sam1234
358
Thanks for the clarifications...
Aug 03, 2016,11:46 AM
And to answer your question, no, I've never had any experience with Patek customer service. It's precisely because of the long service times that I've avoided routine service for my Pateks. Until the turn around time becomes more reasonable, if ever, I've taken the calculated risk of servicing as needed.
It seems from your account that your situation was an unfortunate coincidence, and one that a complete disassembly and routine service would not have detected or predicted. Your satisfaction is all that matters, and from your photo and description it is truly a stunning timepiece!
Comments:
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Patek Philippe - where is the value?
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 2nd, 2016-01:42
We hear a lot about value on our forums. Some watches give "great value" for what they are. It is not often one hears this on the Patek Philippe forum. But we should. I have had 8 or 9 vintage watches serviced through the Patek Philippe Salon in London ov...
Wise words
By: crown comfort : August 2nd, 2016-01:54
a business prevails or fails with customer service. Of course, you do need some half-decent product or service in the first place, but getting customer service right seems a very difficult task. Why else so many other manufacturers (not just of watches) g...
spot on......
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 2nd, 2016-02:00
.....it is about taking responsibility. On this occasion, they go beyond that.... and that is why they have my custom....and why other manufacturers who don't treat me fairly lose my custom.
"Significant"? No....not at all....
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 2nd, 2016-03:03
I have bought two modern watches over the last 5 years...and both watches were modest pieces..... I think I wasn't lucky. I think Patek Philippe treats its customers generally with more respect than other manufacturers....even small collectors like myself...
That's good to hear!
By: CastorKrieg : August 3rd, 2016-00:03
Company values and heritage is one of the things that attracted me to PP in the first place.
Well...
By: Tony C. : August 2nd, 2016-03:19
In my view, they simply did the right thing. By which I mean that your reaction is at least partly a reflection of how poorly customers are often treated with regard to the service of vintage watches. I could tell many stories, including my own remarkable...
indeed.....
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 2nd, 2016-03:38
.....I think we all have horror stories to tell. What I think is frightening is that I have a horror story to tell for EVERY single manufacturer where I have owned a watch.....so it is not as if I have a bone of contention with a specific manufacturer. Pa...
I should explain better.... my original point is still accurate.
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 2nd, 2016-04:03
My 570 was sent for service. I paid the service fee. The problem happened. They gave me back the service fee. They sent the watch back to be corected. It came back. They asked for no service fee. So...I have paid NOTHING for the 570 service..... That is n...
This is all very interesting...
By: Esharp : August 2nd, 2016-04:06
First off, a lovely story and a beautiful watch. Second, much has been made of late about long Patek service times - many months even for routine servicing of basic movements, and poor (or nonexistent) communications from the manufacturer - so much so tha...
some questions.....
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 2nd, 2016-04:12
......first, yes it does take many months. But actually, the entire watch is dis-assembled and then re-assembled. It is then tested very thoroughly. Given the attention that is given to teh watch, I don't mind in teh slightest that it takes so long....giv...
I gave 5110J, 5110G and 5110R
By: dr.kol : August 4th, 2016-09:26
for complete service. The guess was 4 months. It's not too bad and my 5110P came back in about 3 months. Best, Kari
Choosing the right people,
By: dr.kol : August 4th, 2016-09:28
then training them correctly and having the correct high standard corporate policy. Best, Kari
Luxury is only in the price tag
By: piccolochimico (aka dsgalaxy1) : August 2nd, 2016-04:41
A quick servicing must be the rule, not the exception! I've heard so many stories of bad servicing that i could write a book, and i think many of you could do the same.
all i can say is that I totally disagree with you.....
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 2nd, 2016-04:44
i want a comprehensive and top quality service. If, to get that, it takes months, then so be it. I am not at all interested in a quick service that is not high quality. Many companies claim to be "high quality", but their service is not. Patek service is ...
A friend of mine took one year to get his 5712 serviced
By: piccolochimico (aka dsgalaxy1) : August 2nd, 2016-04:55
Glad for them that you (and many other happy customers) can wait peacefully. When i write quick i mean a couple of months (for a time only); i'm aware there's a queue, they likely have many watches to services, so a reasonable time is some months, but as ...
if i was ordering a Big Mac....then yes, I woudl want it fast.
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 2nd, 2016-05:17
But if i was ordering from a Michelin 3 star....then i would enjoy and savour the wait. I guess that is how I view it. But I also know that the typical service at PP is not the same as the typical service elsewhere..... A year for a 5712 may reflect the f...
