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Camera Shop Scams
Published January 10, 2008 | 
All too often we hear about people who have been conned by Lanzarote camera shops, into parting with their hard-earned cash for a camera or electrical goods that are either fake, below par, or mis-sold. A prime example is paying €300 for a MXJVC camera, that is actually available for about £15 on Ebay – and is nothing to do with JVC
Before making any kind of purchase of digital cameras, or electronic equipment etc, be sure to shop around for price and quality comparisons. If the shop you are in does not want to let you go, and is coercing you into buying their products – then get out of there quickly, as 9 times out of 10 they are up to no good.
The number of times we have seen people practically pulled into these shops from the street. British people are notoriously polite, and do not wish to offend. You’ll have to be tough with this one – and say “NO” firmly.
If however, it is too late, and you are not happy with your new purchase, or you feel that you have been dishonestly looked after, you DO have the right to make a formal complaint in writing on the premises of the business.
First of all, ask for the ”Claim book” or “Libro de Reclamación”. By law every establishment must have one on the premises.
2. Fill in the green and white copies in front of the shop keeper.
3. Keep all your receipts as proof of purchase – both the shop receipts and any credit card slips.
4. Submit the sheets to the Departamento de Consumo at the Cabildo Building in El Reducto, Arrecife, within one calendar month in order for them to take action. Your claim is only valid if you submit the sheet directly to the department of Consumer Protection in Arrecife.
Remember… bargains are usually good – but beware of something that seems TOO much of a bargain!
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67 Responses to Camera Shop Scams
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I was scammed by three very convincing con-men in Playa Blanca in a camera shop that goes by the name of Image. don’t trust any of them. It’s about time the authorities got to grips with these unscrupulous shops, it will deter many people going on holiday to Playa Blanca
I just have bought a Yashica Europe X-5 (HD Cam corder), 16 MP, 5 x optical Lens in Tenerife at the 20th of Dec 2011, at The Swami photo shop in Playa de las Americas. Now home in Denamrk I realize, that they have been sheeting on me!
I cannot find a similar Yashica product at the web…(:-(
Rgds. Jan
The following was received via email today – another awful experience for a Lanzarote visitor. Published with Permission. Elle xxx
“I have just come back from Puerto del Carmen – stayed in Hotel las Costas – I bought a pair of sunglasses from the electric junction which is an electrical shop across the road from the aloe vera shop not far from
the hotel in the direction of old town puerto de carmen.
I noticed when giving my credit card the sales person looked at me while I was putting in my number – foolishly enough I didn`t cover my hand – and then he took the machine with my card away – another sales person stood with him – blocked my view and I thought there was something fishy – foolishly enough – I let it go – only to discover that E189 has been taken out of my account as well as the E40 for the glasses – so what he did was – put my card in a second time and put in my number – I have contacted my bank but
they have stopped transactions on my card but can’t stop that one as they had the number and the transactions have gone through – I just thought I`d let you know this and the shop itself – I have been foolish – but perhaps other people can now be aware – I am hoping to try and contact the spanish authorities to see can something be done about this.
It`s a pity I didn`t check all there was said about the camera shops before I went to Lanzarote – other than this – my stay was pleasant and I will not be so trusting again???”
Hello again, so I think that there is not one electronics store on the walking street that I would trust in Playa Blanka. They all seam to have the exact same products and same strong arm tactics. I later heard from a German expat that the shops are all owned by the same person. I did hear good things about the 2 that you mentioned before. I did not have a chance to go there as I had to go back to Denmark for a family emergency. I did find out that there is an authorized Canon dealer in Gran Canaria. I believe in Las Palmas. But I did not get the name. Being as I am in Denmark I have chosen to just get the camera here from a store I know here in Copenhagen. It might cause a little more, but I know what I am getting. I guess that might be the lesson in this, you might think you are saving some Euros by buying the items in Lanzarote, but once you get the fake, refurbished or wrong item and have to buy it again at home you have spent more than if you just purchased it before you left.
Anyway, thanks again,
Niels
You’re welcome. Work has been mental recently, but your message came through during a quiet enough time for me to whip out a response. Glad you didn’t put any money down!!! Good luck – and let us know how you get on.
I’ve just spoken to Alan about Amazon… and he said that it’s only books & DVDs they’ll ship out here. Apparently when it comes to camera goods, it’s down to the individual sellers whether they’ll deliver to the Canaries, and can be expensive. I’d take a trip up to Puerto del Carmen or Arrecife and see what they say. Remembering though that Arrecife is closed during the afternoons.
Elle x
Hello Elle, thank you for the fast response. I was out earlier today and went in to many of the stores here in town. Almost all of them said they could get the camera. But they also all wanted large deposits. Having been scamed in the past I was not willing to put down any money. Then I came home and found this site and was so very happy I did not put any money down. Thank you for the names of some good places. I mean, they can’t all be bad… Right? Anyway, thanks again!
Niels
Hello NIels. Go and speak to Vnish in Puerto del Carmen – he may be able to help. The shop is in the Centro Atlantico area of the Avenida. I believe that Visanta in Arrecife has a good reputation also.
But… Amazon deliver to Lanzarote too – so worth having a look online.
Good luck!
Elle xx
Hello all and sorry about your bad experiences. I have just moved toPlaya Blanka and will be here for a year or more. I can see that there are quite a few stores to stay out of, but are there any good stores? I need to replace my canon 5d mk ii rather quickly as itis quite dead and I need it for work. Any info would be great. There must be reputable places to go on the island. Thanks, Niels
Thanks for sharing your story Staffan!
