Limited Warranty

This warranty is given by Biel Vintage Watches ("we", "us") to the original purchaser named on the sales paperwork ("you"). It is published here so you can read it before you buy, and a copy is enclosed with the watch.

What this covers

A mechanical defect in the movement that was present when the watch shipped and was not disclosed in the product description. That includes a movement that stops running, or that keeps time outside ±60 seconds per day in normal wear.

This limited warranty applies to watches we have fully serviced, and the product description says so. Each product description states what work was done to that watch.

Unserviced watches. A watch we have not serviced carries no warranty and is sold as is. Service can be provided on request; contact us to schedule it. Our authenticity guarantee still applies to every watch we sell, serviced or not.

Consigned watches, pieces sourced to order, and trade ins do not carry this warranty unless their product description says otherwise. Where we have fully serviced a piece ourselves, the product description says so and this warranty applies to it.

Your Service & Warranty certificate

Every watch also comes with a Service & Warranty certificate from our workshop. It records that the watch has been examined, authenticated and mechanically inspected by our watchmakers, and that the movement has been benched and analyzed on a timegrapher. It lists:

• The work performed: full movement overhaul, inspection, lubrication and regulation, or diagnostic only
• The timegrapher readings: rate (seconds per day), amplitude and beat error
• Our watchmaker’s notes on the watch
• Which warranty applies and, for serviced watches, the date it expires

It is signed by our lead watchmaker and dated on the day of inspection. Keep it with the watch and include it with any warranty claim.

How long it lasts

Twelve months from the date of purchase, on watches whose product description says this warranty applies.

What we do

We repair the movement at no charge to you. Repairs are carried out by our own watchmaker, third generation at the bench.

In house means our watchmaker, not the manufacturer. We do not represent that warranty work is performed, authorized, or approved by the brand.

The standard at delivery

Every watch arrives in working order and function tested. Before it ships, our watchmaker confirms that the movement winds, sets and runs, that any complications work as they should, and that the rate averages within 60 seconds per day, measured on a timegrapher across positions.

That is our own delivery standard. It is not the manufacturer's original specification and we make no claim to it.

Water resistance. We make no claim of water resistance on any watch we sell, whatever it was rated when it left the factory. Gaskets age and cases get opened. Treat every watch here as not water resistant.

Rate and power reserve after delivery. A vintage movement does not hold a rate the way a modern one does. Rate drift after delivery is not a defect under this warranty. Power reserve varies with the age and design of the caliber, and a reduced power reserve that still allows daily wear is not a defect.

Parts

Vintage watches use obsolete, rare and discontinued components.

We make a good faith effort to source authentic parts. Where original manufacturer parts are not available we may use high quality aftermarket, period correct, or custom fabricated parts, and we tell you which before the work is carried out.

Where a necessary part cannot be sourced or fabricated in a reasonable time, we refund the purchase price in full on return of the watch. We do not offer store credit in place of a refund. If you would rather put the money toward another piece, that is your choice to make and not ours to elect.

What is not covered

Water damage. Water damage, and any defect resulting from water intrusion, is not covered. Water intrusion does not otherwise affect coverage of an unrelated defect.

Accidental damage. Drops, impacts, shocks, magnetic fields, rough handling and neglect.

User error. Setting the date while the calendar is changing over, forcing the crown or pushers, operating the pushers or an unscrewed crown in water, over-winding, and any use contrary to how the watch is designed to be operated.

External parts and wear. Wear and tear to, or loss of, external components: case, crystal, bezel, dial, hands, winding crown and stem, springs, buttons, pushers, bracelet, strap and buckle, and their finishes.

Anything the product description disclosed. A watch sold with a known fault is sold with that fault.

Work by anyone else. The warranty is void if you, or anyone other than our watchmaker, opens, repairs or attempts to repair the watch.

Damage made worse by continued wear. Where a fault appears and the watch is worn on regardless, we do not cover the additional damage that caused.

Making a claim

Stop wearing the watch and tell us in writing. We are not going to argue about the day you noticed. What we do ask is that you stop wearing a watch that is not running right, because a fault worn through for a month stops being one repair and becomes three.

This is not the returns window. You have 48 hours from delivery to inspect the watch and tell us if it is not what we described, and that is set out on our returns page. This warranty is a separate thing. It covers a mechanical defect in the movement for twelve months, because a movement fault does not always announce itself in two days.

Send the watch to us fully insured for its value, tracked, signature required.

Where we confirm a covered defect, we cover shipping in both directions, insured both ways, and we reimburse what you paid to send it in. Where the fault is not covered, shipping is at your cost, and we tell you that before any work begins.

We assess the watch and tell you what we find. Turnaround depends on the severity of the work and on parts availability. We give you an expected timeline as soon as the repair is identified, and we keep you posted if it moves.

Authenticity is separate, and it is bigger

This warranty covers the movement for twelve months. It does not limit our authenticity guarantee, which has no time limit at all.

Biel Vintage Watches stands behind the authenticity of every timepiece we sell with a full financial guarantee. If, at any time, a watch is definitively determined to be counterfeit or non-authentic by the original manufacturer’s heritage department or an independent AWCI-certified watchmaker while it is owned by the original purchaser, we will refund the full original purchase price on return of the watch in its as-sold condition. The guarantee has no time limit. It is non-transferable and is tied to the invoice of sale. That guarantee is published in full on our authenticity page.

After the twelve months

The warranty ends twelve months from the date of purchase, and there is no warranty on the movement after that. When your watch is due for attention, contact us and we will quote a service.

Who it covers

This warranty runs to the original purchaser named on the sales paperwork. It is not transferable.

Limit of liability

Our liability under this warranty is limited to the purchase price you paid. We are not liable for indirect or consequential loss, including lost profit or any change in market value.

Implied warranties and your rights

Any implied warranty, including merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose, is limited to the duration of this warranty.

Some states do not allow limits on how long an implied warranty lasts, or the exclusion of incidental or consequential damages, so the limitations above may not apply to you.

This warranty gives you specific legal rights, and you may also have other rights which vary from state to state. Nothing here removes a right you hold under the law where you live.

Governing law

This warranty is governed by the laws of the State of New York, without regard to its conflict of laws principles. Any dispute is subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state courts sitting in Erie County, New York, and the federal courts for the Western District of New York.

Severability

If any provision of this warranty is held unenforceable, the rest stays in force.