Luminous Landscape Forum

The Art of Photography => The Coffee Corner => Topic started by: loesch on July 14, 2006, 01:41:38 pm

Title: My experience with Willoughby's
Post by: loesch on July 14, 2006, 01:41:38 pm
I needed a Canon EOS 5D for an upcoming trip. Willoughby's seemed to have a good rating and had a price slightly cheaper than the old faithful B&H which I've used for years, so decided to order from them and placed a web order for a Canon EOS 5D body on Tue 7/11. I assumed that it would be mailed the next day (Wed) and paid for 2nd day air so I would have the camera by today (Fri, 7/14). When UPS didn't stop on Fri, I called Willoughby's and talked to a sales rep. He said that the 5D would be sent out today   , buy wouldn't arrive until next Wed   . I thanked him, hung up, and thought about it for awhile, then decided to call Willoughby's back to see if I could change the shipping to next day air so I would get it on Sat.  When I called back, I was greeted by a different sales rep and after explaining my situation, he said I needed to talk to the billing folks since there would be a change in shipping charges. Once I was transferred, I was told that the 5D was oversold and they didn't have any in stock, and didn't know when they would get more in       .  Their web site (http://www.willoughbys.com/shop/searchresults.aspx?cti=1000&pti=&mnm=CANON&sku=&pgn=3&kwd=) still indicates that the camera body is in stock. I was, of course, furious and told them to cancel my order. While they acknowledged by order immediately via email, they never informed me that the item was backordered.

I now have an order in with B&H for overnight delivery. I know of many horror stories with other web sellers from the New York area, but assumed that Willoughby's was a reputable company and would play straight.  Evidently, I was wrong.  While my case may not be typical, it DID happen.  Please take this into consideration in any future business you may have with them.
Title: My experience with Willoughby's
Post by: loesch on July 16, 2006, 02:02:10 pm
An update. Today (Jul 16) I happened to check my credit card statement on the web and noticed that Willoughby's had charged by credit card the full amount of the EOS 5D body (~$2800) the day after I originally placed my order (Jul 11). They did this BEFORE shipment when they were oversold, and my unit on backorder. Buyer BEWARE!   I now have to ensure that I get the proper credit applied. Never again!  B&H is now my one and only source for photography equipment on the web.
Title: My experience with Willoughby's
Post by: henryp on July 20, 2006, 04:59:26 pm
Quote
B&H is now my one and only source for photography equipment on the web.

Thanks. Kind of you to say so.
Title: My experience with Willoughby's
Post by: Lin Evans on July 21, 2006, 01:16:32 am
Quote
I needed a Canon EOS 5D for an upcoming trip. Willoughby's seemed to have a good rating and had a price slightly cheaper than the old faithful B&H which I've used for years, so decided to order from them and placed a web order for a Canon EOS 5D body on Tue 7/11. I assumed that it would be mailed the next day (Wed) and paid for 2nd day air so I would have the camera by today (Fri, 7/14). When UPS didn't stop on Fri, I called Willoughby's and talked to a sales rep. He said that the 5D would be sent out today   , buy wouldn't arrive until next Wed   . I thanked him, hung up, and thought about it for awhile, then decided to call Willoughby's back to see if I could change the shipping to next day air so I would get it on Sat.  When I called back, I was greeted by a different sales rep and after explaining my situation, he said I needed to talk to the billing folks since there would be a change in shipping charges. Once I was transferred, I was told that the 5D was oversold and they didn't have any in stock, and didn't know when they would get more in       .  Their web site (http://www.willoughbys.com/shop/searchresults.aspx?cti=1000&pti=&mnm=CANON&sku=&pgn=3&kwd=) still indicates that the camera body is in stock. I was, of course, furious and told them to cancel my order. While they acknowledged by order immediately via email, they never informed me that the item was backordered.

I now have an order in with B&H for overnight delivery. I know of many horror stories with other web sellers from the New York area, but assumed that Willoughby's was a reputable company and would play straight.  Evidently, I was wrong.  While my case may not be typical, it DID happen.  Please take this into consideration in any future business you may have with them.
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Yes, as I said on another forum - my experience with them also and that was a couple years ago. They are either dishonest or incompetent or perhaps both, but I'll not attempt to buy from them again. My understanding is that the present owners are not the original owners and that they once had an excellent reputation. Too bad - it doesn't take too many of these types of experiences to wreck years of good service.

Lin