Whirlpool

I had bought an ASUS video card [ASUS V9280S Super Fast Ti4200 8X AGP 128 Mb DDR Video RAM] from MSY about just less than three years ago [March, 2003].

Now the video card is non-operational [tested on another PC as well] and still within the 3-year warranty period.

The problem is I cannot go over to the MSY Malvern store [where I purchased the video card from] and claim my warranty - as they only provide 12 months warranty on all parts and systems.

So, I have e-mailed ASUS tech support and have yet to receive a reply.
Meanwhile, I have just checked their support website:
support.asus.com/repair/...&SLanguage=en-us

to find that I have to contact my reseller.

Why do I get the feeling that this 3-year warranty claim is turning out to be a scam? :-O

Has anyone else been in a similar situation? Any helpful suggestions and advice would be highly appreciated.

Cheers.

Depends on where you buy from....

The only store I know that honours manufacturers extended waranty is Computer Alliance in Brisbane, but obviously only products purchased from them. www.computeralliance.com.au

The only thing I can sugest is to keep hammering away emails to asus, as a last resort you could try a complaint to the ACCC.

CylonSpy writes...

Why do I get the feeling that this 3-year warranty claim is turning out to be a scam? :-O

The only 'scam' is that MSY(and others who do this) are acting illegally. They have to honour the full warranty, by law. (see the 'Can traders limit their liability?' section in the link below).

These "only 12 months, then it's not our problem" terms are total BS. The only exception to this rule in the PC industry, is buying a complete assembled computer (e.g. Dell, compaq, locally built white box, etc): The warranty is then on the computer as a whole (as set by the place that assembles the parts), not on the individual parts, regardless of what warranty the parts may be sold to the assembler, with.

The sooner someone takes one of these traders to consumer affairs(victoria)/fair trading(other states) over this issue, the better, because it will take an actual case to be investigated before an offending seller can be forced to rectify their ways.

Relevant laws in Victoria are covered (in brief) here:

www.consumer.vic.gov.au/...+Guarantees~&3=~

Also, at the ACCC, they say the following in regards to warranty "Sellers are legally obliged to stand by their voluntary warranties once put in place. The general rule is that if promises are made they must be kept." quoted from www.accc.gov.au/content/...nds_June2004.pdf

This means that if a manufacturer advertises X years warranty (e.g. on their website, print advertising, instore promotion, in the manual, on the product box, etc), a retailer has no legal right to reduce that term. Once a promise is made, it must be adhered to. Period.

I happen to know his law quite well, since a former employer of mine (now defunct) suffered a rather hefty fine (a 5 digit figure) for breaking this exact law some years ago.

afaik, its one year RTB. after that, you need to send it back directly to the manufacturer to get it repaired

Most stores will only REPLACE the item within the first year. Otherwise they send it back to the distributor and you must wait for a replacement to come in form them. Is MSY different to this? If so I would not consider buying from them as there is a lot os hassle involved in getting a warranty honoured by the company.

ShAdOw SnIpA  writes...

afaik, its one year RTB. after that, you need to send it back directly to the manufacturer to get it repaired

This may be the policy of the store(s) you deal with, but it's illegal.

The legal obligation to service ALL warranty claims for the ENTIRE warranty period lies with only one party - the store that sold it to you. Period.

Desertstalker writes...

Most stores will only REPLACE the item within the first year.

nope. not at all. most will replace within seven-fourteen days of purchase (DOA Period), after that, it's return to manufacturer for repair.

Sometimes you can get a direct replacement IF it has an obvious fault that's definately not caused by you, AND they have the same model item still in stock, but this is much less likely than them wanting to send it to the manufacturer first.

Consider the retailer's position: If they replace an item and it turns out it was damaged due to user fault (or, even, not faulty), the manufacturer won't replace it. Thus, the retailer loses money because they're stuck with a busted or second hand, part. Since the idea of bieng a retailer is to make money, they are unlikely to do anything that might result in their financial loss.

Also, in this industry, there is a VERY high percentage of warranty claims that are false. People try and return all sorts of things they're stuffed themselves [I know, having managed the RA department of a large retailer for 3 years, about 65% of returns are found to be invalid], and the retailer has every right to protect themselves from this type of FRAUD.

