ProScaleRc

Has anyone here made a warranty claim with Hobby King? If so how long did it take and did they ignore you?

I've been waiting 10 days with no reply to any of my messages other than someone will contact me within 24hrs. It's a simple open and shut case where a plane arrived with a bent prop shaft. I have sent them a video link of the prop shaft taken before assembly and I can see that they have downloaded it.

Not sure whether to ask my bank to apply for refund via VISA or whether I should wait...

RAMFlyer

My Feedback: (65)

They said they would get back to you in 24 hours; it has been 10 days... Let VISA argue with them. Usually they get back to you quickly when the credit card company takes back the money!

outdoorhunting

Yuup !!!! Talk to you C/C company as quick as you can & have them do a " charge back." Then, go to www.towerhobbies.com You will probably pay a little more, but you WILL GET CUSTOMER SERVICE if needed !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

countilaw

The warning are post everywhere about Hobby King customer service or the lack there of. But people are just blinded by the low prices. How do you expect that they retain the low prices, no customer service and product that is dead on arrival. If they had to guarantee that you would get everything you ordered, and that it would work, and give you customer service too they would have to raise their prices.

radius1x1

I agree, dealing with Hobby King is just plain STUPID. Even if a product was originally manufactured in China; for the benefit of your own country BUY it from an AMERICAN company!!!! It's the economy!

Mr67Stang

If you pay a little attention, you will notice the original poster is from Austrailia and probably could not give a RA about the AMERICAN economy. Ordering from China is probably faster for him. The tone of the responses to ProScaleRc are un called for and childish in an "I told you so" kind of way. These responses will only serve to drive people away from RCU and provide a poor example of how Americans treat our freinds.

ProScaleRc, I am sorry you are being treated so rudely. Please do not think all Americans are like this.

ahicks

My Feedback: (2)

Dealing with a Chinese retailer is a calculated risk. Accepting that risk in return for dramatic price reductions is "stupid" only if you think customer service will be on the same level as what you would expect here. Paying with a credit card means you WILL eventually have the last word, though that's about the only "warranty" you can expect! Anything on top of that is a bonus!

Do not offer to return anything at your expense. It's obvious to everyone concerned that the cost to do that is excessive - including the credit card company staff. They will often make the refund without the return?

In the case of the OP, I wouldn't wait a lot longer, though them telling you about a 24 hour respnse time is laughable....

karolh

ProScaleRc I'm very sorry about your unfortunate situation, as I hear about the horror stories concerning HK all the time, and so far maybe I have just been four times lucky as everything I have ever bought from them worked as it should, but then again HK is but one of several hobby related companies, chinese or otherwise that have an extremely poor customer relations reputation.

Karol

Dick T.

My Feedback: (243)

Although I have never had a problem with Hobby King products nor had to seek warranty issues I suggest you advise the CC company and let them charge back to your card. If HK then comes through with a satisfactory solution you can re-authorize payment back to them.

Customer satisfaction is lacking in many Chinese companies, including some based in the USA, as it is not part of their culture. However some I have dealt with are very responsive so the message is slowly getting through.

Good luck, please let us know the outcome.

radius1x1

Hey Mr67 Stang; Since when is patriotism childish. If you read some of the journalism comming out of Aussie land, they are very much concerned about the American economy and the Nov. elections. I hope the Aussies support there own economy and buy RC from there own just as I do whenever possible. As far as "I told you so"; that is what the forum is..... a free exchange of info and experience. Don't think so: move to China!

daveopam

My Feedback: (9)

Gentleman, I have edited a few words and remarks from several post. Please refrain from name calling, personal attacks, and manufacturer bashing. All of these things are against RCU policies and will be handled accordingly.


Thanks, David

KaP2011

My Feedback: (17)

Hobby King has a warranty? First I've heard of it.

Seamus OLeprosy

I am in the middle of a warranty claim right now. (the first in 150 orders)
My charger smoked on the 18 Aug I contacted CS and after a couple of emails it was decided that the charger should be returned. This was done
on the  20 Aug and tracking has shown  that it hasn't reach them yet. I'll keep you posted.

nitro wing

My Feedback: (1)

HK is like a toy company, its what they sell, mostly there are some products that work well, and some that dont. once you order and receive, the deal is done.
dont go crying back for more or refunds, nitro planes is the same deal. Some risk, some deals, some disapointment, no customer service, no parts
you want cheap, get it, no cry here

Jetdesign

My Feedback: (8)

Use their online live support, it's been great for me.

Luchnia

My Feedback: (21)

A couple things to think about when dealing with HK. Buy items that you are not concerned about warranty or support and limit how much you spend to what you are comfortable with. For instance set a limit around a 100, 300, 500 etc., depending on your budget. Think of it this way, what are you willing to lose should the whole thing go south and it would take you months to re-coup your loss?

I have used that standard for myself and have yet to be displeased. When you don't set expectations there is not much risk invovled. Risks with HK can usually be simple to figure as it is based on what you will sacrifice to save $. The most I was ever willing to take a hit on was around 200 and that was it.

