Retail - am I reasonable?

[Soxwasher]

I have a 5 year old Omega watch (cost approx £500) which my dh bought me as a special present. Took it to have battery replaced and jewellers said I did not need to have it sent back to Omega they had their own professional watchmaking company who could do this. Went to collect watch and case has been damaged where they have flipped the back off! It is jagged and gappy and visible to the naked eye. Spoke to manager - who said it had been damaged but I was obviously looking at it more closely now and so was very aware of it and "could it be that it was damaged on receipt?" He is going to try and have it repaired but admits that it is unlikely to be back to its original state.

What degree of repair should i accept? Has anyone any experience of these things? I think they should send it back to Omega and have the case changed - is this reasonable?

I would agree with you - they should reinstate it to the condition in which it was given to them. If it cannot be repaired satisfactiorily then I would want the case replaced. Not sure exactly where you stand legally but if you accept they try to repair it you may compromise your statutory rights later if you are not happy.

Just found this site whih may prove useful, if only to locate your local Trading Standards Office for advice. Not sure whether a repair would count as "Goods" or if it is covered separately as a service, but you have entered into a contract with the jeweller.

Thank you - that is really helpful! I just worry about these things and don't want to seem unfair.