Too many people here seem to think that a retailer should immediately swap over anything brought to them, no matter what the problem or it's true cause or how long since it was purchased. Such an attitude is totally arrogant, not to mention plain wrong, since there is always two sides to the story, and the customer is not always right.

I've had this issue with a swap meet vendor in the past - who also had a store they traded from. They offered a 3 month warranty. Basically, what it meant was that if it had to go back for warranty outside the retailer's warranty offer, that meant they would still handle it, but they'd slug the customer any charges they incurred - ie, the cost of sending it to and from the distributor. They'd whine how they can't offer warranty and be competitive. I just ended up taking my business elsewhere - after buying parts for about 3 systems off this vendor.
Whether the shortened warranty is legal (as questioned by others here) I don't know, but this is what I've had to deal with. They can't refuse to help you at all with the warranty claim, but the least they can do is either send it away for you or give you a contact at the distributor to make a claim.

msy claims that they wont, contact warranty for you after 1 year......
you have to contact the manufacturer yourself.....

its not like, you will not get your warranty

the asus site has been flaky for a long time, try emailing the US site for urgent assistance...... tell them you cannot submit the email to your location.......

or you could just ask msy for the phone number to contact the supplier

find the australian distributor. Its won't be MSY.

The buck stops with the distributor if there is no local ASUS warranty office. Ask MSY where they get their ASUS cards from and contact them.

waxling writes...

find the australian distributor

Most likely its Synnex.

Merlin writes...

The legal obligation to service ALL warranty claims for the ENTIRE warranty period lies with only one party - the store that sold it to you. Period.

incorrect
the warranty is issued by the manufacturer and under australian law is required to be a minimum of 1 year (which is almost always RTB)
if the manufacturer offers an extended warranty the subsequent years are (almost always) RTM
unless the retailer has reached a prior arrangement with the supplier/manufacturer
a retailer has a legal obligation to provide a refund/exchange under certain conditions
however they do not have to pay for freight/handling fees for a product under warranty

Merlin writes...

This means that if a manufacturer advertises X years warranty (e.g. on their website, print advertising, instore promotion, in the manual, on the product box, etc), a retailer has no legal right to reduce that term. Once a promise is made, it must be adhered to. Period.


So, are you recommending that I lodge a complaint with ACCC? I don't think MSY can be persuaded to deal with warranties after their initial 12-month period, even if I was willing to pay for the cost of delivery to the manufacturer/distributor. Anyway, I will have another chat with their store manager - but it's hopeless - even their English is pretty bad.

Anyway, I will try contacting ASUS again. This sux!
I am not going to wait. Looks like I will be shopping for a new video card this week. :O

Come to think of it ... The original reason I bought an ASUS video card is because of their 3 year warranties. I could have saved some $$ and purchased a different brand with similar performance level.

Moredhel writes...

incorrect

No, you are wrong. Read the links I posted earlier.

under australian law is required to be a minimum of 1 year (which is almost always RTB)

Care to post a link to back yourself up? The fact is, no such law exists.

if the manufacturer offers an extended warranty the subsequent years are (almost always) RTM
unless the retailer has reached a prior arrangement with the supplier/manufacturer

No, not at all. This is a state low, and all states require that the retailer solve the problem. Retailers are NOT legally allowed to say "it's not my problem, so see the manufacturer".

Again, care to support your case with some proof?

a retailer has a legal obligation to provide a refund/exchange under certain conditions

Yes, absolutely. you can read about these righhts via my link to the ACCC document, above. They're called statutory warrantles, and don't come with a time limit.

however they do not have to pay for freight/handling fees for a product under warranty

Actually, they do. Once again, the above links cover everything.

Comment

I am amazed that some people here seem to think that having a retailer mess you about with an "It's not our problem any more" attitude is perfectly acceptable.

Imagine if you bought a Mercedies car, and after 1 year you got told you needed to return the car to Germany ("the manufacturer") for a warranty fault to be corrected? Imagine a car dealer who said "We only give a 1 year warranty, even though the factory advertisies 3 years". Nobody would stand for that, yet you all seem to think it's perfectly OK for a computer part, simply because it's a bit easier to ship a computer part vs a car.

