Rolex Warranty Card and Stickers on Watch

[CoveWatch]

Congrats on the gift to your grandson, and yes that is pretty normal these days for a lot of AD's

[Bigblu10]

Originally Posted by californiadreamn

Hi,

Yesterday I was about to purchase my grandson his 1st Rolex as a graduation gift from a local AD here in Texas. I do not think it's one of the hard to find, in high demand hot ones or anything like that, it's simply a new 41mm DateJust with a blue dial. The AD wanted to either take all the stickers off OR keep the warranty card in the store until after my grandson decided he really liked the configuration.

The other part is, even after my grandson sees it and decides he likes everything, the store rep said he still MUST take all the stickers off before the watch can leave the store. But he would register the watch and put the warranty card in the box at that time.

I decided not to purchase it there and left the store.

Is this the new norm, what am I missing?

If I purchase something I assume I will receive all the paperwork that goes with it and that I (or the person you are giving it to) would have the opportunity (and maybe even a little excitement) of peeling off the stickers and looking at everything one piece at a time.

It was absolutely clear that if I had it sized or engraved that it was not returnable. Why the restriction on the stickers and warranty card?

These are the new draconian policies you have to endure when buying a new Rolex. This is due to the secondary market and folks who buy new watches just to flip them for profit. You sound like you don't fall into this category of buyer, and the situation is just asinine. I would bring your grandson into the dealer and if he is positive about wanting the watch, he can watch them remove the protective stickers and you can both walk out happy.

[tyler1980]

Originally Posted by Bigblu10

These are the new draconian policies you have to endure when buying a new Rolex. This is due to the secondary market and folks who buy new watches just to flip them for profit. You sound like you don't fall into this category of buyer, and the situation is just asinine. I would bring your grandson into the dealer and if he is positive about wanting the watch, he can watch them remove the protective stickers and you can both walk out happy.

Plenty of AD’s have retained the card until after the return period has passed that is nothing new. This situation seems more along those lines with making sure the watch is what he wants vs preventing a flip


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[Bigblu10]

Originally Posted by tyler1980

Plenty of AD’s have retained the card until after the return period has passed that is nothing new. This situation seems more along those lines with making sure the watch is what he wants vs preventing a flip


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This happens much more in the UK. It is still not the norm for USA AD's. Some, yes. Most, no. It is a DJ after all, not a steel sports model.

[tyler1980]

Originally Posted by Bigblu10

This happens much more in the UK. It is still not the norm for USA AD's. Some, yes. Most, no. It is a DJ after all, not a steel sports model.

thats not what i am saying at all... rewind two years and forget about now.

A lot of US AD's would send you home with a stickered watch and not the warranty card as you could return it. 7 days or 30 days or whatever. During that time you could return the new and stickered watch for an exchange or refund. Now its policy to remove stickers but if the stickers are off you cant return it so they offered to let the watch leave with the stickers but its still returnable so no warranty card, as then the AD would have to sell it as used if it was activated.

[Sal_UKSheffield]

Originally Posted by tyler1980

thats not what i am saying at all... rewind two years and forget about now.

A lot of US AD's would send you home with a stickered watch and not the warranty card as you could return it. 7 days or 30 days or whatever. During that time you could return the new and stickered watch for an exchange or refund. Now its policy to remove stickers but if the stickers are off you cant return it so they offered to let the watch leave with the stickers but its still returnable so no warranty card, as then the AD would have to sell it as used if it was activated.

Wouldn’t be used they just order a new card which takes a few weeks supposedly

[Sal_UKSheffield]

What happens if you want to return the watch - change of heart/mind.

Most retailers in the UK have a 14/28 days returns policy? If its unworn and as new then i guess the AD would have to honour a return (if the store policy states that - usually on the receipt)

[faz]

Originally Posted by californiadreamn

Hi,

Yesterday I was about to purchase my grandson his 1st Rolex as a graduation gift from a local AD here in Texas. I do not think it's one of the hard to find, in high demand hot ones or anything like that, it's simply a new 41mm DateJust with a blue dial. The AD wanted to either take all the stickers off OR keep the warranty card in the store until after my grandson decided he really liked the configuration.

