General
- Can I reserve a rental item?
- Can I place an order for an item that is out of stock?
- What does "Contact Us for Availability" message mean?
- When does my rental period begin and end?
- What comes with a lens rental?
- What comes with a camera rental?
- Does all equipment come with manuals?
- May I extend my rental?
- Do you offer custom rental periods?
- Can I take the rental outside of South Africa?
- What if I wish to rent something you do not currently offer?
Testimonials
Billing
- Do you charge a deposit?
- When is my credit card charged?
- Do you charge late fees?
- What is the cancellation procedure?
- Do you charge a cancellation fee?
- Is there anything else I need to know or consider?
Local Pick Up
- Can I pick up the rental items in person?
- How do I place an order for local pick-up?
- What will I need on the day of my pick-up?
Shipping
- Which shipping carrier do you use?
- Where do you ship to?
- Do you ship to PO Boxes?
- What are your shipping rates?
- Do you offer overnight shipping?
Returns
Insurance
Damage
- Is the equipment in good working order when it arrives?
- What if I damage the equipment and don't buy the insurance?
- What if I damage the equipment and buy the insurance?
- What do you consider damage?
Buying and Selling Camera Gear
Rental Agreement
General
Can I reserve a rental item?
Yes, we will take reservations, as long as the order is received 1 week in advance, with a signed rental agreement, and proof of 10. Simply contact us and place the order for the rental item(s). Once the order goes through and you get an email confirmation from us, this guarantees your reservation and there's no need to check the website or worry about the availability of the items you ordered. If any situation comes up that jeopardizes your reservation, we will contact you ASAP.
Can I place an order for an item that is out of stock?
Yes, you are able to put in an order for an "out of stock" item, either for reservation or immediate shipment when the rental item becomes available. When placing an order, please indicate the date you would like the rental item.
What does "Contact Us for Availability" message mean?
This message indicates that this particular rental item is currently reserved, but the reservation has not started yet. Please contact us with the dates you need this item for and we'll see if we are able to squeeze you in before the next reservation starts. Book early to avoid disappointment!!!
When does my rental period begin and end?
The rental period starts the day you collect the item or the day the item is delivered. When renting an item, you may collect the item the afternoon before the day the rental starts and the item needs to be dropped of the morning after the rental day. So if you are renting for a weekend, you can collect the item on the friday afternoon and drop the item off on the monday morning after the weekend.
What comes with a lens rental?
We try to ship each lens with all the accessories it came with brand new. Each lens will arrive with front and rear caps. Many lenses will have an accompanying padded case. The lenses that come with lens hoods from the factory will have one as well. Everything you receive must be returned when your rental period expires.
What comes with a camera rental?
We will ship all camera bodies with a body cap, a camera strap, a charger and a battery and one memory card. Extra batteries and CF cards are available for rent. Please note that cameras do not come with any lenses and you must rent a lens if you want to shoot with the SLR you rented.
Does all equipment come with manuals?
We have manuals for most of the equipment that we carry. However, we notice that when we send manuals out with every order, they only come back 50% of the time. So if you need a manual, please explicitly request one in your order notes.
May I extend my rental?
The short answer is ... maybe. Please contact us before your rental period expires if you wish to extend. If there are no other customers waiting in line for your item, we will be happy to extend your rental. However, if there's somebody else waiting for your rental item, you must return the lens by the end of your rental period.
Do you offer custom rental periods?
Yes. If the generic per day or 1, 2, 3 or 4 week increments do not work for you, please contact us. We will work to accommodate your needs.
Can I take the rental outside of South Africa?
Not at this current point in time.
What if I wish to rent something you do not currently offer?
We are constantly striving to provide you with the most complete and extensive inventory in the business. Please contact us and if we have had enough previous demands, we will buy an item just to rent it out to you.
Testimonials
Do you have any customers who can provide testimonials about your service?
Unlike most places, we don't put up hand-picked testimonials that make us look good, but instead encourage people to leave feedback on a third party forum letting us know what's wrong (and what's right) about our service. Using this system, we have gained a lot of good feedback. Please follow these links to read what people have to say about us: http://www.perfectpictures.co.za/.
Billing
Do you charge a deposit?
No, we believe in the kindness of strangers. At this point, we do not see a need to charge a deposit for the items you rent. Please help us maintain this policy.
When is my credit card charged?
We unfortunatly do not take credit cards at this point, and cash or EFT is required for payments. EFT transfers need to be cleared before delivery of any items are taken.
Do you charge late fees?
Unfortunately, yes. We determine if you owe a late fee based on the time stamp of the return shipment. The late fee is 1/4 of one week's rental fee per day late. The fee is easily avoided by extending your rental period.
What is the cancellation procedure?
If you must cancel the order, please contact us. Note that a cancellation fee may apply.
Do you charge a cancellation fee?