The old rule of project management applies
By: CastorKrieg : August 2nd, 2016-05:39
Pick any of the three: high quality, fast, cheap. Service charges are high, therefore we should be able to expect a high quality of a service, done in a fast manner. People are not having it, hence the problem. I watched Mr. Stein saying the new Patek bui...
My late mother used to say:
By: dr.kol : August 4th, 2016-09:31
If you want to have good & cheap, then you need to buy two items. Best, Kari
Agree, but vintage is a world apart
By: piccolochimico (aka dsgalaxy1) : August 2nd, 2016-05:21
For what i know, PP was the only maison able to service every vintage watch. actually i think nobody is so naive to believe that they service a watch for all the months they keep the watch, but i dont take anything for granted ;-)
ok....
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 2nd, 2016-05:48
....but once a watch has been taken into all its individual components....each component checked and cleaned......re-assembled......at that point the watch is tested for reliability and accuracy and variability. It is tested for some time like that. Hones...
My wive's vintage PP from 40s
By: dr.kol : August 4th, 2016-09:35
stayed over 8 months. But Patek made new golden hands according to the original ones (SFR 70 each), they made a new plastic glass, also ridiculously cheap. Now my daughter's vintage Patek from 1900 will take about 24 months. But they need to remake quite ...
Well written my friend
By: jrwong23 (aka watchthebin) : August 2nd, 2016-04:38
love your story and I agree - this is value ! Loyalty take a lot of efforts to gain but very little efforts to lose. Kudos to PP! I also heard many good stories about PP 's customer service from Kari whom I met this week. Consistent with what you shared C...
Dear Joe
By: Ares501 - Mr Green : August 2nd, 2016-05:10
I always love to read your posts and when on vacation it is even bigger pleasure cos I have more time and can enjoy them slowly Now you are bigger Vlad than Vlad and Vlad junior combined Never was in PP but after this lines of yours...hmmm...value you say...
all i ask is ...
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 2nd, 2016-05:37
.....unconditional trust.
Oh ....
By: Ares501 - Mr Green : August 2nd, 2016-06:09
captain my captain....
:))) ;) [nt]
By: Ares501 - Mr Green : August 2nd, 2016-06:29
It is the incredible attention....
By: Rhyzen : August 2nd, 2016-06:39
.... to service are one of the many differentiating factors that makes Patek exceptional. Thanks for sharing!
Music to my ears too, Joe
By: Mike H : August 2nd, 2016-07:05
Thank you also to mention loud such a positive point. Usually people complain loud and never point out the positive elements. I share your point of view totally ; contrary to our today's world which favours fast food, speed dating, or quick delivery, it i...
Mike....
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 2nd, 2016-08:06
.....when one sees a comment from a Patek owner, there is a tendency to see a positive feedback. Simple.
Yes Joe I agree but...
By: Mike H : August 2nd, 2016-08:20
...you know well that if I have the experience of quite some services with PP, I also have the expetrience of several other brands to compare. So I am not biaised but I can compare facts with my experience. Of course statistics based on the experience of ...
and yes...we share a similar experience....
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 2nd, 2016-08:23
.....both with PP as well as with other manufacturers. I guess my point is that amongst the PP collectors that i know (and that is some 10-15 people who i know well), there is a very very similar experience.
Awesome service from Patek and great watch !
By: jaguariste : August 2nd, 2016-09:32
Just to confirm that the brand is really really top notch for its customer service, I had a story similar to yours. I had my 1951 serviced in 2012. When it came back, I was so happy that it was the only watch I could worn. However, one year later, the wa...
another perfect example.....
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 2nd, 2016-09:45
......another owner with a great experience. Yes, there are members on this forum who buy many many new Patek Philippe ... and spend considerable sums. They get great customer service. There are also members on this forum who buy very few new Patek......t...
I have mixed feelings....
By: murcielagoboy : August 2nd, 2016-10:40
Baron, Thank you for your sharing your positive and optimistic story with us. I do believe however, that there are two ways of viewing your story. - the first is that, it was unacceptable for a watch to be returned to you with such a flaw which would mani...
am not sure that the negative end of the spectrum is entirely fair....
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 2nd, 2016-12:27
......losing a jewel from its holding is something that the watchmaker said he had never seen before. Could Patek reasonably have anticipated that, after almost 50 years, the jewel would come loose? I think that is not a reasonable expectation. Reacting t...
Well said
By: Poky : August 2nd, 2016-12:54
It depends on how you view it; glass half empty or half full. Being a glass half empty type of person myself, I would have probably expected this level of service given the extra time but the refund of the service charge makes up for the incomplete servic...
My two cents...
