Reply With QuoteOut of interest, how much of a deposit?
I have had a deposit down on a Patek model since the back end of 2018. Yes...a long time.
Original plan was to receive it by August 2019. I feel I have been strung along ever since and have been continually been promised it is on the way. I have waited patiently.
Given current scenario I chased again and was told they are happy to refund or move the deposit to 'something more readily available'...
I was a bit miffed by that...They have had my cash all this time. I am not a provider of interest free loans!
Keen to hear some views from the forum...sometimes hard to think straight when in the midst of a situation like this. Not sure if I am over reacting and should just take the cash. Of course there are other watches I may be interested in, but that is not quite what I signed up for!
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Out of interest, how much of a deposit?
Isn’t it illegal to take a deposit in the UK when you can’t guarantee it will be fulfilled?
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i think that is disgusting! You have put your cash down in 2018, they should have delivered the watch 8 months ago and the best they can miserably offer is a refund of your deposit or a transfer to another watch?Manufacturers and AD’s these days, their sense of self-entitlement beggars belief!Originally Posted by Boss13
Maybe a little off topic but my friend placed a deposit on an AMG GT from Mercedes. 3 Months after his delivery date he asked for a refund on the basis they had not fulfilled the contract. His deposit was returned.
I would assume placing a deposit on a watch would also involve the entering into a contract that would give the buyer protection?
I agree, that's appalling!
OP, when you spoke to them, did you push them as to why you haven't been allocated a piece?
- - - Updated - - -
It's a pain but do you know where you are in the list ? If it's a 5711 you shouldve had it by now I would have thought ? And assume it's a small ish deposit based on cost of watch ?
Hmmm not ideal
When i ordered my 1st PP ...to demonstrate i was serious I offered a deposit..
They refused a deposit on the basis that in doing so that was a guarantee of supply which they could not commit to....
I would never put a deposit on a watch because even at the best of the times there are a lot of uncertainties and have never ever felt that procuring a particular watch was that important.
Anyway, OP - hope it was isn’t a big deposit.
Sad indeed. Taking a deposit and not providing the promised item is cause for action in the US.
Why? He put a deposit down on a watch and when the time came they couldnt deliver and offered a refund or to put it towards a different watch. Its entirely up to the customer to carry on waiting another several months I assume the customer could have called up and cancelled the deposit before August 2018 and just walked away with his money.
Ask them what they can supply, if not suitable make your decision from that point.
I think I would of been asking for my money back long before now.
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We need to know more really - the watch, the deposit amount at least. How often have you spoken to them about it?
If it is say a 5711 didn’t Stern come out last year and say they were cutting production? That would have made me think about the delivery date.
Thanks for replies chap. It is an aquanaut that I was after. Deposit was around £1500. Which was negotiated down from £3000.
I did stay in regular contact all the way through. Probably every 2 to 3 months. Didn't want to be too pushy but made a point of keeping in touch. Reason I didn't ask for my money back in August 2019...because they told me it was coming. In August 2019 I was told I would have it by end of 2019! This is the most frustrating part about it...being strung along.
Of course more important things happening in the world at the moment. Perhaps I shouldn't let it get to me and just move on!
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It does sound like they have strung you along which is disappointing but then you could have cancelled the deposit at anytime but I do understand why you didn't.
I would move on and if you haven't already done so request the deposit back.
Look on the bright-side, the interest that you would have gained in a cash ISA is negligible over that time period and you could have done something stupid with the money and invested it in a FTSE 100 tracker.
Unless you can secure the watch fairly easily from another AD then I'd stick with it and hope they'd come through asap given the circumstances. I'm assuming the end goal is a priority over how you get there.
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If the Brand can’t deliver, find a different one!
Super hot watch at retail so guess it depends how much you really want it. I think most ADs wont consider you at the moment without past purchase history and the Salon closed the list
2 years!! Tell them to jog on. What a liberty!!
On a serious note - High street stores are closing and going out of business left right and centre. I wouldn’t want a wedge of my cash sitting in a retailers bank account right now
Last edited by RustyBin5; 16th April 2020 at 23:35.
Imagine an AD who honestly says, 'I can take a deposit from you, but I cannot guarantee you will get the piece in a reasonable timeframe, & I might have to refund your deposit.' Would most folk then defer to leave a deposit.?
An ideal world would be AD's not accepting any deposits and just selling from the window when one arrives in stock.
Like the old days, generally!