If your rental is for 1 week or longer and you cancel prior to the 7 day mark for shipping or picking up an item, there's no cancellation fee. However, if you cancel within the 7 day pick-up/ship window, there is a charge of a 3 Day Rental for the same rental item(s). For example, say you requested to have an item delivered on April 15th. In order to get the item out to you on time, we will have to ship on April 13th. Thus, you have until April 6th to cancel your reservation and not incur any cancellation charges. Unfortunately we must have this policy to recoup some of the lost revenue of keeping the items on hold for you.
Is there anything else I need to know or consider?
Please note that if you order very expensive items and are a first time customer, we might ask you to provide additional information regarding your identity.
Local Pick Up
Can I pick up the rental items in person?
Yes, you can pickup from our shop in the West of Johannesburg. This is a good option to save yourself shipping and delivery costs and you are able to get your items more quickly. Please read below for details.
Note: We can no longer offer collections in the East Rand.
How do I place an order for local pick-up?
Please place the order via email info@lensrental.co.za or calling Paul (+27 82 992 1114). You can pick-up the equipment on the west side of Johannesburg you can drop the lens of on the east side of Johannesburg. We will give you the address when the booking is made.
Note: As we can no longer offer collections from the East Rand of Johannesburg, equipment can no longer be collected in the West and returned to the East, or vice versa.
What will I need on the day of my pick-up?
The person who places the order needs to be the one who picks it up and we cannot release rentals to friends, family members, etc., unless there are extenuating circumstances. Additionally, you will need to provide a valid green ID document or drivers license or for international visitors, a valid passport. You will also be required to sign our rental agreement.
Shipping
Which shipping carrier do you use?
We are currently not shipping items due to courier costs, however we can discuss this for extreme situations.
Where do you ship to?
We are currently not shipping items due to courier costs, however we can discuss this for extreme situations.
Do you ship to PO Boxes?
No, we are sorry, but the South African postal service does not function the way it should.
What are your shipping rates?
We are currently not shipping items due to courier costs, however we can discuss this for extreme situations.
Do you offer overnight shipping?
We are currently not shipping items due to courier costs, however we can discuss this for extreme situations.
Returns
How do I return the rental items to you?
You will receive detailed instructions with invoice. If you still have questions, please feel free to contact us.
Insurance
What is insurance?
Insurance purchased through lensrental.co.za gives you peace of mind and protects you from liability for unintentional damage to the rental item after paying a deductible. If no insurance is purchased, you will be responsible for the full cost to repair damage to the Equipment. If you do purchase insurance and an item is damaged, you only pay a deductible of 10% of the item's replacement value and the rest is paid by us.
How do I purchase insurance?
Most items we rent have an insurance purchase price next to the item. If you forget to add insurance to your order before collecting, please contact us and we can add it to your order if it has not yet been collected.
What is covered by the insurance?
Most unintentional damage to the item is covered under this optional insurance policy. Lost or stolen items are not covered, however your renter's, homeowner's or photographer's insurance policies might cover this situation - please check with your insurance broker.
Damage
Is the equipment in good working order when it arrives?
Prior to collecting your order, we verify functionality of each rental item. We will not send you a malfunctioning piece of gear! We perform visual inspection, and will take sample pictures of our cat to verify image quality. If we notice any functional defects, the equipment will be sent to the repair shop instead of you. We will do our best to notify you of any issues in a timely manner and provide you with the opportunity to modify your order in case we get inoperable equipment back from a previous shipment.
What if I damage the equipment and don't buy the insurance?
We understand that accidents happen. Please contact us immediately, then relax and take a deep breath. Return the rental to us as soon as possible and we will evaluate the damage. In case the damage really exists and it's not operator error, we will estimate the repair charges (based on our previous repairs), place a temporary authorization hold on your credit card for that amount and send the rental off to the original manufacturer for repairs. We will charge you exactly what the repair shop charges us, and can provide you with a copy of the receipt at your request. You will also be responsible for the lost revenue during the time the rental item is being repaired.
What if I damage the equipment and buy the insurance?
Again, please contact us immediately and return the equipment ASAP. We will check to make sure the equipment is damaged and if so, will charge you the deductible for each damaged item. We will e-mail you regarding the charges and the matter will be closed.
What do you consider damage?
Minor scratches to the lens barrel and hood are considered the results of ordinary wear and tear and will not result in damage assessments. Scratches to the glass, damage to the coupling or any other part that affects the lens' performance will be considered damage.
Buying and Selling Camera Gear
Do you ever buy used equipment?
Yes. We are always looking for new equipment to rent out, so please don't hesitate to contact us if you are selling some gently used camera equipment.
Do you ever sell your equipment?
We do occasionally sell off some of our camera gear. If something is for sale, it will be announced on the front page and will have a "buy" option next to it on the product page.
Rental Agreement
The Equipment Lease Agreement can be found here.