Johannesburg - The launch of the latest iPhone always provides Consumer Watch with a perfect opportunity to discuss the issue of grey imports.
That’s because the phone is always launched in other markets before South Africa, and such is the Apple devotees’ desperation to be among the first to sport the latest, greatest iPhone, that there’s always a willing market for grey ones.
A grey product – also known as a parallel import – is not a fake. It’s an original, genuine product – it just wasn’t intended for sale in this country.
The handsets are imported, legally, via non-authorised channels, and because of this, if you buy one of them, you don’t have the benefit of the manufacturer’s warranty.
According to the Consumer Protection Act, suppliers of grey goods are legally obliged not only to inform potential customers that the goods are “grey”, but to spell out the warranty implications.
The act requires that consumers be told that the goods “have been imported without the approval or licence of the registered owner of that trademark and that no guarantee or warranty in respect of such goods will be honoured by any official or licensed importer of such goods”.
But few people contemplate what may go wrong with a product when they’re in the seductive “must have it now” phase, so questions around the exact nature of the warranty often aren’t asked before the deal is done. For example: “What exactly does ‘we cover the warranty’ mean?”
Rutger-Jan van Spaandonk, executive director of the Core Group, the exclusive distributor of Apple products in South Africa, last week took issue with the way Kalahari was communicating to consumers about the warranty issue.
“Whereas the two grey importers admit to offering their ‘own’ warranty, online retailer Kalahari makes a claim that in my view is incorrect,” he told Consumer Watch.
Kalahari’s marketing director, Liz Hillock, was quoted in an online media report as saying it sources its iPhones directly from Apple in the US, making them a special import, which is clearly marked on the outer packaging, and that the site offers a full one-year after sales warranty, “covered by Kalahari’s vendor which has a written agreement with Apple US, covering all faulty products”.
Van Spaandonk told Consumer Watch that as the iPhone 6 handsets being offered for sale here by Kalahari were not intended for sale in South Africa, Apple would not honour the warranty.
He cast doubt on the said vendor’s written agreement from Apple to warrant the phones, as, he says, Apple does not warrant phones which land up in countries for which they were not intended for sale.
“Apple does not issue such written agreements,” van Spaandonk said. “Only authorised vendors may sell the phones in the specified markets, and the permission is implied in the contract.”
The US vendor would be entitled to a warranty repair from Apple, but once that phone is sold on, van Spaandonk said, the warranty falls away.
So I asked Hillock to elaborate on Kalahari’s arrangement with the US vendor.
“We make very clear that this is a special import, and that Kalahari will cover the warranty,” she said. “So if something breaks we take responsibility for fixing or replacing the devices.”
So is Kalahari covering the warranty, not Apple? “The point of contact is Kalahari,” Hillock said, “and as mentioned we would simply replace if a customer is not happy.”
The company’s site states: “The one-year warranty will be covered by Kalahari.com in partnership with our vendor.” Confusing.
Hillock said Kalahari “needed” to do special imports of the iPhone “as Core cannot supply us the stock we need, yet we do need to satisfy our customers by offering the range”.
The expected delivery date is put at October 31, subject to change.
Van Spaandonk told Consumer Watch he hadn’t yet been given an iPhone 6 launch date for South Africa.
As for grey iPhones in general, van Spaandonk warned that some could have limited functionality in South Africa – for example those from the Middle East disable Apple’s WiFi video calling app FaceTime, which may prove difficult to re-enable.
As for the price issue, van Spaandonk said a grey iPhone 6 could end up being more expensive than those intended for this market.
There are great buys to be had with parallel imports of all kinds – as long as you’re aware of all the factors at play, and can make an informed decision.
The Star