We have read of wealthy clientelle asking their AD of choice if they can ask say Cartier/AP/Vacheron C etc., etc,, for a special one off, which I'm sure would have incurred a hefty deposit. I personally would never leave a deposit on a watch. Being quite impulsive, as soon as I had left the cash, the same day I'd see something else I would be lusting after, then I'd have the embarrasment of asking for deposit back, & probably, knowing my luck been told it's non-refundable.
Anyway, OP, as you've waited so long, I would personally hang on in there.
They’ve been laughing at you for two years. Is any watch worth that?
I have to confess my old Rolex AD always asked me for a deposit.
The first few times I thought OK they dont know me but they continued to ask for the rest of the relationship.
I never waited more then a few months and always had great service and banter so I didnt mind as they always delivered before the estimated time. In the end I tried my luck with a SS Daytona and I had it in 3 months (this was still a nightmare to get back then). They eventually lost their Rolex dealership and had a fire sale to get rid of Rolex stock and even refunded me a percentage on a watch I had bought months before since it was before the sale. They did this out of the blue - I didnt enquire for some cashback.
Off the top of my head they got me
Rolex Sub Date
Deepsea
Hulk
Explorer
SS Daytona
I miss them for my Rolex purchases!!
For my Patek 5711 I put no deposit down and was shocked I got the call but I did get help
Last edited by kultschar; 17th April 2020 at 00:17.
take the cash back, in a few months it is very likely things will be considerably different and the chase between the ADs and the customers may switch roles.
historically the one with the cash had the better position in any kind of negotiation, this will inevitably get corrected in the watch industry as well.
It sucks but I think the key variable is how much you want the watch ...
Because if you (still) really do, I'd hang on in there, in the hope/calculation that [1] your hassling them by reminding them of how overdue it is and [2] the current likelihood of a much higher rate of declines from those above you in the queue, would increase your prospecfts of landing it.
I'm on the list for an Aquanaut but without a deposit. I've been waiting since about 2017 but am assured I will get one and I believe the AD.
I've had a Submariner from the same AD without a deposit.
A DJ28 with 100% deposit as it was coming from a different store and close to price rise. Same AD.
From a different AD I had:
BLNR no deposit 6 month wait then paid a 100% deposit and got it a week later.
Submariner again (for my Dad) with no deposit but about an 18 month wait. Hugely messed around but did get it in the end, with a lot of contact.
Point is there is no set rule, not even with the same AD.
With what's going on in the world right now you will be much higher up the list than you were in January. Pulling the deposit won't get you up the lift higher elsewhere but I would call and voice your disappointed, see what they say.
Thanks for the views all. Yes I still want the watch. Their latest email yesterday afternoon didn't seem to give me that option.
Options I were given were: will refund you (when store opens) or can move to a more readily available piece.
That was the email that slightly annoyed me.
My reply was that I want this escalated to head office management. It is not a big chain AD and I did not expect this from them.
The chap I had been dealing with for the last 2 years has left and a new chap has taken over from him and that comes with a change in attitude. The first call I had about a month ago with this guy very much annoyed me.
I asked him what was going on with this order and when would I get it. His reply was 'what else are you working on?'
When I questioned what he meant he asked me if I needed some jewellery and surely I should buy some jewellery for my wife!!!
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fwiw - An AD I had no history with took my order for a SS Nautilus in 2017 and said a deposit was not required. They delivered the watch in early 2019! Maybe times have changed, but certainly some dealer attitudes seem to have. Having said that, I’m sure if I had not taken the watch they would have found a very happy bunny the same day.
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Leaving the dealer attitude aside, you’re on a wait list which is probably closed everywhere else, your £1500 if left in the bank would be worth £1591 today, plus if you get the watch you’re going to love it and be quids in, so just sit tight. And make sure you get some freebies to the value of the lost interest, such as a crappy PP tie, a pen and a travel case.
Ian
The jewellery suggestion would have made me demand a refund of the deposit there and then.
As others have said, get your money back. In a few weeks / months the phone calls will have a very different tone and then you’ll be calling the shots.
Jokers
The whole concept seems absurd to me.
It's a luxury consumer good, not a kidney.
I'd never leave a deposit in the vain hope someone might provide something. I appreciate that wasn't your expectation originally, but it should be clear by now.
Also, what happens if they go out of business in the current lockdown?
Get your money back if you can...
M
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Breitling Cosmonaute 809 - What's not to like?
I would say, in the absence of the opportunity to give you the other 85% of the price, I would like my 15% back now. With the closure of the factory, what is the probability of their getting one for you in the immediate future? As others have said, this is no time for letting businesses just hold your money.
The shifting of the goalposts, suggesting that buying jewellery would help move things along, when they've already got your money is pretty filthy behaviour. So much for PP being associated with old school class.
