Dovo and Merkur Customer Service doesn't impress.

[xraygun]

Yes I was very sarcastic and rude in my later emails. But at least I sign my name to what I write.

I shouldn't have to prove anything to them. The pictures tell it all.

Most companies treat loyal customers with respect, not indifference

Judge the correspondence for yourself that's why I posted it on here.

For those of you who feel obligate to chastise me for paying too much, not keeping my receipt, having toenails, trusting a vendor I purchased many products from, creating the recession, not having a non-existant warranty card, being childish and rude, not driving a KIA, believing that Solingen meant something and having a La Mancha complex I am very grateful for your input and have filed it appropriately.

To anyone who was offended by my rudeness, I'll buy you a drink next time you are in Seattle.

Cheers to all,

 

[Nils]

Not taking sides here, but maybe it'll help to know that in Germany, you won't get very far without a receipt or proof of purchase. You have to be very lucky indeed to have a warranty honoured without it.
I suspect companies are more generous in that respect in the USA, but Germany has never been a customer's paradise, I'm afraid.
Wether it's wrong or right: If you went into a German shop and demanded replacement for an 8 year old article, you'd be laughed out of the store.

 

[xraygun]

I must be misinterpreting THIS from Dovo's own website.

13. The cutting edges of my skin or nail nippers are broken. Can this be repaired?
DOVO manicure and pedicure nippers have at least a minimum hardness of 48° HRC, as laid down in the Solingen ordinance. At the same time, special importance is also attached to the flexibility of the hard cutting edges (see "Cutting Intersection"). When used properly - i.e. skin nippers for the cutting of cuticle and slight horning and pedicure nippers for nails - breaking is virtually ruled out. Should a break ever occur, however, this is covered by our guarantee conditions. As broken blades cannot be repaired, they are generally replaced.

 

[talibeard]

I must be misinterpreting THIS from Dovo's own website.

That doesn't leave much room for mis-interpretation...

but as in politics warranties are not actually what you think they are in the end it seems.

 

[Den]

Even if Ray provided a very well taken care of, crisp receipt showing very clearly the 10yr warranty, I'm afraid they'd then turn to wanting proof that he actually used these to cut his toenails, and not as bolt cutters or something more absurb. It's just a vicious circle, they have no desire to help him.

Some consolation might be found in the fact that for years to come, when people google Merkur/Dovo/Solingen, this thread will come up somewhere in their results. So there's some satisfaction in knowing that many people around the world will read about this type of thing going on with this company.

 

[73mountaineer]

The burden of proof should be squarely placed on the consumer. She offered to take a look at the cutters if the OP could produce proof of the warranty and proof of purchase. If I bring a 2006 Kia into the dealer with a blown engine, I would expect that I would have to provide some proof that I owned that car since it was new.

First of all, she completely dismissed his claim right out of the gate. Sorry, not our problem, can't do a thing for you. Then she absolutely refused to even entertain the idea that there could possibly be a manufacturing defect involved in the failure, even going so far as to point out that there is clearly oxidation on the metal (though I can't see it) and that the metal has absolutely no protection from rust, though it is clearly painted or powdercoated in a black finish. In her next email she even goes on to point out that his carbon steel clippers would have been more resistant to the previously-mentioned corrosion had they been made out of stainless steel...when they are clearly stamped "stainless", visible in both pictures.

My point is this, she seemed determined from the very beginning to not be interested in his warranty claim. She also referenced his pictures when it suited her, but completely ignored obvious things included in those same pictures. There is very clearly a complete failure of an area of the clippers that should not fail under normal use. Even if they were outside of the normal warranty period, some gesture of goodwill would have been appropriate.

Original ownership of a vehicle is very easily determined, but should a manufacturer really expect a consumer to keep a purchase receipt for 10 years for a pair of nail clippers? How many unfounded warranty claims do they really get on these types of things? Not enough to slam the door in someone's face so quickly I think.

Were they technically correct in requiring the original sales receipt to determine warranty eligibility? Yes. Is that really the best way to handle this type of issue with a loyal customer? Opinions apparently vary, but the above-mentioned goodwill gesture would not be unheard of.

She was not going to honor this under warranty, period. It didn't matter if he had the receipt, pictures of him buying it from an authorized dealer, and the original packaging signed and dated by the President of Dovo. Giving the OP the benefit of the doubt that the email exchange was not edited in any way, her position was that this was "not a warranty issue, be it a 2, 10 year of lifetime warranty" I would say the exact opposite seems evident from the pictures, but I guess they manufacture their products to break this way when used as intended.

The direct quote from the company web site:

DOVO manicure and pedicure nippers have at least a minimum hardness of 48° HRC, as laid down in the Solingen ordinance. At the same time, special importance is also attached to the flexibility of the hard cutting edges (see "Cutting Intersection"). When used properly - i.e. skin nippers for the cutting of cuticle and slight horning and pedicure nippers for nails - breaking is virtually ruled out. Should a break ever occur, however, this is covered by our guarantee conditions. As broken blades cannot be repaired, they are generally replaced.

