Canon said "GL2 Beyond Economical Repair"

[Darren Salomons]

I just bought a canon GL2 and it fell in the pool. I sent it into Canon to get repaired and they said they arn't going to fix it because it's "Beyond Economical Repair" What should I do with it now?

[Rob Lohman]

I hope you have insurance to cover it. That's what anyone should
have on these expensive camera's!

[John Lee]

Hi Rob,

I'm just curious, what kind of insurance agency covers cameras like the gl2? Is it under homeowners? Because I contacted mine and I believe they told me they couldn't cover it. But I'm not entirely sure.

I've considered buying a policy on my GL2, but I have a 2 year warranty on it so I haven't bothered.

[Jeff Donald]

A camera would be covered under a homeowners policy, subject to the deductible and depreciation, unless it is specifically excluded in the policy. Many insurance companies have quit covering cameras under "all risk riders" because of excessive claims.

[Don Palomaki]

Some companies may offer a "floater" option to cover itemized valuables from specified risks. Ask you insurance company reps for details. Also, some professional and trade groups, e.g., WEVA, may offer some type of group insurance to their members.

Key is to read the exclusions and fine print: some may not cover user error type problems.

So it fell into a swimming pool. What does it do/not do at this point in time?

[Rob Lohman]

Here in Holland my camera would only be insured under home-
owners policy if the accident happened in or around the house.

My XL1S had a (and I'm going to translate this as best as I can)
"expensive stuff insurance" (heh). In other words, such an
insurance exists here for expensive jewelry, photo or video
camera's etc. Any stuff you also use OUTSIDE of your house.

The camera had an insurance that I would get the same camera
brand new if it was not repairable. They would cover my costs
in the case it was stolen, I dropped it, or otherwise banged it up.

The insurance did NOT cover anybody else using it. I could do that
as well, but that was more expensive. It was also not insured for
commercial use (ie, someone hiring me).

Those two things would've cost (a lot?) more, this one as it stands
was pretty cheap. And since I mainly make my own movies those
terms where fine with me.

[Boyd Ostroff]

My homeowners policy covered my wife's digital still camera, scanner, printer and laptop when they were stolen, even though it didn't happen at home. The coverage was based on current value which took into account that the camera was used, but it was still pretty reasonable. Check with your agent. This should also be a good wake-up call for everyone else to read their policies and ask their agents if there is any doubt....

[Rolland Elliott]

This is too late, but the next time you need to immediately take the camera's battery out and then and dunk the camera in distilled water, probably a few buckets full.

then immediately start removing any covers and body parts and take a blow dryer and make sure the insides are completely dry. Let canon repair worry about putting it back together latter.

What killed your camera was the corrosive chlorine, that wasn't dry for probably weeks after you sent the camera in.

[K. Forman]

"Beyond Economical Repair"

Wasn't that their sales slogan?

[Chris Hurd]

Dunk ANY camera in the water and it's immediately "beyond economical repair."

[K. Forman]

Even though that was a joke, I have noticed in many instances that it is often cheaper to by a new item, than to try and fix it. This society has become very disposable oriented...

[Jeff Donald]

It's not so much society has become too throw away oriented, but rather Americans want a decent standard of living. When I sold off the division of my company that did BQ and consumer repairs, the techs were making $50 an hour. That was ten years ago. In most repairs, labor is the largest expense. I've seen a $3 part failure cost a $150 repair. The camera had to be disassembled so far that the lens had to be realigned after the part was replaced. Why so much? Two hours of labor and a $3 part.

Repairing a water damaged camera would be 6 to 8 hours labor and all the electronics and mechanicals being replaced. The only parts you could use would be the two halves of the shell. You couldn't use any other old parts because you wouldn't be able to warranty the job.

[David Levine]

Bought my gl2 at a chain that offers the extended service plan, repair or replace for anything cept fire or theft
so far its came in handy twice!