XBox 360 Warranty

Blankenthoughts has a great post on the changes in Microsoft’s XBox 360 warranty policy.  It is definitely worth the read.  I have included a snippet below.

“If you bought your 360 prior to January 1, 2006, you are one of the lucky few that got yourself a 1-year warranty on your machine. For those that purchased after that date, I believe the standard warranty is 90 days…”

Accounting Systems, Inc. Acquires Service and Warranty Management for Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200

Accounting Systems, Inc. (ASI), a leading provider of business software and network solutions located in Columbia, South Carolina, announced today that they have acquired Service and Warranty Management, a custom-developed add-on product designed exclusively for Sage MAS 90 and Sage MAS 200.

Service and Warranty Management is a comprehensive solution designed for the Service Depot Industry and is completely integrated with Sage MAS 90 and MAS 200. ASI purchased this product to enhance the breadth of its service offering to existing clients and direct focus to an industry that is underserved. Brian Kelly, President of ASI, states, “Our goal is to develop, nurture and support Service and Warranty Management to become the leading product for small- and medium-sized businesses in the Service Depot Industry.”

In conjunction with its acquisition of Service and Warranty Management, ASI also announced today that they’ve completed the required training and testing to become authorized as a Sage Software Master Developer for Sage MAS 90 and Sage MAS 200. The Sage Master Developer program is administered by Sage Software and enables Sage-authorized business partners to write custom program modifications, add-on modules and even stand alone products that are fully integrated with Sage MAS 90 and Sage MAS 200.

As a Master Developer, ASI has access to development tools that will enable them to continue enhancing and supporting Service and Warranty Management as well as a host of other far-reaching benefits. Brian Kelly adds, “Becoming a Sage Master Developer is long overdue for ASI. As a Master Developer, we can deliver solutions to our clients that will enable them to replace or consolidate disparate business systems into a single, fully integrated solution. It also gives us a competitive advantage over other software resellers that are limited to providing “out-of-the-box” solutions.

About ASI

ASI provides high quality products, services, and consulting to businesses that choose to focus on doing what it takes to drive their bottom line rather than focus on the systems they use to get there. As an authorized business partner of Sage Software, we implement market-leading business applications including Sage MAS 90, Sage MAS 200, Sage BusinessWorks Accounting, and Peachtree by Sage.

Jewlery Warranties, Service and Insurance

From Dave West…

“Many jewelry retailers will have some sort of warranty policy should your jewelry suffer from manufactures defects. The time limit on these warranties varies from store to store, so it is important not only to ask how long the warranty period is but also what are its limitations. Some stores will offer “lifetime” warranties as a tactic to help close the sale. Many customers find these types of warranties comforting.

Lifetime warranties are fine as long as it is understood that for the warranty to remain in effect the jewelry must be cleaned and checked, by the store that sold it, usually every 6 months (which is a good idea anyway)…”

History of Warranties

Ann Walker has a great write-up on the history of warranties over at the Auto Warranty blog.

” When you are studying used car warranties and extended warranties, have you ever wondered where warranties came from anyway? OK, so you just care about cost and reliable providers, but it gives you pause when you consider there was a time when warranties didn’t exist at all…”

Save Yourself a Lot of Headaches with an Extended Vehicle Warranty

From the Sleepy Eye Herald Dispatch…

“No matter what goes wrong, you’ll likely be in for some costly repairs that will run you more than your monthly mortgage. But there is a way to protect yourself. Before your bumper-to-bumper warranty from the manufacturer runs out, shop around for an extended warranty.

Not one from the dealer, which would charge you a small fortune, but from an outside company that will be able to offer you a more competitive price. Not sure where to begin your search? Log on to www.LowLender.com and fill out a quick form, then wait for the offers to come to you…”

House Agrees to Home Buyer Rights Bill

From the Rocky Mountain News…

 ”The measure, House Bill 1338, would prevent home buyers from being forced to sign builder warranties that strip away their legal rights to have home defects fixed.

