Ownership Transfer Costs... boo!

[Mark B.]

I'm not happy with the forced $500 inspection that is currently required before Red will recognize a transfer of ownership for a camera. I don't even recall being told of any such fee until after I'd already purchased the camera, which makes it that much worse.

The issue of whether for-sale equipment should be inspected is something that should be decided between the buyer and seller, not mandated by the manufacturer.

If Red wants to charge a small "change of owner" fee to account for the effort of modifying an ownership database, I'd understand that. But $500 and having to waste time shipping the camera to a Red service center seems excessive.

Also, requiring that any recommended repairs must be purchased before transfer of ownership will be performed... is questionable on several levels.

[Jeff Kilgroe]

The transfer fees have been mentioned before on multiple occasions. I think it's in their warranty and purchase policies as well.

Anyone can sell a camera outright and not have to do the $500 inspection and official transfer through RED. But that isn't exactly ideal to not be the owner of record when you need support.

If we were talking about simple ownership transfer, the $500 fee does seem a bit high, but the fee includes a full inspection and tune-up for the camera. What it really comes down to is that RED will not transfer ownership to a new owner without verifying that the camera is in perfect working order and that the warranty hasn't been violated.

In a camera transaction between two parties, it's really up to negotiation about who pays the transfer fees. I think a 50/50 split between buyer and seller would be fair, similar to the typical splitting of closing costs and brokerage fees on a real estate transaction or whatnot. As for any additional costs for repairs needed to the camera, I think that should all fall onto the seller. After all, RED will only transfer ownership to the new owner if the camera is in 100% working order as verified by them. Therefore, anyone buying a RED One should feel comfortable knowing that they are receiving a fully functional camera with the option of buying a 90-day warranty direct from RED.

If you're buying a camera that needs repair, then I suggest talking to whoever sold it to you and have them cough up the expense or give your money back. But that's just me.

[Stuart English]

The issue of whether for-sale equipment should be inspected is something that should be decided between the buyer and seller..

If the new owner desires a warranty from RED, the inspection and fee are part of that (optional) process.

See the official Warranty Terms here :

http://www.red.com/terms/

[Jeff Kilgroe]

That's fine about the new warranty, Stuart. But ownership transfer also seems to require the $500 inspection, regardless of whether the new owner chooses to purchase an optional warranty or not. And ownership transfer is necessary in order to assign the camera's original ship date / serial number to the new owner and to allow the new owner to purchase Epic X or execute other Red One ownership benefits.

[Stephen Williams]

But ownership transfer also seems to require the $500 inspection, regardless of whether the new owner chooses to purchase an optional warranty or not.

Hi Jeff,

Can't think of anything I ever bought new or second hand that has similar terms attached. I think it was done to prevent people profiteering in the early days. Such terms & conditions don't make me a fan boy.

Stephen

[Brent@RED]

Let's clear this up. You are buying a RED ONE from a third party, you have three choices:

1. Send camera to us, we eval for $500. If it needs any repairs to be brought to current factory specs, we quote you for those. You can have them done or not. If you don't want them done, we send you back the camera. If you do, we repair/update camera. At that point, we can offer you the RED Re-Certified Warranty ($750). If you purchase that, you get the 90 day warranty and ownership transferred to your name.

2. You don't want to spend the $500 for eval or deal with shipping, etc. Fine, you pay the $750 to have the camera owner of record updated in our systems. Obviously, you don't get the RED Re-Certified warranty because we cannot offer a warranty on a camera sight-unseen.

3. You don't want to spend the $750 to officially have ownership transferred. Camera remains in prior owner's name and that prior owner has to remain as liaison between you and RED.

We recommend option 1. We want a customer buying a RED ONE from a third party to know that the camera is in excellent health. By sending it in, you are also eligible to get the RED Re-Certified Warranty in addition to change of ownership.

The choice is yours as far as what path you want to take. No one is forced to pay anything to RED when buying from a third party. But, if you want us to check out the camera, to get a limited warranty, or officially change the owner in our database, there is a cost associated with those services.

If you have any questions about ownership transfers, please contact Kelly at kelly - at - red - dot - com as she personally handles each one of this cases.

BC

[Stephen Williams]

$750 to change the ownership records in your system, sounds like a good deal!

[Brent@RED]

If you send in your camera to be evaled, you get change of ownership and RED Re-Certified warranty for that fee. If you don't, you don't get the warranty part.

Assuming your last post is seasoned with sarcasm - if you don't like the terms, then don't choose that path.

BC

[Mark B.]

$750 to modify an ownership record?! That's nearly two weeks salary for a commoner. For a task that probably takes less than an hour. I'm officially disgusted. Actually, I'm so disgusted that now I'm going to have to rethink whether I want to do business with Red in the future.

[Julio Quintana]

$750 to modify an ownership record?! That's nearly two weeks salary for a commoner. For a task that probably takes less than an hour. I'm officially disgusted. Actually, I'm so disgusted that now I'm going to have to rethink whether I want to do business with Red in the future.

Pretty dramatic over-reaction considering the unprecedented concessions RED has made to their customers in the past.