The Canon USA Store restocks select refurbished RF lenses

Canon Rumors Guy

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Canon's website is severely misleading. 2 of the refurbished lenses that show in-stock are backordered. I have an order for 2 refurbished lenses (on this list) from November and I called Canon and they said they were on backorder. They might have gotten more stock in; but they are still working old backorders that must be older than mine (or so they tell me when I called).
 
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snapshot

5d2,5d4,r5
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Jul 24, 2020
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dont be so sure. I have gotten various stories talking with the folks behind the phone. i think the orders for refurbished gear go inactive if stock runs out before your order is assigned stock. if you see there is stock on the shop.usa.canon.com site, you should call them to kick your order back into action. Please dont be mean though, they are nice folks, who dont have much to do with the rotten computer system. Several times, the item i wanted went back out of stock before i can get through on the phone...
 
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I did call them. They said that orders would be processed in the order they came in. A person that I chatted with on the website gave a different story. They said that you couldn't order refurbished lenses that were out of stock and that the order would be stuck in limbo because for some mysterious reason; even though the order was there; there was no connection to the stock coming in and outstanding orders from refurbished items. Of course the website said they were in stock when I ordered... but the order went immediately to backordered after it was placed. The person I was chatting with said to call them; which I did and got the above response.

I was nice to them. But I did let them know I was very frustrated with the fact that I have an order that has been backordered for 3 months while their website says they have stock only to call and have them say there is no stock (while looking at the site saying in-stock).

I find it disturbing that such a reputable company such as canon has a sales website that doesn't seem to be connected to inventory at all and orders that get stashed in a dark hole without a word. During the holidays; the price dropped on the lenses I had already ordered. I called Canon to see if they would modify the order for the better price since it hadn't shipped yet. They said they couldn't edit the order. They could put a note on the order so that I could call after the lenses shipped to get a refund of the price difference. They also couldn't email me a confirmation of our discussion.

I know Canon is a monolithic company that doesn't embrace change well... but their customer experience when it comes to sales, their website and customer support really needs to join the current century. They shouldn't advertise anything in-stock while they have pending backorders they haven't fulfilled. Further when you place an order; the order shouldn't be completed until they have the stock verified (if they can't keep track of the backorder). They also need to be able to edit an order and send a record of the changes to the customer. This is pretty basic stuff.
 
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gbc

Oct 19, 2018
83
99
I did call them. They said that orders would be processed in the order they came in. A person that I chatted with on the website gave a different story. They said that you couldn't order refurbished lenses that were out of stock and that the order would be stuck in limbo because for some mysterious reason; even though the order was there; there was no connection to the stock coming in and outstanding orders from refurbished items. Of course the website said they were in stock when I ordered... but the order went immediately to backordered after it was placed. The person I was chatting with said to call them; which I did and got the above response.

I was nice to them. But I did let them know I was very frustrated with the fact that I have an order that has been backordered for 3 months while their website says they have stock only to call and have them say there is no stock (while looking at the site saying in-stock).

I find it disturbing that such a reputable company such as canon has a sales website that doesn't seem to be connected to inventory at all and orders that get stashed in a dark hole without a word. During the holidays; the price dropped on the lenses I had already ordered. I called Canon to see if they would modify the order for the better price since it hadn't shipped yet. They said they couldn't edit the order. They could put a note on the order so that I could call after the lenses shipped to get a refund of the price difference. They also couldn't email me a confirmation of our discussion.

I know Canon is a monolithic company that doesn't embrace change well... but their customer experience when it comes to sales, their website and customer support really needs to join the current century. They shouldn't advertise anything in-stock while they have pending backorders they haven't fulfilled. Further when you place an order; the order shouldn't be completed until they have the stock verified (if they can't keep track of the backorder). They also need to be able to edit an order and send a record of the changes to the customer. This is pretty basic stuff.
I also called Canon about my backordered lens. After a 40 minute wait, they told me it was on backorder and would be filled... eventually. BUT... they couldn't change my "two-day shipping." Which just seems beyond the pale. I ordered in December, and you're still gonna charge me two day shipping from "when it's in stock"? Way to nickel and dime people spending over two grand on a lens.
I'm not holding my breath that this newly discovered stock will move my order to "shipped."
I guess the silver lining is I don't really have anything to shoot right now...
 
