Maybe I'm going out on a limb here, but it seems to me as if H&K couldnt care less about its customers.  First off, I know of 3 gun shops in my area that wont even stock them because the customer service has gotten so bad.  (There are also rumors that the factory rep that covered my territory quit because of his dissatisfaction of H&K's customer service/shop dealings.) From warranty work to ordering parts-H&K seems to have fallen on their face lately.  Secondly, the website has been down for the better part of a month now, and were nearly impossible to reach when I had a problem earlier this month with my USPC .45.  It just seems to me that if they want to cater only to LE/Military contracts, they should just leave the civi market altogether.  With all of the other manufacturers out there closing the gap with H&K in terms or quality/reliability, the need to stay a loyal customer lessens each and every day in my eyes.  For me, the most important thing about owning a weapon is reliability, and in worse case scenarios the customer service to fix problems.  Right now HK is running at 50% (I am reasonably happy with reliability to date)- not enough to keep up with the ever increasing quality of options available right now.

Does any one else see H&K this way lately, or am I just plain crazy?  I would love to hear feedback from fellow owners who can put their bias aside and discuss issues without influence of blind brand loyalty.  Sometimes I need to be straightened out, so I welcome comments.

thanks in advance,
Scott

What do you mean by lately?

My experience with HK Customer service has always been like this.

Man, I've always heard this BS, and it has *never* been my experience.

I just recently purchased a new SS 45 USP. Sent it back cus the slide wasn't locking back consistantly. Was told 4-6 week lead time. It was on my porch in 8 days. Turns out the mags I was using sucked.

Called again, said my other mags suck too. They replaced all 8, free.

Have sent back one Tactical for a bent mainspring. Had it home in 3 weeks, along w/new hammer, recoil, & main spring - all free of charge.

Sent back a P7M13 for a broken drop safety catch spring. They replaced every spring in the pistol, free. Had it in my hands in 4 weeks.

Sometimes it takes a while to get through to customer service, but just keep calling. Note the TIME you call. Catch them early in the morning or after lunch.

Good luck.

Doc

BS?? Absolutely not!  I'm asking for feedback, not for your interpretation of what I personally dealt with.  No response to email, convenient disconnects when helping me to diagnose problems, etc.  I'm simply relaying MY experiences, simple as that.  If you have differing experience-fine, like I said, maybe I'm reading too far into this.   Maybe I expect too much...

On two occasions that I have needed to use HK service both times went without incident and the problems were fixed. Also both times the weapons were returned in less time than quoted.
I'm very happy with my USPs and with HK.
However, most if not all dealers I have come across don't think to highly of HK.  HK could really learn from glock on the marketing side. Freakin glock will give anyone that stocks their pistols TONS of signage, catalogs and merchandise that many times the dealers just give away.
I don't know, maybe HK doesn't really want the civie business.

I love my USP as well, but customer service was beyond crap the two times I needed them. I have rarely heard of anyone who actually got decent service from them. I am very surprised by the positive comments thus far.

I would write a letter to HK if you feel you have been wronged/mistreated.  

I called their 800# & was helped politely & quickly. My USP .357Sig shot way low & they replaced the front sight & sent back a test target. I think it was 2 weeks or so for total turnaround?

I would pass on using e-mail, I prefer talking to a live person, IMO.

I would bet H&K markets the least of any mfgrs out there, IMO. They're kinda like Mercedes: their name alone sells.

What problems have you been having with your uspc swiseuf?  i bought my uspc .45 last januaray and have been having feeding problems with it ever since the first time i used it.  i called hk today to arrange to send it in to have it looked at and they give me a repair order number.  have you had to send your's into their factory for repair?  if so what can i expect as far as service when i do?  are they good on warranty coverage and getting it done in a reasonable amount of time?  i would appreciate feedback from anyone who has had to send their guns for repairs.

Quoted: I would bet H&K markets the least of any mfgrs out there, IMO. They're kinda like Mercedes: their name alone sells.

I remember seeing print ads regularly in ShotgunNews, Gun list and American Rifleman...  The only other means of marketing guns I know of are ads on the Outdoor channel.  They don't market as agressively as say S&W, Springfield or Taurus.  I seldom notice Glock ads.

I was shooting my USPc at a very nice local indoor range and the range safety officer had never even heard of H&K.  

I've am very pleased with my H&K's (USPc 45 and 91A3) and have never had a problem or reason to call H&K.  I'm fighting a growing urge to buy a 2000 sub-compact.........

