zOwie Omega Discussion Forum

: I bought my SMTPC on arrival in the USA,
: December 2003. Today I will be returning it
: to the agent I purchased it from for the
: seventh time. I really am quite
: disillusioned with the watch, yet love the
: style and its looks.
: A brief chronology - the watch would stop
: whilst being worn continuously - explanation
: by agent = 'it needs to be wound regularly'.
: This was a continuing saga for four of the
: returns to the agent.
: Then the crown came away from the
: watch...returned again. As I said I'm
: returning it for the seventh time today, the
: crown again came loose as I was adjusting
: the time (I didn’t wear it for three days
: and needed to correct the time & wind
: manually).
: The Agency I purchased it from was a web based
: company - Worldofwatches.com - and at the
: time of purchase I was unaware that their
: watches did not carry a serial number / and
: hence I could not return to Omega, but only
: to the agent.....
: My questions are 1. What recourse do I have
: with the seller? 2. Is there a consumer
: association I can request help from? 3. On
: purchase of this watch, December 2003, it
: was not stated on the website that their
: products may not carry serial numbers, yet
: their current site does....can I claim I was
: sold goods under false pretenses?

Aaah, the joys of buying from the gray market. I'm really sorry to hear about this. The story about the watch needing winding is absurd. If fully wound from the start it will stay wound as long as it as worn regularly. The crown coming off is obviously a defect. However, your watch is no longer under warranty I presume (unless worldofwatches.com gave you more than 2 years, which is what Omega would have given you).

I would certainly not have kept a watch that needed 7 repairs in 2 years. I would have demanded a new one long ago. Since you have now (I assume) let the warranty expire, I think you are up the creek without a paddle.

Even if you could prove that worldofwatches's website did NOT have the serial number disclaimer back in 2003, I don't think this would help your case since the lack of a serial number is not the cause of your problems. Proving what the website said back in 2003 would be difficult as well.

If I were in your shoes, I would call worldofwatches and send them a detailed letter explaining your problem and why you feel their inability to repair your watch warrants them giving you a new one. I would threaten to go to the Better Business Bureau with your complaint.

If this fails, my advice would be to just "suck it up" as a learning experience (to never buy gray market again!!!) and send it to Omega. Even without a serial number, they will repair your watch provided you pay 100% of the cost. Still, at least you'll be sure your watch is being fixed by Omega and not some unknown guy working in his basement.