 

[rockviper]

You think this is a run-around? Just wait until you need to invoke the insurance clause on a mortgage. Luckily, I'm not speaking from direct experience.

 

[Member357]

Does anyone actually have anything that says "warranty" that came with a DOVO purchase?

I'm interested in the answer to this question. Now that I think about it, the only items i've bought in recent years which came with any sort of warranty were electrical items.

 

[oc_in_fw]

Tough toenails make steel go boom

Off-topic- but that would be a GREAT custom title.

 

[xmacro]

Regardless if they should've lasted 10 yrs or not - OP was <modedit> in the emails and totally lost his temper.

If it really annoys you so much, switch brands.

 

[bkfist]

The retailer was telling me about the DOVO warranty. Which back when I bought it was apparently very REAL as you can see here Right on B&B! That's where I got her contact info.

So why did it disappear?

I don't think 22 days is quickly.

The first shiver I would get looking at that old 2006 exchange would be "eeeewww the company uses AOL"

I've got to agree with you, the product quality/customer service seems to be pretty much non-existent any longer with Merkur. Of course, you haven't changed my mind about purchasing any more Merkur products, the "quality" of my 34G and Futur (and I'm sure every single other razor of theirs that has been cast out of pot metal and tumbled with rocks to "take the edge off" of them convinced me some time ago to never purchase another Merkur product. As far as Dovo is concerned, my straight I bought some 15-16 years ago convinced me on that brand.

 

[xraygun]

Regardless if they should've lasted 10 yrs or not - OP was <modedit> in the emails and totally lost his temper.

If it really annoys you so much, switch brands.

Dude really. I didn't lose my temper over a pair of nail nippers. I just felt she was full of it, rude, apathetic and decided to be very sarcastic on the last one.

I just got my new Eloi nippers made in France from Zamberg.com. They are sweet. Much nicer quality and 39 dollars.

 

[Rancho Unicorno]

I must be misinterpreting THIS from Dovo's own website.

13. The cutting edges of my skin or nail nippers are broken. Can this be repaired?
DOVO manicure and pedicure nippers have at least a minimum hardness of 48° HRC, as laid down in the Solingen ordinance. At the same time, special importance is also attached to the flexibility of the hard cutting edges (see "Cutting Intersection"). When used properly - i.e. skin nippers for the cutting of cuticle and slight horning and pedicure nippers for nails - breaking is virtually ruled out. Should a break ever occur, however, this is covered by our guarantee conditions. As broken blades cannot be repaired, they are generally replaced.

I was looking at that earlier today in a quest to see if Dovo even publishes the terms of their warranties on their website (they don't). The part that makes me nervous about this is that it could be interpreted to mean that the cutting blade is warranted for life, but that the rest of the device is only warranted for 10 or 2 or ? years. In other words, if the break had been normal wear and tear from cutting tough toenails, you would have been covered.

As pointed out above, you can take some consolation that this thread has been assimilated into the Google archive. As for me, it isn't enough to totally put me off but it does color my thoughts about going via the Dovo shavette en route to converting my Sunday shaves to straights or adding a Slant to my small collection.

 

[El-a-Menthol]

Of topic, these are pretty decend, Seki edge, reviewed by yours truly:
http://badgerandblade.com/reviews/showproduct.php?product=210933&title=seki-edge-toe-nail-clipper&cat=67

 

[Bubbamike]

The burden of proof should be squarely placed on the consumer. She offered to take a look at the cutters if the OP could produce proof of the warranty and proof of purchase. If I bring a 2006 Kia into the dealer with a blown engine, I would expect that I would have to provide some proof that I owned that car since it was new.

No you wouldn't as the warrenty goes with the auto not just to the original owner. I bought a used one year old Mazda with a 4 year warrenty and the dealer was happy to service it under that warrenty. Oh and I didn't buy it from that dealer either.

 

[Malakas1981]

That's why I only buy snap on tools . Even my new toolbox has a lifetime warranty . A toolbox !

 

[xraygun]

All the other Solingen manufacturers have "Lifetime Warranty " plastered all over their marketing materials. It's good business.

 

[ray777]

i am thinking what if someone bought off ebay (retailer) they don't provide reciept and warranty card? do they...

 

[proxymoron]

You may have the right of things, but posting your private correspondence in an attempt to smear the company is pretty bad form.

Letting other B&Bers know that Dovo doesn't always stand by their warranty is helpful. This just smells vindictive.

 

[Sapian]

A lot of things are flowing through my head right now, but I will make a neutral comment. Your first email should have showed proof of purchase, then the lady might not have written you off automatically. It is not polite to post a private conversation on the Internet, and you did get increasingly rude (and yes, even slightly juvenile). The company should stick to their guns better though, especially when it involves pieces of their expensive and highly saught after steel becoming shrapnel.

Also, this has nothing to do with shaving, it has to do with expensive nail snippers. I don't see why it's in the "General Shaving Discussion" category.

I'm sorry to hear your experience went so poorly.