By: jim_94104 : August 2nd, 2016-12:49
I think the issue the industry facing now is the lacking of talent pool. Today's generation not necessarily has the patience to be trained and practiced to become a technician at a place like PP. PP, on the other hand, will not sacrify quality of their en...
There are different service centers all over the wolrd
By: Mark in Paris : August 3rd, 2016-10:46
For instance in NYC (but not for very complicated watches were a very high trained skill is need), Geneva, etc... Or also local Salon watchmaker (there is one in Paris) who have the possibility to check specific movements. Also you have the volume taken: ...
Service shall determine the success or failure of a company.
By: Horology411 : August 2nd, 2016-14:26
Thankfully PP seems to realize this. I have been documenting in detail my experience servicing a Ref 96 in another thread: Send a ref 96 to Patek for servicing? I think it is worth nothing that so far the only operational hiccup was from HSWA, not Genève,...
I think I disagree about the warranty period of servicing
By: Mark in Paris : August 3rd, 2016-11:00
I don't think there is a link between the time between servicing schedule and what a work must be garanteed for. Brands usually say you have to service your watch because of oil ageing and seals ageing. This has no link with the problem with something not...
I think we agree on most points; perhaps I can explain the link I draw.
By: Horology411 : August 3rd, 2016-13:30
Let me first say that all my experiences with PP services have been excellent. I as well prefer a properly serviced piece to an improperly serviced one, regardless of warranty. My judgement of PP SAV is excellent, and like with any company, there can be i...
If a watch "needed" a service in under 36 months....
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 4th, 2016-00:24
.....yes...i would be disappointed and surprised. So too, I expect, would Patek Philippe. And my guess would be that they would make the situation right. The difference, it seems, between us is that I am not focussed on the warranty. Rather, I am focussed...
I too would expect the same.
By: Horology411 : August 4th, 2016-16:28
Although I am not treating the warranty and the actual behavior of the company as mutually exclusive options. Please bear in mind that I am speaking from a position of what is 100% satisfaction to date. I see your point of the expectation for PP to remedy...
Only Good Words!
By: Mally : August 3rd, 2016-00:57
I must agree. I had purchased my Calatrava from Geneva with a regular buckle and went back after 2 months, wanting the deployment clasp. Not only did they just only charge me the official difference in price (post due examination of the buckle) but I did ...
Respectfully disagree
By: sam1234 : August 3rd, 2016-05:39
So if I understand the situation correctly, you had your vintage watch sent for service, waited patiently for months only to receive a watch back that wasn't functional? Then you sent it back and waited ANOTHER three or four months and now have a properly...
Good questions and i will answer them fully....
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 3rd, 2016-06:08
1) Why didn't quality control pick up on the problem initially? Well, the problem that occured was that the jewel in the watch came loose. This is an extremely unusual and highly infrequent event. In fact, as I stated in my post, it is the first time that...
You are happy
By: murcielagoboy : August 3rd, 2016-08:10
And in the final analysis, this is all that actually matters now. They've got a satisfied, happy customer that feels great towards PP. From this point of view, we couldn't ask for anything more. But my dear Baron, you've seen from his thread alone, how ex...
you make a good observation....
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 3rd, 2016-09:16
......we are all different and with varying expectations. The cynic would say that this episode only goes to demonstrate how we have come to see customer service as "outstanding" customer service. Further, just how many "luxury" brands fall way short of e...
Thanks for the clarifications...
By: sam1234 : August 3rd, 2016-11:46
And to answer your question, no, I've never had any experience with Patek customer service. It's precisely because of the long service times that I've avoided routine service for my Pateks. Until the turn around time becomes more reasonable, if ever, I've...
Thank you, Sam.
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 3rd, 2016-13:26
Yes, I can be patient with service times... but I do expect a high quality. Over the last 9 services....I have not been disappointed.
Now I cry! Is Kerri really leaving?
By: dr.kol : August 4th, 2016-00:14
I have nothing else but good things to say about her. But the same applies to the whole team in Patek London Salon. Sometimes when I have nothing better to do, I will list ten examples. Simply, it can't get any better. And Joe, you are right: that's value...
Real shame....
By: Baron - Mr Red : August 4th, 2016-00:26
.....but yes...she is leaving the industry. You are correct about the London team....all excellent. But Kerri was my direct contact...so i will miss her. On the definition of value...... from this thread, we can see that some peopel are just incredibly ha...
An experience better than any HQ marketing
By: kolosstt : August 8th, 2016-09:06
Thanks for sharing your story Baron, Like reading your surprise and emotion. Shall this example always remind you of this service experience and bring a message. It\'s a good looking watch, too. Congrats. Cheers, Kolosstt