How to fix my lenses on my digital camera?

How do I fix my camera? Who can fix it for me? And how much should I expect to pay?

• In February of 2008 I dropped my Nikon D40 on a gravel walkway. Fortunately, the only thing that broke were the treads that hold my 18-55 lens to the camera body. The camera works perfectly well, but sometimes it doesn't recognize the lens. I emailed Nikon, thinking that I had thoroughly explained my predicament, and asking for and estimate, and they told me to send in the camera body. Which isn't broken. Anyways, I need to know if there are any camera stores that fix or refurbish lenses, or if there is anyway I can order the part that broke. I assume it can be easily replaced, given that there are screws holding it to the body. Mainly, I dont want to buy a new lens for two peices of tiny plastic. This is a photo of the damage, with the arrows indicating where the 2 out of 3 treads broke. http://s101.photobucket.com/albums/m72/G1KampGirls/?action=view&current=100_7936arrows.jpg Thank you for your time and concern.

• Answer:

  From your photo we can't tell exactly which parts are broken but they do appear to be part of the lens mount. Lens mounts may or may not be available from the manufacturer. Since there's an amount of wiring in the mount and lens I'd suggest you talk to a pro. Let me see, how does one drop a camera? No neck strap?