Elle xx
PS: Nice website by the way! xx
We visited Playa Blanca in Lanzarote in March 2010 when we were there I thought I’d check the price of a Panasonic camera TZ7 in the apparently notorious affair Microtech.
They reported a relatively low price so I got interested and paid, which I never would have made, when payment was made they tried to run the trick with a cheap Olympus camera, they claimed that it was much better but I was not interested.
They tried to sell all sorts of junk to me unsuccessfully, after about two hours discussing, they gave up and packed down my camera along with all accessories, I would have been screaming about the camera and threatened with police for a long time, probably they may not insert any new customers as long as someone is standing and screaming in the store.
But then I would have had to pay more, the final price was a bit below what it cost at home and the camera works fine.
But I have never before experienced such a rude and intimidating staff and ugly technology to try to blow people, it is strange that the Spanish people allow these thugs to pollute the Canary Islands’ reputation!
I have just come back from Puerto Carmen in Lanzarote, and I too feel I have been scammed by these cheap spanish camera shops.
I went into this one shop called Canaries Electronics that was located on the sea-front, in front of a large hotel complex (the logo was a seahorse, but I can’t remember the name of the hotel), and saw a Fashion Fujioptics HD camcorder. I went in to enquire about the price, and was told it was 185 Euro’s.
The salesman (who I have noticed elsewhere on this site, but at time of writing, can’t remember his name) came up to me, and tried to offer me a 8GB SD card for 150 Euro’s (which I know was wrong, as I knew they were a lot cheaper back home). I refused this 8 gig sd card, and told him I could get them much cheaper back home. The salesman kept dropping the price, but I refused point-blank that I did not want it.
I left the store with the camera, and a 4GB card.
When I got home, I checked my bank account, as I had noticed a bigger drop in funds, to the amount of 450 Euro’s on top of the 185 Euro’s I had already paid. As I had paid on my visa debit card, I am covered by fraudulant scams like this (so they told me).
I have been in contact with my bank, and have to send the card voucher to them, and they will refund the extra amount in full, and get the money back from the bank account that the money was paid in to.
I just wish the local government offices would close shops like this down. Don’t they have a Trading Standards system over there?
Dreams in Benidorm!!! I got stung there too but my yashica hdv5mr30 actually works but the charger was lost and boy am I having a problem replacing so if anyone can help I would be grateful, Apart from paying over the odds for the damn thing I actually like it but could have saved a fortune if Id bought it in Lanzarote!
Never mind – and at the end of the day I’m happy that you have some happy memories to take home with you.
Yes all-inclusive has affected low attendance at a lot of places – although it’s not solely to blame.
Glad you like this site! If you fancy sharing some of your experiences in somewhere with a few Costa Teguise fans… then head over to http://www.canarynightlife.net/forum. It’s another one of our sites, and the link I have given you is direct into the forum. The main site is http://www.canarynightlife.com. Most of the posts are in the “General” section where quite a few play games – but I know for sure that we have a number of Costa Teguise visitors and residents that pop in regularly. Look out for people like Bob Cunningham, Ali, Jude, Mush, DrRobert, – to name just a few!
Elle xx
PS: Sorry guys – I’ll get back on topic now. x
The recording was wiped I’m afraid (we decided to record parts of two acts at The Lighthouse – Gary Gibson as Elvis and Gazza – to show to friends when we returned to UK). However, as the mobile phone doesn’t allow much recording time we’ve invested in a digital camcorder (bought in UK) and will be taking that back with us – just in case! I know it’s a different subject but chatting to some of the bar owners/managers it appears that the all inclusive holidays are responsible for lower attendance at bars and restaurants. We always travel self catering, not only to give us variety but also to put something financial back into the local community. This is a terrific forum and we’ll be checking on it regularly till next Jan – can’t wait.
Hi,
Nice to read that you could leave without buying. Close to the same thing happened to me at Playa De Las Americas, Tenerife. At a shop called Mickey Electronics at the beach I was more or less forced to buy. The “adventure” did cost me 90 euro. The same type of persons as yours. I was alone, so no evidence.
I will have to put those 90 euros on my learning account.
Conny
Good for you for taking precautions! We’d love to see that video. Any chance you could pop it onto YouTube and post a link? Of course if you’d rather not, then we’ll respect your privacy too.
Elle xx
Long post I’m afraid.
My wife and I were in Costa Teguise Jan/Feb 2010 and were browsing in the shopping arcade opposite Los Zocos. A very friendly Asian man stopped us as we were passing by a camera shop and asked if I wanted to exchange the one I was carrying (a 15 year old 35mm SLR) as he would give me a good price. Despite my saying no my wife suggested that I had nothing to lose and so we went into his shop where we were subjected to the hard sell with 3 different people asking me questions and trying to show me various cameras. When I tried to leave they took hold of my arms and claimed I had promised to buy one of their cameras. Their attitude became threatening until I pointed to my wife who was stood in the doorway recording the scene and the conversation on her mobile phone after which they were suddenly very friendly and asked if I had enjoyed their little joke(!). We left the shop after I had shown them my English Police warrant card and asked for directions to the Guardia Civil station. We have had similar situations in Fuerteventura (same family I understand) and are veterans of Egypt, Turkey and Vietnam shops and markets. If you can, try and record what happens and threaten THEM that you will go to the Police and/or put the film on Youtube so that everyone will know.
Apart from that we thoroughly enjoyed our stay in CT and are planning to return in Jan 2011 for a month.