The other part is, even after my grandson sees it and decides he likes everything, the store rep said he still MUST take all the stickers off before the watch can leave the store. But he would register the watch and put the warranty card in the box at that time.

Absolutely normal process, for ADs to keep the warranty card (so they don't have to register it) for you to take the gift watch, present it, see if the end user likes it, then come back and get the warranty card registered with Rolex. Once the card is registered, the AD doesn't accept any returns. At least this has been my experience since many years ago on 4+ watches I have bought from local AD here in Bay Area.

As far as removing the stickers, yes, why do you want to keep the stickers on after you buy the watch?

The DJ41 (even in its blue color) is not a hard to find watch and every other AD would have plenty of them in stock. When my local AD told me the blue one is on back order etc., less than 20 miles away another AD had it in their showcase and was offering it to me at 10% off without me trying.

Great gift and your grand son will love it!

[Sal_UKSheffield]

Originally Posted by faz

Absolutely normal process, for ADs to keep the warranty card (so they don't have to register it) for you to take the gift watch, present it, see if the end user likes it, then come back and get the warranty card registered with Rolex. Once the card is registered, the AD doesn't accept any returns. At least this has been my experience since many years ago on 4+ watches I have bought from local AD here in Bay Area.

As far as removing the stickers, yes, why do you want to keep the stickers on after you buy the watch?

The DJ41 (even in its blue color) is not a hard to find watch and every other AD would have plenty of them in stock. When my local AD told me the blue one is on back order etc., less than 20 miles away another AD had it in their showcase and was offering it to me at 10% off without me trying.

Great gift and your grand son will love it!

I have personally returned a watch unworn - a blnr in 2016

Card was swiped in my name

A week later and an incredible change of circumstances i had no choice but to return. Got a full refund- stickers still in tact of course.

Hindsights a bitch - i paid £5350 for the blnr would have been up a couple grand had i kept it, but im not in the business of buying and selling watches

[faz]

Originally Posted by Sal_UKSheffield

I have personally returned a watch unworn - a blnr in 2016

Card was swiped in my name

A week later and an incredible change of circumstances i had no choice but to return. Got a full refund- stickers still in tact of course.

Hindsights a bitch - i paid £5350 for the blnr would have been up a couple grand had i kept it, but im not in the business of buying and selling watches

I believe ADs can work with Rolex to reissue a fresh warranty card, from various posts that I have read here. (Never asked an AD directly myself.) However, that will be extra work involved. It would make sense to have the gift presented and if all is well then register the card to avoid that extra unnecessary work.

[TeddyS]

Let them take the stickers so you can retain the card. We don’t get to keep the card in the U.K. regardless now


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[AK797]

Times have changed and the line, I want the stickers on as it is a gift has been commandeered by flippers so that won't play now.

[bobby81]

Originally Posted by californiadreamn

Hi,

Yesterday I was about to purchase my grandson his 1st Rolex as a graduation gift from a local AD here in Texas. I do not think it's one of the hard to find, in high demand hot ones or anything like that, it's simply a new 41mm DateJust with a blue dial. The AD wanted to either take all the stickers off OR keep the warranty card in the store until after my grandson decided he really liked the configuration.

The other part is, even after my grandson sees it and decides he likes everything, the store rep said he still MUST take all the stickers off before the watch can leave the store. But he would register the watch and put the warranty card in the box at that time.

I decided not to purchase it there and left the store.

Is this the new norm, what am I missing?

If I purchase something I assume I will receive all the paperwork that goes with it and that I (or the person you are giving it to) would have the opportunity (and maybe even a little excitement) of peeling off the stickers and looking at everything one piece at a time.

It was absolutely clear that if I had it sized or engraved that it was not returnable. Why the restriction on the stickers and warranty card?