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I give all of you respect for going through all that hassle with refurbished backorder shenanigans. Personally, I don't think these savings worth all that hassle and frustration you all go through. Basically, you raise Canon's capital by giving them money w/o getting anything back for a long time.
This was my first attempt to buy something refurbished from Canon. It will likely be my last. I wanted to try it because I have heard the quality is excellent and the discounts make it worth it. Considering the trouble; I'm definitely reconsidering the 'worth it' opinion.
 
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Mr.Burberry

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Feb 14, 2020
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Still chaffes my hide that they won't sell refurbed gear to Canadians. Sigma and Tamron get my money instead.
I guess because they are Canon USA for a reason. Canon Canada runs the house in Canada. Corporate/territorial stuff, you know. On top of that they [most likely] don't want to deal with borders/customs/tariffs/etc.
 
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gbc

Oct 19, 2018
83
99
I give all of you respect for going through all that hassle with refurbished backorder shenanigans. Personally, I don't think these savings worth all that hassle and frustration you all go through. Basically, you raise Canon's capital by giving them money w/o getting anything back for a long time.
I've bought nearly all my gear refurbished from Canon except for my last two R and R5 bodies, never had a problem, and the prices were great. So this is a bit... disappointing. But seeing as i don't NEED the lens I ordered, I suppose I can wait if it means I got almost $700 off on the 24-70 2.0 lens. If I get it by June I'll be thrilled.
Also, as far as raising Canon's capital, my credit card hasn't been charged yet. It doesn't get charged til it ships.
 
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Interesting that they no longer offer the additional 15% discount on these that they ran in December. I ordered the RF 24-70 and RF70-200 and saved nearly $800 from my order at B&H that was also waiting on stock.

My only disappointment was that Canon took nearly a month, 18 business days, to ship these out. So definitely a test of patience but worth it in the end. Aside from generic brown Canon boxes, my two lenses look brand new.
 
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Sep 29, 2018
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I guess because they are Canon USA for a reason. Canon Canada runs the house in Canada. Corporate/territorial stuff, you know. On top of that they [most likely] don't want to deal with borders/customs/tariffs/etc.
Canon Canada never sells refurbed gear. Customs/border/tarrifs can't be an issue because they are more than willing to sell their new stuff. Canon has always had a sh_ty attitude towards Canada. It's one of the reasons I moved away from them for my cinema gear.
 
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Interesting that they no longer offer the additional 15% discount on these that they ran in December. I ordered the RF 24-70 and RF70-200 and saved nearly $800 from my order at B&H that was also waiting on stock.

My only disappointment was that Canon took nearly a month, 18 business days, to ship these out. So definitely a test of patience but worth it in the end. Aside from generic brown Canon boxes, my two lenses look brand new.
I would have been totally fine with a month delay. I'm not in a hurry. But 3 months... really???
 
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Last week the refurbished RF 28-70 f2 was listed as in stock, so I called about my backordered copy. Guy puts me on hold and then tells me to expect my shipping confirmation within 24 hours. Imagine my surprise when I called 24 hours later and the sales person said that my not getting a confirmation just means it wasn't my turn, after being told I'd be getting one. If I wasn't saving about $800 (tax included) on this lens, I'd have canceled already.
 
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I called Canon after posting my last message about my refurbished RF 28-70 f2. Guy told me that there's still 50 people on the backorder list. I ended up canceling my order.
Thank you for this information. I should have asked about that myself when I was on the phone with them. Looks like I'll be lucky to see it in an additional 3 months. Maybe after the Olympics they will have a bunch.
 
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