Calling the bill “the trial lawyers’ dream,” Rep. Bob Gardner, R-Colorado Springs, predicted that the legislation will be struck down as unconstitutional for allowing consumers to retroactively escape contract clauses on home purchases stretching back years.

But sponsor Rep. Jack Pommer, D-Boulder, said the bill simply requires home builders to abide by the industry-backed Construction Defect Action Reform Act of 2003, which shielded home builders by requiring buyers to negotiate repairs first before taking legal action and capping damage awards…”

Warranty News of the Day – 3/28/2007

HP Voids Warranty if You Load Linux

“A woman bought a Compaq laptop and loaded Ubuntu on it. Some time later, still well inside the 1-year hardware warranty, the keyboard started acting up. An HP support rep told her, “Sorry, we do not honor our hardware warranty when you run Linux…”

Why do I Want a Vehicle Warranty

“Of course your car is now out of warranty and you’ll have to pick up 100 percent of the bill. It’s times like this that you wish you had signed up for the extended warranty they offered when you bought your car or truck… “

Upgrading iPod Voids Warranty but May Be Worth It

“…this voids your iPod’s warranty, and that the original hardrive only costs around $100, I recommend that you either upgrade it yourself, if you don’t mind taking the risk, or realize that you don’t really have a need to carry your entire music collection around with you at all times… “

How to Buy an Auto Extended Warranty

“People ask me why the warranty companies refuse to offer them a warranty on their high performance car. You won’t find any warranty company foolish enough to offer coverage on vehicles like Land Rover (poor quality, frequent and expensive repairs), Jaguar (expensive repairs), Mercedes ALG ($20,000 engine), and most turbo engines like Porsche, etc….”

 

 

Gateway Warranty

Just like with cars, sometimes a computer will turn out to be a lemon. While computer manufacturers rarely handle that situation very well, the experience one reader is having right now with a bad Gateway eMachines desktop is deserving of special attention. Not only is Gateway failing to fix it, they can’t even seem to find it long enough to send it back to her.

“I have an eMachines T6524, which I purchased in August 2006,” the reader wrote. “It broke for the second time on Dec 21, 2006 and I called in the service request on Dec. 22nd — Service Request EM120622N0124. Gateway has now lost the system, or is refusing/unable to send it back to me. Their story keeps changing depending on who I talk to.”

The reader’s system had already been in for repair once before, so she was familiar with the routine when it once again refused to boot. She sent the machine to Gateway/eMachines support in the box they provided, and they later confirmed they received it on January 4th. After several weeks went by, she began calling, e-mailing, and talking online with Gateway to find out what had happened to it. Each tech would promise she would have it back in 7 to 10 days, but none would say what was wrong or what was being done with it.

“Fortunately I have the internal service number, as that seems to be the only way to track it,” the reader wrote. “Apparently they checked the system in under the wrong serial number. We finally got that figured out and they upgraded it to priority one. Three times I called back. I finally got upgraded to the Corporate Relations department at Gateway when the service rep admitted that something was seriously wrong and he couldn’t find the computer in the system. At the corporate office, I spoke to ‘Matt’ who told me that the last service rep was wrong and the computer had been checked into the service warehouse. He knew exactly where it was. However, it would not be fixed because it was out of warranty.”

Since the machine was purchased in August and has since spent almost as much time with Gateway as with her, the reader explained that the system certainly was still under warranty. “Matt asked me to fax the sales receipt to him to prove when I purchased it. I did that. Then, when I called Matt back, he said the computer was only going to be covered under a 90-day warranty and it was still going to be out of warranty. When I asked why the one-year warranty wasn’t being honored, he said because it was purchased from an unauthorized vendor.”

The reader contacted her reseller, Tech for Less, which confirmed they were an authorized Gateway service center and that the system did come with the manufacturer’s warranty. “A Tech for Less rep attempted to resolve the issue with Gateway,” the reader wrote. “Tech for Less has agreed to service the computer and honor the warranty, as one of Gateway’s authorized service centers, if I can get it back from Gateway. The Gateway rep refused to send the unit to Tech for Less to be serviced.”