I have made a number of orders from HK and have done extremely well with them, however I simply do not order certain things from them knowing that I am not willing to risk it. An example might be ordering a larger gas engine. To me that is much too high risk, yet if I did I would take the hit knowing it could come DOA. Some have done well with HK engines and nothing to regret. Others have taken a serious beating.

If I get something that doesn't work I toss it or throw it on the bench bucket for maybe a later time when something might be available to fix it. I have ordered a number of servos from HK and only had one that was questionable. Did I bother to send it back? No way - I knew better. I saved so much on the lot, it was a non-issue. Believe it or not it there is still a substantial savings dealing HK that way.

Another thing is that I stretch my purchases around so that not everything is going to HK, as a matter of fact based on my annual purchases under 10% or maybe even under 5% would be HK orders. Hope this is helpful to those not aware of what might happen with HK.

opjose

Wow that's EXACLY my take on dealing with them.

Accept the risk and you'll do OK. If you are unwilling to take the risk, then go local.


Exactly. I've ordered over 240 servos from them. I've only had one come DOA and one go bad in use. Not a bad record!

I've had a MUCH MUCH higher failure & doa ratio with Hitecs...


I find that they WILL honor warrantee claims, but you have to be patient and sometimes creative.

They will NOT absorb shipping charges of any sort for International Orders, so if I'm missing something on an order or something arrives defective, I'll tell them to pack it into my next order. That has worked well for me.

Likewise I'll only order some things like their planes from the local warehouse, where it can be returned more economically.

I normally only order engines where parts are listed as available. That way if I have problems, it is usually easier and cheaper to say order a whole new carb or ignition for a whopping $20.00, than to try to claim the defective part.

Unfortunately there is always a risk when ordering from HK or somewhere where local laws cannot reach, but you can lessen that by exercising prudence.

Luchnia

My Feedback: (21)

Very good info and that is what I like about these forums. You can find excellent info if you are willing to learn that can save you. This is something that I had not thought about doing.

So far I have not had anything missing or defective from an order, however throwing into the next order is a great way to handle it. I imagine they would be much more inclined to do that too.

Seamus OLeprosy

My returned charger reached China on the 25th August
The email HK sent me with my return service number said I should
wait for an email from the warrenty guys when they have look at it.
As I am using this as a test of the HK warrenty/returns procedure I won't
bombard them with emails.
What came as a surprise is that my initial "ticket" to CS has been closed,
I suspect it is because it's going to warrenty dept now, but it would be nice to
have that explained.

larrysogla

There will always be "unhappy customers" in whatever business...............HobbyKing is NOT for everybody.........................Their prices are a bargain and they have some junk items but also a lot of good items. Like a lot of "happy customers" say, just work with the retailer and see if you can come up with a solution that will fix the situation. Sure there will be times when the warranty will be refused flat out..........but the savings overall if you order a lot of stuff in this hobby are worth it.............Then we have the "unhappy customer" i.e. the postman or parcel service crushes the merchandise box but they will still blame the retailer, also they should know from the reviews that it is a junk item and they still order the junk item and expect it to work (yes the reviews are there to read and both positive and negative reviews are there, the "unhappy customer" claims that the negative reviews are edited out but I read the reviews before I order and I find a lot of negative reviews on the junk items and they are NOT edited out, so the negative reviews are there for you to be forewarned), then there are those that expect a retailer in Hongkong to pay for return shipping (hey just ask for a store credit or tell your credit card company that you dispute the charges due to defective item and that the warranty is being denied) etc. etc. The world will always have the "unhappy people" and then there are those customers that will work around with a solution that they can accept and then move on without getting stuck in a rut about the poor customer service or the horrible warranty or lack of warranty. Another problem with bargain retailers is that Nitroplanes sells the same airplane ARF model but with 2 different manufacturers, the ones made by CMP(China Model Productions) have a decent quality for a cheap ARF....but Nitroplanes also sells what I call CMP clones made by a different factory and those CMP clones are HORRIBLE in quality and construction. I noticed the different manufacturers by looking at the add very closely and the pictures have a slight difference in the trim decals. Nitroplanes is lacking in that they are not informing the customer that the model is a CMP clone and is done by a different manufacturer and the unsuspecting customer will order thinking that it is a CMP model when it is actually a CMP clone. Well with all this bargain retailers, the customer has to read the reviews and read and research the online forums because the bargain retailer will sell junk stuff along with the good stuff. When you do the research then the customer can separate the junk stuff from the good stuff and order accordingly. As with everything..........it is "BUYER BEWARE".............or if you are a newbie and don't know the junk stuff from the good stuff then by all means just order from Tower Hobbies or Horizon Hobbies or Hobby People. They will back up their items with excellent warranties and you will be a happy camper. As for people like me who can tell the junk from the good stuff..........HobbyKing and Nitroplanes serve a purpose as bargain retailers that I can use. 'Nuff said.
P.S. Yes I will not blame the retailer if the postman or the parcel service crushes or damages the merchandise box. I know the postman or the parcel service have been caught on camera and they are on youtube video caught redhanded tossing the merchandise box like a bowling ball.