I have purchased three Rolexes from a Grey Dealer in the North of England. I fly to the UK from Dublin Ireland when I want a Watch. It's only an hours flight. All the Rolexes were purchased with a big mark down price, though not hard to get Models. All the protective stickers were in place & each watch had a valid Warranty Card & just to make sure everything was legit I inquired from the only Rolex AD in the City where I live would the Warranty Cards be honoured should anything go wrong with any of the Watches over the next five years & I was informed they would honour the Warranties no problem as they were filled out correctly with the Rolex Ad's stamp & dated by the AD where they were sourced

[Rashid.bk]

Total bs....I don't care whether the stickers are for protection in the case or whatever...I want the option to buy something as it left the factory. The grey market is worse now because of shortages and this type of bs. It matters not whether I will keep the watch, it is my property once I pay.
People have done this with cars, sneakers, comic books, cards, toys etc since forever, it's nice to sometimes just collect something in this way. This is life. Keep the warranty card for a year, keep all the boxes too for a year...I don't care. But I would like to sit at home and enjoy my completely new purchase. If I want to save it in this form as a gift like the op or for a special event in the future, it should be my right.

Imagine, if they sold popular Star Wars toys, or Pokemon cards without the wrapper or box, that would be ridiculous. They are punishing their customers.

Long ago before shortages, the grey market was fueled largely by backdoor AD sales, and has gained traction today by shortages. None of this implicated the average consumer.
It is like everything else, like when the housing market collapsed and a bunch of house flippers hit the streets, bought foreclosures and flipped them as the economy recovered. It became very popular tv shows because it was so rampant.

There are many ways to protect your brand successfully, this isn't one.
It is turning me off the brand.

[N5XTC]

have a question here, if Rolex let's a buyer take a watch home and bring it back, how does anyone know the parts have not been changed/swapped inside the watch by some unscrupulous person? you may not figure it out for 10 years when you send in your "rolex" for service (or however many years)

[Rashid.bk]

Originally Posted by N5XTC

have a question here, if Rolex let's a buyer take a watch home and bring it back, how does anyone know the parts have not been changed/swapped inside the watch by some unscrupulous person? you may not figure it out for 10 years when you send in your "rolex" for service (or however many years)

A problem with an easy solution. The AD could just have the watchmaker verify the watch by opening it and conducting and inspection. This would be a nightmare for seals.
I have heard of return policies but I have never heard of someone in the last decade buying a Rolex watch and changing his mind later only to return it for a refund or purchase of a different model.
I have heard of returns, but those have been due to certain manufacture defects, not simply, I changed my mind, I don't like the Explorer ll, I want to exchange it for a YM, or my wife didn't like the Submariner, she wants a DJ..never heard of it.

[nektar]

Originally Posted by Rashid.bk

A problem with an easy solution. The AD could just have the watchmaker verify the watch by opening it and conducting and inspection. This would be a nightmare for seals.

I have heard of return policies but I have never heard of someone in the last decade buying a Rolex watch and changing his mind later only to return it for a refund or purchase of a different model.

I have heard of returns, but those have been due to certain manufacture defects, not simply, I changed my mind, I don't like the Explorer ll, I want to exchange it for a YM, or my wife didn't like the Submariner, she wants a DJ..never heard of it.

In my opinion, the AD s take advantage of the manufactured SS shortage of the professional models to treat the customers like junk. And we should refuse to accept this behavior. It is just a luxurious items, we have no need of it.


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[kanderson1965]

Originally Posted by Jim

In my opinion, the AD s take advantage of the manufactured SS shortage of the professional models to treat the customers like junk. And we should refuse to accept this behavior. It is just a luxurious items, we have no need of it.


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I would take it further, SS models are simply a well made but mass produced item, which are over-hyped by marketing.

[nektar]

Originally Posted by kanderson1965

I would take it further, SS models are simply a well made but mass produced item, which are over-hyped by marketing.

And I completely agree with that. Most of the people say that they cannot find an SS model sub. I completely disagree... with the exception of the Daytona, which in my opinion nowadays wears too small in a man' s wrist. But looks perfect in women...
Personally, I refuse to pay MSRP for my prospective purchase. And this is not because I run out of funds.




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