Kcore 0 Posted July 23, 2014 What a wonderful week it's been! First a fantastic present from my wife and now by beloved O1V is back home. Man when life flows, all is good! Got home late from work last night to find a very large FedEx package on my dinning room table. I wasn't expecting anything, no watches ordered, so it was a big surprise. Plus the package was so big, I only sent the head of my watch ( no bracelet or strap) back. Anyway i open it up and there's another black leather Steinhart watch box with the my fixed watch head on the pillow. Not bad - the time it took from sending it back to Steinhart in Germany to getting it back was a few days short of the approx return date I was told, a tad under a month. Yesterday I started a thread about my beloved 4 month old Steinhart, Ocean One Vintage going belly-up ( keyless issue I believe). My choice was to send the watch back to Steinhart in Germany for warranty repair. Steinhart warranties their watches for 2 years. Overall I'm very pleased with Steinhart's response time and as you'll see below, their picking up the shipping tab! I thought I would provide an outline of the steps taken to assist any of our members if ever their Steinhart watches were in need of warranty service in the future. Please keep in mind that I reside in the U.S. Members in other countries might have an easier time as presently, Steinhart doesn't have any authorized service agents in the U.S. My first step was to contact Steinhart and explain my situation. Yesterday, I sent an e-mail to their "After Sales Dept." at, [email protected] I opted for e-mail rather than a phone call because of the 6 hr time difference between the U.S. & Germany. In my e-mail I stated my name, address, date of purchase, customer number (Kundeb Nr.), statement number (Rechnung Nr.) along with a description of the problem. Late this morning I received a reply from Ms. Petra Ladwig who heads-up the returns & service dept. As an aside, Steinhart has added picutres of all their key employees to their website. IMO, Petra is "HOT!" Petra apologized and detailed what I would need to do to obtain warranty service. Unfortunately for me, their master watchmaker is on holiday till Aug. 7 and it was suggested I send my watch after his return. Steinhart provided me with the company Federal Express account number and indicated to send my watch, "International priority." I was very happy to hear that Steinhart will be picking up the complete tab for me to return the watch by express courier. I was instructed to call FedExp and obtain a "Pro Forma Invoice." This is a form used to declare the value of goods. ( the pro forma invoice is obtained directly from FedExp) Along with the pro forma invoice a copy of my original invoice needs to also be affixed. Most importantly I was instructed to clearly write on the outside of the package, "RETURN FOR REPAIR." This was also to be included on the FedExp airway bill. To avoid any customs charges, Petra suggested I contact my local Customs office to find out is any further documentation would be necessary. It was clearly stated that if proper documents weren't included with the package, customs in Germany could reject the package and send it back.. Here's Petra's verbatim closing sentence: !!!!!!! Please make sure that you follow the instructions strictly cause if some copy or information are missing, the package will be stuck at the customs office and sometimes won´t be delivered, Costs will be incurred that you have to pay !!!!!! I hope this info is helpful if needed. I'll post back with how long this whole adventure takes till my beloved O1V is back at home. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Del 4,450 Posted July 24, 2014 Good to hear! Thanks. (I've had some dealings with Petra and she was always very helpful and quick to respond.) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
greg_r 81 Posted July 24, 2014 (I've had some dealings with Petra and she was always very helpful and quick to respond.) Pics or it didn't happen. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Del 4,450 Posted July 24, 2014 (I've had some dealings with Petra and she was always very helpful and quick to respond.) Pics or it didn't happen. It went something like this.... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mrtsumoto80 0 Posted July 25, 2014 Bro, where are the pics of petra? I'm just seeing drawings... http://www.steinhartwatches.de/en/our-team.html Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kcore 0 Posted July 25, 2014 Bro, where are the pics of petra? I'm just seeing drawings... http://www.steinhartwatches.de/en/our-team.html That's what they have. Sure good enough for me, she floats my boat Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
mrtsumoto80 0 Posted July 30, 2014 Bro, where are the pics of petra? I'm just seeing drawings... http://www.steinhart...n/our-team.html That's what they have. Sure good enough for me, she floats my boat Wont discuss on that one lol Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kcore 0 Posted August 8, 2014 Update- I sent my O1V back to Steinhart via FedEx, Int'l. Priority which Steinhart provided their acct number for. Paperwork wasn't too bad. It only took 2 days, incl. clearing customs in Germany to be delivered from the states to Steinhart''s front door or whatever they have. I received an e-mail confirmation yesterday indicating it would take about 3 weeks to get sorted. I provided Steinhart with copies of all original import sales docs from Customs that I received when I bought the watch. I'm hoping I don't have any problems or have to pay a duty charge when they send it back. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Realism 72 Posted August 13, 2014 Update- I sent my O1V back to Steinhart via FedEx, Int'l. Priority which Steinhart provided their acct number for. Paperwork wasn't too bad. It only took 2 days, incl. clearing customs in Germany to be delivered from the states to Steinhart''s front door or whatever they have. I received an e-mail confirmation yesterday indicating it would take about 3 weeks to get sorted. I provided Steinhart with copies of all original import sales docs from Customs that I received when I bought the watch. I'm hoping I don't have any problems or have to pay a duty charge when they send it back. probably not, since it's repaired goods and taxes paid for on initial purchase Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
deju 1,872 Posted August 13, 2014 Good to hear! Thanks. (I've had some dealings with Petra and she was always very helpful and quick to respond.) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kcore 0 Posted August 16, 2014 Good to hear! Thanks. (I've had some dealings with Petra and she was always very helpful and quick to respond.) I'd like to hear more;) On another note, I wanted to mention a mistake I made with FedEx so others can avoid the same. I wrapped and packaged my O1V to be bomb proof. The last thing I wanted was it to get damaged in transit. I go to the FedEx office with all paperwork ready. Guess what? I'm told that insuring anything more than $500 USD, the contents would have to be examined! Perfectly understandable, but now I have to completely destroy all my packaging to show the contents. Oh well, lesson learned. At least FedEx allowed me to use their packing tape at no cost. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