The only consistent response to the reader’s continuing calls to eMachines and Gateway is the statement that “I see some opportunity here to enhance your computer experience.” In other words, they want to convert the support call into a sales opportunity, when the only real way to enhance her computer experience would be to fix her computer and send it back.

All the reader’s attempts to communicate with Gateway now just end in promises to look into the situation and to call back. “They don’t call back — it is this endless cycle. At this point, they have had the computer for over two months and the customer service reps and corporate relations managers are unable to solve the problem. My letter to the Vice President of Customer Service has gone unanswered. Calling the corporate offices send me into this indefinite cycle of holding and being transferred to someone else. The whole thing is borderline criminal.”

Well, this is one more way for the reader to try to communicate with Gateway, and let’s hope that someone there decides to take that service number and do something. Even just finding the system and sending it back so she can get it to her reseller would be a big help. When you’re stuck with a lemon, it’s just not fair if the people who are supposed to be fixing it can’t even find it.

Mack Warranty Horror Story

Anyhow, I bought a Mamiya 645 Super from B&H in Feb. of this year. I started having problems just a short while later. I contacted them and they told me to contact MACK CAMERA because they held the warranty.

I contacted MACK CAMERA and followed their instructions and sent the camera in. About a week later I called them to check on the progress. THEY LOST THE CAMERA!

A couple of days later I called back and they said they had found it and would be able to give me a prognosis by the end of the week. Two days later I called back and they said it had been repaired and shipped back to me. This took a total of about a month. I receive the camera back. It took less than two minutes to see that the camera had not been TOUCHED MUCH LESS REPAIRED!

I called them back again this time talking to the reported manager of the repair department. He said send it back and he would personally look at it again and take care of it. Trying to make a long story short another month passes. I get the camera back. This time they touched it. They put stickers on it and shipped it back to me. UNREPAIRED AGAIN.

I could understand if it were a complex problem that was hard to diagnosis but the problems were obvious. The shutter would remain open from anywhere from the designated shutter speed to several minutes. I think any idiot should be able to determine that if the shutter speed is set at 1/60th second and it remains open for several minutes then the camera has not been repaired.

So again I called back and was told to send it back in. I told them on the phone and in writing that I wanted it sent to Mamiya for repairs that I did not feel confident that they would correct it properly.

I wrote a very detailed letter to them and to the BBB. This time the did send it to Mamiya for repairs. I called Mamiya about the camera. They informed me that it needed a complete overhaul. Mamiya had the camera repaired and returned to me in about a week and a half.

DOES IT SEEM STRANGE TO ANYONE ELSE THAT MACK CAMERA CLAIMS TO HAVE REPAIRED THE CAMERA TWICE BUT WHEN IT IS SHIPPED TO A REPUTABLE SERVICE DEPARTMENT IT NEEDS A COMPLETE OVERHAUL!!

HWA Launches First National, Licensed Home Inspection Warranty Program

From RISMedia… 

Protecting their companies and their clients has just become easier for home inspectors thanks to Home Warranty of America, Inc.

Home Warranty of America, Inc. (HWATM) announced the release of two fully licensed home inspection warranty products that are comprehensive in coverage and available for immediate activation after the pre-sell or pre-purchase inspection.

“While our new products offer extensive coverage and competitive pricing for the home inspector, buyer and seller, more importantly they are licensed products. This means HWATM has set aside reserve money to pay future claims in these states. Home Inspectors should be careful never to purchase home warranties from a company without applicable licensing. It can open them up to additional liability” said David Sobel, V.P. of Sales, Home Warranty of America, Inc.

Coupled with other insurance, HWA’s licensed home inspection warranties can add an additional layer of protection to the home inspector’s company and minimize their risk and any post inspection issues.

These versatile, innovative new products for home inspectors allow them increased marketability for their business, flexible purchasing through HWA’s block discounts, and an auto-generated Client Follow-up Program that is free to members. This high-tech customer relationship management program can be a source of additional referrals for the inspection company.