Flooded!

[Diver Lori]

Argh! My buddy and I just got back from a week of cave diving in Mexico. Great time, but the bad news is he flooded his camera.

We both have NikV setups with 15mm lens. But when we cave dive we only bring one setup since only one half of the buddy team takes pix on a dive, the other watches the lines, cave arrows, etc.

We were in Temple of Doom getting ready to be the caboose to our group of 6, when he flashes me frantically. I look down to see him holding up his camera, MINUS the lens! I swim up to the last person in our group to wave bye-bye to let them know we aren't doing the dive and swim back to begin the search for the lens.

I found the lens quickly...thankfully since DAN doesn't cover "lost at sea" equipment. We handed up the lens and camera to the driver and headed in for an abbreviated cave dive just the two of us. We met up with our group by chance and completed the dive with them.

Well...upon return to the villa, we borrowed a laptop and hopped on Southern Nikonos site and found out that both lens and camera are basically toast. Repair would far outweigh cost. Oh well....now we're in wait mode to see what DAN says.....

Have you had good luck with DAN insurance?

 

[cdiver2]

Argh! My buddy and I just got back from a week of cave diving in Mexico. Great time, but the bad news is he flooded his camera.

We both have NikV setups with 15mm lens. But when we cave dive we only bring one setup since only one half of the buddy team takes pix on a dive, the other watches the lines, cave arrows, etc.

We were in Temple of Doom getting ready to be the caboose to our group of 6, when he flashes me frantically. I look down to see him holding up his camera, MINUS the lens! I swim up to the last person in our group to wave bye-bye to let them know we aren't doing the dive and swim back to begin the search for the lens.

I found the lens quickly...thankfully since DAN doesn't cover "lost at sea" equipment. We handed up the lens and camera to the driver and headed in for an abbreviated cave dive just the two of us. We met up with our group by chance and completed the dive with them.

Well...upon return to the villa, we borrowed a laptop and hopped on Southern Nikonos site and found out that both lens and camera are basically toast. Repair would far outweigh cost. Oh well....now we're in wait mode to see what DAN says.....

Have you had good luck with DAN insurance?

Had the same thing happen with my Nik V but did not find the lens. Southern photo said it could be repaired at about $400. Dan would only pay $200 (deductible). I got a like new camera and lens on the internet for $300

 

[mwrager]

I dont use DAN, I use State FArm because they cover everything, even lots at sea and they have a $0 deductible.

 

[cdiver2]

Anyone on the board had experience of claiming lost dive gear from State Farm?

 

[mwrager]

I have, they gave me a check for what i insured the item for. Now they dont cover everything, like dive weights and clips. But my fins got damaged and they were covered at $199 and with in 2 weeks i had a check for $199. I think I pay around $75 per year for around $5000 coverage. They cover all my camera equipment and dive equipment.

 

[DesertEagle]

Sorry to hear about that! I can't imagine how a lens would just fall off. The 15 is heavy, but I've never heard of someone losing one. While the camera may be toast, I think the lens is worth saving. If Southern Nikonos doesn't, give Underwater PhotoTech a call. They've performed miracles for me.

FYI I just bought a 15 and viewfinder on eBay for $675. No scratches on the lens. You can probably buy a 20mm for under $300 if you look around.

 

[Diver Lori]

I've got State Farm Renter's Insurance. Picked it up primarily for my scuba gear and camera equipment. I've not made a claim yet, but good to know they cover well. I opted for State Farm over Dan since I've only got a renter's policy. My buddy has homeowner's and I don't think he wants to make small claims against it, hence his purchase of the DAN insurance.

I have had claims against my State Farm vehicle comprehensive and have been pleased with the quick response.

 

[Diver Lori]

Sorry to hear about that! I can't imagine how a lens would just fall off. The 15 is heavy, but I've never heard of someone losing one. While the camera may be toast, I think the lens is worth saving. If Southern Nikonos doesn't, give Underwater PhotoTech a call. They've performed miracles for me.

FYI I just bought a 15 and viewfinder on eBay for $675. No scratches on the lens. You can probably buy a 20mm for under $300 if you look around.

He purchased his set second hand from a fellow diver at the shop we frequent. Oddly, his 15 doesn't fit very snugly into the NikV for some strange reason. Mine does, his doesn't. It will actually pivot when you are changing aperture/distance if you aren't careful. He was afraid something like this would eventually happen. He thinks he must have bumped it against his leg and caused it to pivot off.

I'm just glad it wasn't my turn with it!! :icon10: