Warranty Repair Wait Times

I've recently had to send off two of my watches for warranty repair. My Speedmaster Sapphire Sandwich with the 3861 movement and my Tag Aquaracer 300 Pro. My Speedy was away for approximately 6 weeks before I got it back and my Tag is still away after almost 3 weeks, with no sign yet of a return date.

My question is what experience have others had regarding wait times and customer service? Also what is a reasonable amount of time to expect to wait?

Cheers Crunchers

By way of an update, I got my Aquaracer back at the weekend, after exactly 3 weeks. Not a bad effort from Goldsmiths / Tag Heuer

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I have had few experiences. With Swatch group, it is anywhere between 4-8 weeks. They make it clear when you send a watch under warranty or if your watch has an issue. It took them around 5 weeks to return my Tissot Gentleman when it had a fast running movement issue and it is also the same time frame for their service window.

I had to send my Tudor BB58 right after I bought it because of QC issues. Tudor took almost 8 weeks to fix and return the watch. But I was informed about the time frame clearly by my AD. Also sometimes it really depends on your AD too.

4-8 weeks usually seems to be the most normal timeframe. For quartz watches, probably shorter. And if it is a high end movement with complications, then it will take few months for sure.

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I snapped the crown off my Seamaster 300 - had to go back to Switzerland for the repair and service, was gone for nearly 4 months and cost £490. When I got it back it was like new & runs dead on on my timegrapher. Money well spent IMHO

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Inkitatus

I snapped the crown off my Seamaster 300 - had to go back to Switzerland for the repair and service, was gone for nearly 4 months and cost £490. When I got it back it was like new & runs dead on on my timegrapher. Money well spent IMHO

How did you snap the crown off a smp300?

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tensorstrike

How did you snap the crown off a smp300?

Just setting the time - I'd only had it a couple of months, bought used 5 years old. Suspect the previous owner had been winding & adjusting it on his wrist for years 🙄

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I had to wait for 2 months for my tag but then again that was Covid times so took forever… not sure now?

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Tudor took six weeks with my BB GMT. I’ve had things take as long as 3 months with Longines, however.

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All of your wait times sound wonderful to me. I had a 7 month wait for a vintage Omega during Covid.

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I've sent my Oris Big Crown Pointer Date in for service, under warranty, twice in the 2.5 years I've owned it. My Sellita movement has had an issue with the reverser wheel sticking to the rotor when hand winding the watch. Both service intervals were almost identical in length, approximately three months time.

So, I've owned the watch for 28 months and it's been out for service 6 of those 28 months.

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I recently sent a Longines out and had it gone for 8 weeks. It came back in pristine condition with a few scratches buffed off and it’s keeping time well within COSC standards. They did great.

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I have experienced these three :

  • Seiko 4 weeks

  • Omega 3 weeks

  • Jaeger-LeCoultre 6 weeks

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I would be furious, if I had to repair such a expensive watch - even within 8 years after I bought it!!

Strangely enough have I never had to repair any watch (that gone bad) take on wood 😎

I only let change a scratched crystal (my fault) on one of my Skagen, for just 38 euro...

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I honestly have to say I have only had to service one watch in the last fifty years...It was a Rolex two tone datejust that I wore everyday for ten years or so then had it in my watch rotation after I started collecting....It was gone about 8 weeks. Never had to service any Omega's.....Some say that I should have regular service but heck if it isnt broke dont fix it..Now my car's that is another story LOL

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EdWhite1964

All of your wait times sound wonderful to me. I had a 7 month wait for a vintage Omega during Covid.

I think the key word there was "vintage". Also, an out-of-warranty service is not the same thing as a warranty repair, which tend to be prioritized as the customers seeking repairs have just purchased a very expensive and presently malfunctioning timepiece.

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Those look almost new..what made you send them in?

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I had to send in two watches for warranty work in early 2020, just as the impact of the pandemic was starting to be felt. My Oris was returned within 3 weeks, while my Norqain took well over 3 months, apparently as a result of difficulty in obtaining the required parts due to Covid. They graciously added an additional year of warranty as a result of the delay.

May I ask what the issue with your Speedy was that required it being sent in for warranty service?

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That’s not bad at all compare to Cartier,…. My roadster takes 16 weeks… yes 16 weeks….

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Ls9009

Those look almost new..what made you send them in?

The Speedy was only 1 year old and suddenly stopped working, apparently there is a known fault on the 3861 movement. When you use the chronograph when fully wound, a component gets worn. There has been an updated part issued but Omega are keeping it quiet (so 'they' say).

Ive had the Aquaracer 18 months and it has developed an issue when you self wind the crown it was rotating the oscillating weight and became very stiff to wind, again this is meant to be a common fault on the calibre 5.

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tempus

I had to send in two watches for warranty work in early 2020, just as the impact of the pandemic was starting to be felt. My Oris was returned within 3 weeks, while my Norqain took well over 3 months, apparently as a result of difficulty in obtaining the required parts due to Covid. They graciously added an additional year of warranty as a result of the delay.

May I ask what the issue with your Speedy was that required it being sent in for warranty service?

The Speedy suddenly stopped working, apparently there is a known fault on the 3861 movement. When you use the chronograph when fully wound, a component gets worn. There has been an updated part issued but Omega are keeping it quiet (so 'they' say).

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The Speedy suddenly stopped working, apparently there is a known fault on the 3861 movement. When you use the chronograph when fully wound, a component gets worn. There has been an updated part issued but Omega are keeping it quiet (so 'they' say).

The Aquaracer developed an issue when you self wind the crown it was rotating the oscillating weight and became very stiff to wind, again this is meant to be a common fault on the calibre 5.

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BarefootHank

That’s not bad at all compare to Cartier,…. My roadster takes 16 weeks… yes 16 weeks….

that sucks!

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MarkD67

The Speedy was only 1 year old and suddenly stopped working, apparently there is a known fault on the 3861 movement. When you use the chronograph when fully wound, a component gets worn. There has been an updated part issued but Omega are keeping it quiet (so 'they' say).

Ive had the Aquaracer 18 months and it has developed an issue when you self wind the crown it was rotating the oscillating weight and became very stiff to wind, again this is meant to be a common fault on the calibre 5.

Interesting...I dont wear mine very often maybe I should talk to them before the warranty is up...

Thank you

Larry S

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MarkD67

The Speedy suddenly stopped working, apparently there is a known fault on the 3861 movement. When you use the chronograph when fully wound, a component gets worn. There has been an updated part issued but Omega are keeping it quiet (so 'they' say).

Interesting. I had heard of another issue that if I recall correctly was related to the watch stopping suddenly when using the chrono at low power reserves. I wonder if the two are related, and/or if there are other issues to be concerned with.

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One of my watches wasn’t working properly and I hadn’t worn it for quite a while, unknown to me, my lovely wife decided to have it sent back to tag, just as lockdown started and all the chaos that came with it. 14 months later I still hadn’t realised that my watch had been in Switzerland all that time, until my wife, after thinking my watch was lost forever, finally was able to proudly reveal my repaired watch. With much surprise to both of us, it turned out she’d sent the wrong one for repair. 😄what a sweetheart though.

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So Far 3 months for for a Rolex explorer 2, still waiting 😞