b

i always say bakers should keep to cakes

Mrs_Arcanum

I have a watch that will cost £50+ to get working again because it was waterproof. So £21.50 seems rather reasonable by comparison.

Enfieldian

Timpsons were the only company that could change the battery for my watch without having to send it away to be done.

They were also the cheapest option.

biscit

Enfieldian wrote: »

Timpsons were the only company that could change the battery for my watch without having to send it away to be done.

They were also the cheapest option.

I've found them expensive when compared to independents who could do the same work, but there's nothing wrong with different businesses running different business models.

So long as there's no deliberate action to decieve that is. That's how money saving works by making consumers savvier, so the savvy consumers get their just rewards. Not by eliminating the need for savviness.

mamabuddah

just don't ask them to cut a key...lol

Evilm

WolfSong2000 wrote: »

Speaking of which, if you want to avoid the hassle of watch batteries, buy a Citizen Eco Drive watch - they don't use batteries. Instead the face acts as a solar panel. I have one which I adore and will now never consider any other brand of watch. And no, I don't work for Citizen. lol.

I largely agree although I have managed to 'kill' and Eco Drive watch and haven't been able to work out what will be able to get it working again. I think I killed it by wearing it too near a security device detector whilst working in a supermarket over Christmas.

I haven't found Timpsons overly costly but they don't always offer the lowest prices. I definitely wouldn't accept a price from them without checking around first.

Steer73

I had a similiar experience. Timpsons quoted me about the same as the OP for a new watch battery plus fitting and sealing the watch. A guy down the road did it for about £4 instead.

Unless you are a deep sea diver, I dont really think you need to pay that much for resealing the case on a normal watch.