Contact 6 helps little girl get brand new digital camera



MILWAUKEE -- A special birthday gift for a young girl broke down, and so did communication with the company responsible for fixing it. That's when Contact 6's Katrina Cravy was asked to help make the girl smile again.

Eight-year-old Byrna Mitchell loves taking pictures, and she's pretty good at it too! Byrna's dad, Jeff Mitchell, got her a $120 Vivitar digital camera for her birthday. "She kept using ours for everything, so I thought, 'alright, she's old enough.' We gave it to her and she was about as excited as any little girl could be," Jeff Mitchell said.

As electronics are known to do, the camera stopped working, so they sent it back to Vivitar since it was still under warranty, but for months, they heard nothing. "It was either in shipping, or it was being repaired. It was actually kinda funny because the story keep changing. Every single time you called, you got somebody different. That's pretty much when we contacted FOX6," Jeff Mitchell said.

Jeff's complaint to Contact 6 calls Vivitar's customer service "infuriating." When Contact 6 looked up Vivitar on the Better Business Bureau's website, there was an alert saying the company is no longer in business, recommending anyone with a dispute to talk with an attorney!

After a little more digging, Contact 6 learned the Vivitar brand was purchased by consumer electronics manufacturer Sakar International. That company has an "F" rating with the Better Business Bureau - having more than 300 complaints in just three years! The vast majority of those complaints are problems with the product or service.

Sakar International didn't delay when they received Contact 6's complaint. "After we got in touch with (Contact 6), about three weeks later, we got a package in the mail, and it was the camera. Nothing from Vivitar saying sorry. Nothing like that. Just the package," Jeff Mitchell said.

It was a brand new digital camera, and an upgrade from the one the Mitchells sent in. They also delivered an apology to Contact 6. "We're definitely sorry that there were any delays in their issues, in getting Mr. Mitchell a warranty replacement on his camera," Sakar said in a statement.

If little Byrna's smile is any indication of how she likes her new camera - apology accepted!

CLICK HERE to file a complaint with FOX6's Contact 6.