I have had an wonderful customer service and wanted to share:
Led-lenser. I have had a P7 torch for a number of years and has been my ‘go-to’ dog walking torch. Last week it died! New batteries failed to resuscitate it! A quick search revealed the only place you can get spares is from the official distributor. I was surprised to learn that they cover their products with a 5 year guarantee. Could I find the proof of purchase…nowhere. So I filled in the returns form (honestly stating that I did not know the exact age or could prove where I had bought it) assuming they would contact me and be able to supply a new led with driver for a fixed sum. Imagine my surprise and delight to receive almost by return a brand new Led-lenser 7.2 complete with batteries in a double jiffy bag. No note, no packaging just a brand new torch. Thank you led-lenser and I will be definitely be buying them again.
Lets hear your tales of delight!

bought some shorts from Tenn. too small for me.
phoned em yesterday to see about swapping em. they offered me a much dearer item for same price, and sent a pre paid bag to send the shorts back.

thumbs up for Tenn.

Same happened to my P5.2, LED-Lenser don’t muck around.

Many years ago I sent a Barbour jacket back for reproofing. It was several years old and I first got it when I was about 15, so it didn’t really fit me very well.

I got a phone call from them explaining that the jacket had a fault in the lining and should never of passed their QC and left the factory.

They offered me a new jacket and their sincere apologies, they were even willing to lengthen the sleeves for me if I wanted to keep my old jacket instead. I went for the shiny new jacket.

However, in all of these cases, when Companies provide customer service of that level, it shows what a massive mark up they have on their products in the first place.

Cole & Mason salt & pepper mills…..bought with money from wedding gifts 3.5 years ago….

The salt grinder part was worn down so much that the salt virtually fell through the gap & no grinding was actually done.
Looked on their website and it mentioned a lifetime guarantee. The way they are made means there are no serviceable parts that can be replaced (not great for the environment, but hey…..)
I sent an e-mail and they asked for a photo of the wear and my contact details. About 2 days later I received a brand new one through the post.
I e-mailed them to ask if I should look after this one differently or do anything different to reduce the wear & the reply was basically that it will wear because the salt is so hard – use coarse sea salt rather than rock salt, but just get back in touch if/when this one wears down and we’ll get another one…..!

Amazon with my Kindle

Bought from PC World who weren’t interested in the slightest (not that I expected anything more) when the screen broke despite it being a known and common fault at the time and not the result of any impact or handling. I emailed Amazon a I wanted to replace it but wanted some reassurance that the screen issue had been resolved before I spent money on a new one. I had a call from them within 20 minutes, the customer services person asked me to confirm my address and then told me a new unit was on it’s way.

Contacted Gardena asking where I could buy a new part for the lopers that I broke. First reply was to tell me the new part was on its way.

Aren’t Lenser owned by Leatherman? (Who also do a fantastic 25 year warranty on their tools!)

Yes they are.

However, in all of these cases, when Companies provide customer service of that level, it shows what a massive mark up they have on their products in the first place.

..which in turn demonstrates that expensive does not (necessarily) equal “poor value for money” as many people seem to think..

Cole & Mason salt & pepper mills

Good to know. We got the same in our wedding gifts and I reckon the salt one is nearly gone at a similar age to yours.

Chicco is my recent addition to this thread.

My 1yr old broke a booster seat. They replaced free of charge one which was twice the price new and also sent him an additional shape sorter toy.

Makes life so much easier when companies don’t make you jump through hoops.

Topeak, sent me spare torx bits for my two multi-tools.
Ok, its just a few pennies but they took the time to chuck them in an envelope & sort me out.

CRC – bought a pair of ruinously expensive shorts, stuck them in my wardrobe, forgot about them for over a year, found them, realised they were women’s shorts!

Phoned without much hope and they refunded the day after I sent them back!

I had some Police sunglasses bought for me about 3 years ago and the frames started to get a bit corroded.
I emailed the UK distributor who asked for photos. Didn’t bother asking for receipts, or even where they came from. Straight away they apologised and not only sent me a replacement with upgraded lenses but they also included a little bluetooth speaker which acts as a surprisingly good hands free in the van. (They didn’t send me the van).

I think if you tell the truth when you’re making a claim, it makes their day (setting you apart from all the 500 liars they have to deal with every day) so they give you whatever discretionary treatment they can.

Scosche. Had a Scosche Rhythm+ hrm that I bought over a year ago but had never really worked well. It was fine for steady state stuff but would lose track when doing intervals so I just gave up on it and bought a Garmin. Over a year later and out of warranty I emailed them on the off chance that they could do a firmware upgrade to see if that would make it better. Even though it wasn’t bought directly from them they said to send it back and they sent me a model with the latest firmware

You have to love companies that treat you well even when they don’t really need to.

Oh and Nest. I have the house fitted with their smoke detectors and one of them started misbehaving and dropping out of the network. I phoned them and after 5 minutes on the phone with someone who was just working out that I hadn’t just made a mistake they had a new one in the post to me to arrive the next day. I then just had to stick the broken one back in the box the new one came in, stick on the return label and phone the courier to pick it up. As easy as it gets

Yes they are expensive but in a world where you are surrounded by gadgets you don’t want to have to arse around each time one breaks down. Would buy more

Lots of people here have good stories about Hope. Here’s mine; I bought my son a bike with Hope brakes on and took him on holiday to Dolgellau. On arriving we went to Coed y Brenin for a ride and soon his brake was pulling back to the bar. Limped back to site and spent all afternoon trying to fix it in the rain to no avail. After trying everything I knew to sort it, I phoned Hope for suggestions at 5pm. They asked where I was staying, and next morning the postman knocked on my campervan door with a new brake. By then I’d realised the problem was a tiny bolt loosening while the bike was on the rack on the way down

Filson – treated myself to a lovely Filson messenger bag, which wasn’t cheap, but it’s beautifully made. Emailed them to say the only thing I would change is to add one of the button handle clasps they have on bigger bags, and would I be able to buy one aftermarket. Instead they sent me one for free (from US PNW). Said it might take a few weeks to arrive; got it 2 days later. They’re really not cheap, but I’m a devotee now.

Google…. Might have launched the nexus 5 across the room which may have coincided with it not picking up a network. Couple of emails then a call to say a new one was in the post, return slips provided just send the old one back when the new one arrived.
Australian immigration – basically had a visa granted in principle with a date a few months away, called to discuss the hypothetical idea of landing, nipping to NZ then back again to activate the visa – they just sorted it out for the day of my flights
Hope? I’m sat here looking at maybe 2k’s worth of hope parts and it all still works

Can add Brabantia to this growing list. My 5 year old bin is like triggers broom. No questions asked replacement which has resulted in me becoming a brand slave to them!

Oakley.

Had a pair of Radars that discolored in the arms, they where silver, and it went black..
They sent me out a brand new frame in the colour of my choice.

They’re still going strong now.

Recent ones:

Hope: bought a new floating disc and noticed the cutouts were a bit off-centre on one part. Emailed them with a picture just to check it was safe and they said it was fine but I could have it changed if I wanted. Popped it in the post and had a new one within 2 days! They’ve also sent me a few small parts FOC over the years too, brilliant CS so I have loads of their stuff.

Cranked mag: ordered issue 5 and accidentally put 2 copies in the basket. Didn’t notice until I’d got the confirmation email. Emailed the mag to see if they could cancel the order and I’d re-order but instead (at 9.30pm!) I got an email from Seb saying he’d amend the order and refund the overdue cost.

Mojo: actually happened today! Put my forks in for a service just over a week ago, picked them up today. Got home and noticed they had mysteriously grown a new dial on the top. Checked the paperwork and it said ‘Warranty replacement parts’ so phoned them up to see what had been done. The open bath damper was faulty so they changed it out FOC, for a FIT one! Not bad for £85 all-in!!

Love smaller companies that aren’t part of a big conglomerate, they actually care about their customers.

Timbuk2 – bought a bag, and the fabric split on the inside of the flap after 4 or 5 years. Turned out to be a limited edition design from the US and having sent them a couple of photos I was given a voucher for 70% off any of their bags, or any new bag if I posted it back to the US.

Ok then if we are doing this-18 bikes in hope.
Couple weeks ago changing schock bushes on my elderly Santa Cruz. Managed to round off an Allen key and knacker a bearing. Rolled bike into the shop at 7.10 one tgutsday evening, rolled it out 20 minutes later having had stuck bolt removed, bearing replaced with one out of a box marked “old Santa Cruz bits” and everything put back together properly. Charged £13 including £4 for the bearing.

Any from Apple on this thread?

Exposure fixed my Maxx D foc after it fell off my larder fridge onto a concrete floor. I was upfront with them, expecting them to charge me for my stupidity, but it was back to me within a week and only cost me the postage to get it there.