Quoted: Quoted: I would bet H&K markets the least of any mfgrs out there, IMO. They're kinda like Mercedes: their name alone sells. I remember seeing print ads regularly in ShotgunNews, Gun list and American Rifleman...  The only other means of marketing guns I know of are ads on the Outdoor channel.  They don't market as agressively as say S&W, Springfield or Taurus.  I seldom notice Glock ads.

I do see some print ads in gun rags.  The most recent was for the new colored frames.
Where I don't see any marketing is where its needed most, at the gun shops.
Most every gun shop I go into has marketing stuff from many gun makers all over, especially glock and Kimber.
Most gun makers try and kiss some ass and set dealers up with stock and support to sell their products. Most dealers dislike HK because they don't do that.
Sooner or later they are going to have to start doing some aggressive marketing because name recognition has taken them just about as far as it can go.
Imagine if HK marketed like glock.

When i sent in my g36 dual optic for repair (i'm just a civilan and they knew it) they went out of their way for me.  I forgot to put the ra# on my package when i relized my mistake i called them and the secretary personaly walked down to the mail room and requested that they accept my package by name, then the turn around was quick AND they upgraded my unit insted of just fixing it ALSO they replaced a part that i confessed i lost all for free except for shipping.

I have found that most gun manufacturs will go out of their way to fix their stuff.

You've got to understand though is that HK is etremely busy and they have lots of orders and repairs to fill.  They are just to overwelhmed with too little of help.  At least thats what was explained to me.  

I was shooting my USPc at a very nice local indoor range and the range safety officer had never even heard of H&K.

WTF

Never had a problem with them, they have been very nice and helpfull everytime I have called.

I have worked in a gun shop for the last 3 years and it has been helping me get through college. We are in Michigan and the biggest HK dealers. We also rent every model and only clean our rental guns once a month. The only gun we've rented or sold that never had any problems was HK. Glock was a close second (one in a while the trigger return spring broke). I can't imagine all these HK's getting sent back for repair. What going on?

Anyway all I can say is that HK's are expensive. Our dealer cost for gun like the USP are around $650 and we sell for $700 to $750 depending on model. I do know you have to put in a minimum order to have alot of HK's in stock. I think out order per year totals around $40,000. I could imagine some dealers would be pissed if they couldn't meet the minimum order price and then turn around and bad-mouth HK while pushing other products on customers.

And to the post above about  some range master that never heard of HK, wtf? He's been in the gun world say at least 25 years and never heard of an MP5, or a P7M8, or a HK91 94 93 G3? These guns are used throughout the world as much as the AK47.

Quoted: I have worked in a gun shop for the last 3 years and it has been helping me get through college. We are in Michigan and the biggest HK dealers. We also rent every model and only clean our rental guns once a month. The only gun we've rented or sold that never had any problems was HK. Glock was a close second (one in a while the trigger return spring broke). I can't imagine all these HK's getting sent back for repair. What going on? Anyway all I can say is that HK's are expensive. Our dealer cost for gun like the USP are around $650 and we sell for $700 to $750 depending on model. I do know you have to put in a minimum order to have alot of HK's in stock. I think out order per year totals around $40,000. I could imagine some dealers would be pissed if they couldn't meet the minimum order price and then turn around and bad-mouth HK while pushing other products on customers. And to the post above about  some range master that never heard of HK, wtf? He's been in the gun world say at least 25 years and never heard of an MP5, or a P7M8, or a HK91 94 93 G3? These guns are used throughout the world as much as the AK47.

Well, I bought my HK USP 9 for the quality of the firearm.  So far, it's been wonderful.  Hopefully, I never have to use their customer service.

I recently needed to purchase some USP Tac bbl. O-ring seals, & the HK referred me to a ph. # for their parts supply. When I called that #, I got a teenaged-sounding secretary at the other end who told me that the staff who takes care of that stuff wasn't in, & she didn't understand anything so she couldn't process my order. She then took my number & said I'd get a return call on the following day. I never got that call, so I called back, only to repeat the same thing. Still no return call again, so in frustration I get on here & get an alternate source for O-rings, & place my order. As usual, I should have just started here to begin with.

I really like HK-enginered products. My USP & 94 run flawlessly. However, their customer service is lacking, IMO. I wish could say that I've had the same experiences that DoctorNo & SPECTRE have had, but that hasn't been the case. If it weren't for alternative suppliers, I doubt I'd have any of my ordered parts coming to me.