Last edited by Der Amf; 17th April 2020 at 08:47. Reason: grama
Yes, I didn't appreciate that at all. Although he did not directly say it would move things along...
I do feel perhaps money back is an option. But also feel they should be held to account. Perhaps next step, I am going to try to get hold of someone more senior at the head office to let them know how I have been treated and let them make that call. The AD is one which I felt has a strong heritage and reputation and I do wonder if senior management know these sort of things are happening. Perhaps they do, perhaps they endorse it! That would be a sad state of affairs.
I would agree with others and have a refund and move on. It is not a time to have deposit sitting around and I can’t see allocation changes dramatically.
Name and shame AD is the way to hold them to account. Oh, and get your money back.
I don’t understand why you would need to wait until the shop opens again to get your money back, why can’t they just refund it to your bank or credit card?
I have put deposits down on watches a couple of times and on both occasions the shop made it very clear if I changed my mind at any point I just need to phone of pop in and they would give me my money back. Didn’t seem like much of an issue I didn’t have to wait long and just saw it as a few quid off the final price when I come to pay when it arrives.
Personally, I don’t think any watch/car whatever is worth it if it’s going to cause you unnecessary hassle but then that all depends on how much you want the watch.
I would get your money while you can another few weeks the shop could be gone along with your money
I did put a deposit down for a 5711 - it was £500 & they told me at the time the wait would be 12-18 months. They called after 12 months to say the watch was in & come & collect it. So I was more than happy to leave the deposit, and actually preferred it to the Rolex BS where you often have no idea if the list even exists, let alone you are on it
However - the OP situation seems different, more money involved, a stinky attitude & a very overdue wait IMO
I would escalate, find out at least what position you are on (you could be getting the next watch when things get back to normality) before you do anything. That said leaving £1500 in this uncertain world carries a higher risk that it normally would
Hmm sounds like with your original sale-person replaced the attitude of this new guy stinks.
That response kind of gives me the feeling your not going to get the watch without shady practices of buying crap you dont want. Will be interesting to see what management says.
Maybe the original sales guy left because he wasn’t meeting his targets. If he’d sold more jewellery he would have. Either directly or indirectly a shop’s attitude comes from the top.
I dont see why you didn't ask for the deposit back before now if you where so worried?
if you didn't ask for it they obviously thought you where OK waiting,unless I missing something?
If this is the dealer’s attitude now, think how it will be if you have any issues with the watch when/if it arrives.
You paid a decent deposit on the basis that you’d get a watch a long time ago. They’ve now:
- not supplied the watch
- attempted to change the goal posts and spend more with them on stuff that wasn’t in the original deal
I know you really want that watch, but if you ever get it will you be able to forget about the scumbag dealer trying to pull your pants down?
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I would certainly want my money back at this point. If they go under you’ll be at the back of the queue...
Simon
Well...That is just it I wasn't worried. I had faith in them! They are a long established reputable independent.
An awkward conversation with the chap today. Made my feelings very clear and to be fair I think he understood my position. Waiting for him to speak to directors and come back to me.
He felt it was a mistake for the business to have taken my deposit. I countered with...it was a mistake to take my deposit and then give your allocation to others who had not paid a deposit!
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A very valid point to be pondered.
It is meant to be a watch for life or even generations.
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Fair enough. Maybe use this dealer as a means to an end then IF they can now get you that watch they promised you without any silly games.
Just never darken their doors again after you get it!
I hope they come good for you, you deserve it after demonstrating the patience of a saint.
I put my name down end of 2017 at an AD I had no history with (no deposit), and picked it up May 2018.
Then in early 2019 I was offered another one by an AD I’d bought from before.
I’d say if the AD who has been holding your deposit hasn’t got you one yet then they aren’t going to.
All the ADs shops I know are closed just now - is this an online dealership?
No. They are not online. But they clearly still have staff working. I am guessing like most ADs on email and phone.
Let's see how this develops next week. I don't have high hopes to be honest. Very disappointed with the whole thing.
Last edited by Boss13; 19th April 2020 at 11:40.
On the one hand you don't want your deposit sat in any company's bank account right now and given all of the shutdowns I would imagine it unlikely that they're going to get the watch for you any time this year at least.
On the other, goodwill stemming from the deposit debacle, added to retailer cashflow pressures in the present situation, could give you leverage to get a huge discount on something they have sat in the safe.
I'd be tempted to give them the week to get back to you but in the meantime put together a prioritised list of other pieces you'd consider and the prices at which you would do so. Swing for the fences.
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