A couple of John Lewis examples.
First one – bought pair of jeans for then 10yr old daughter just before new year; she wanted to wear them on nye but store had not removed dye-filled security tag; called store to ask what to do – they sent member of staff out to us on nye with device to remove tag.

Second one – bought 2 deckchairs; one collapsed while partner was sitting in it – 10 stone, size 12 so not exactly a heavyweight; store said they wouldn’t return to factory in asia but as sign of good faith offered a teak ‘steamer chair’ with brass fittings; i said i had bought a pair of deckchairs so they offered another steamer chair.
Deckchairs – retail £30 each.
Steamer chairs – retail £300 each!
Cynics will say….overpriced, excessive profit margins but – I have the chairs.

Mio.
Bought a Mio 505 GPS unit from Halfords on New Yrs Eve 2014, New Yrs Eve 2014 it stopped obtaining a satellite lock. Took it back to Halfords who dithered for a month then gave me a replacement from stock. Turned out it was a display model & froze up on me after a month or two.
In desperation I contacted Mio via social media and they got back to me asking for my details – replacement in the post.
When it arrived, I realised it was the 505 HC model with full European mapping (mine was UK/Ireland only) plus Heart Rate strap and Cadence attachment! £100 worth of free upgrade.

Master Lock – but I feel a rather guilty..

Pad-lock on garage seized, I had to hack the door a bit to get in for my bike to get to work. Phoned Master and explained, they immediately offered a replacement. Couldn’t decide which of two models it was so they said they’d send both (well over £50 worth). When got home I realised the original one was made by Squire, not Master Lock.. Yes, I should have called back but I didn’t.. The lock they sent is great!

Woolworths sent me a power supply for some fairy lights I drove over. And I got a paint pole from those fancy paint pole people when the thread casting failed.

OnOne/Planet-X

Pair of V1 fatty wheels (several years old), broken allen key axles when trying to remove them to replace the bearing.
Sent them back with Collect+ and in a week, I have a brand new pair of their latest fatty wheels 🙂

Phil & Teds Pushchair.
Frame snapped on a pushchair we bought off eBay.
I called to ask to buy a replacement frame.
They were at first concerned that there may have been a child in the seat.
Then took my address, and said I would be getting a new frame in the post.

it seems all of these companies have managed to grasp onto that they can turn a poor customer experience ( product failure) into a brilliant customer experience using good customer service..
When are companies like Virgin, easyjet, Ryanair going to get this!

Any from Apple on this thread?

Even though they say the warranty is 1 year, they replaced my nearly 2 year old iPhone 5 free of charge.

Felix from POC sent me a new headliner for my Crane Helmet FOC this week from Austria.

I had to go for blood tests today. Got there 10 mins before my appointment. Had my blood taken and was out the door after a five minute wait . Nice one NHS.

Victorinox. I moved into a new home one November. It was cold! To get the immersion heater up and running I ran a temporary cable from the tank to the consumer unit, but to do so I had to make a hole in a door/frame. Hammers and Swiss Army knives are not good bedfellows and the blade eventually broke but i got the job done. I phoned Victorinox re: repairs and prices etc- it was all done for free, despite me telling them exactly what had happened.

Hope- always good service.

Skyline Cycles in Glyncorrwg.

Ebay- but I’ve never sold on it, only bought stuff.

fourbanger – Member
Any from Apple on this thread?

Yes – Took out my dire Beats solo ear speakers at dialysis one day, plugged them into the telly – Nada 🙄 They were out of the warranty by a couple of months (Purchased from EE) so on my way home I popped into the shop of Apple. Told the assistant that they’d kicked up their heels and as Beats had been bought by Apple I came in to ask what the repair process was going to be. Informed me I’d need to post them off. At this point I kinda grimaced at the thought of no hp util whenever and happened to mention they’d had an easy life as they are only ever used at hospital. She shoots off for a minute then comes back saying that due to what I use them for, they are going to open up a box & swap them for a new pair! Well chuffed, even though you’ll get better sound quality out of anything around the £50 mark.

More praise for Leatherman… Sent my Charge Ti away for a replacement blade and service. Blow me down they sent me a brand new Charge TTi replacement today. Exemplary service!

Nokian tyres. Lost about half a dozen studs from my ice tyres on a rocky UK ride – phoned them up, they chucked a generous handful in a bag FoC.