Folks, the law is the law, it doesn't differentiate for any secific type of goods - the laws may seem fairly vague and general, but thats because they have to apply equally to ANYTHING you buy, regardless of it's percieved value. A $0.20 plastic childs toy receives the exact same protections under the law, as a $20,000 purchase. The sum of money paid or the intended purpose of the goods are IRRELEVANT.

It's about time these illegal warranty practices were stamped out once and for all. The problem is, it will take a genuine complaint from a consumer to do so, because the authorities need actual tangeable evidence to act on.

The law is clear: if you are promised X warranty by the manufacturer, the retailer is NOT allowed to limit that to a lower value, and the retailer MUST honour the whole warranty for the whole time, themselves. End of story.

waxling writes...

The buck stops with the distributor if there is no local ASUS warranty office. Ask MSY where they get their ASUS cards from and contact them.  

Are you even sure that their distributor will deal with my warranty claim - even if I showed them my invoice???

The problem is distributors don't deal with end users - only resellers. :( So, they will probably just tell me to contact my retailer and then hang up. :\

CylonSpy writes...

So, are you recommending that I lodge a complaint with ACCC?

Absolutely. but you'd nee dto go to your state consumer affiars/fair trading department, not the ACCC, I'd say.

I don't think MSY can be persuaded to deal with warranties after their initial 12-month period,

Why not? Why, exactly did you come to believe that? Just because MSY say so, doesn't mean it's legal. Hell, i could put up a sign in my shop that said I reserve the right to rape your children, but it wouldn't be legal. The fact that my sign is blatently obviously illegal and MSY's isn't, is irrelevant.

This is why the ACCC and you state department of fair trading/consumer affairs exists - to enforce the law on your behalf, when it is broken.

Anyway, I will try contacting ASUS again.

They are very good. You should be able to get it fixed directly by them, even though they aren't legally required to do so. If you have a problem, whim me and I'll supply you with the direct contact details of the head of ASUS in Australia.

The original reason I bought an ASUS video card is because of their 3 year warranties.

EXACTLY!!!!!!!!!!!!! So, why accept MSY's apparent attempt to ignore that and impose their own warranty instead?

The law is clear: MSY sold it, MSY have to honour the warranty the manufacturer promised you. MSY don't get to arbitrarily alter ASUS's warranty as they see fit. It's not theirs to change.

Every single store I've bought PC components from (at least 10 different ones) only accept the warranty for up to 12 months. After that they tell you to deal with the manufacturer. This isn't just MSY. Now if this is illegal, then well, there's a lot of shops out there breaking the law.

Merlin writes...

EXACTLY!!!!!!!!!!!!! So, why accept MSY's apparent attempt to ignore that and impose their own warranty instead?

Because it's ASUS' warrenty not MSY's. Cheap retaillers do this because it protects their profits, hence why MSY are cheap.

Hell, i could put up a sign in my shop that said I reserve the right to rape your children, but it wouldn't be legal

That reminds me of ircimages.com's disclaimer...

The law is clear: MSY sold it, MSY have to honour the warranty the manufacturer promised you. MSY don't get to arbitrarily alter ASUS's warranty as they see fit. It's not theirs to change.

Agreed, and it's also ASUS's warrenty to honour.

It appauls me how everyone wants rock bottom prices and every bit of service. Buy from HN and they handle all this crap for you, as it's built into their prices.

Hellman109 writes...

Cheap retaillers do this because it protects their profits, hence why MSY are cheap.

Even expensive computer shops do this...

Merlin writes...

Absolutely. but you'd nee to go to your state consumer affairs/fair trading department, not the ACCC, I'd say.

Okay. Before I do that should I have another chat with MSY or do I have sufficient grounds to lodge a complaint? The MSY salesman that I had a chat with kept saying their warranty is only 12 months and asked me to contact ASUS.

Why not? Why, exactly did you come to believe that? Just because MSY say so, doesn't mean it's legal. Hell, i could put up a sign in my shop that said I reserve  

That's a bit of a far-fetched example. You put up such a sign and you won't have a shop anymore ... :-P

Anyway, what I meant was ... all the sales people @MSY are programmed to tell you over and over again: "Sir, we only do 12 months warranty. You will need to contact the manufacturer." Before I could ask to speak with their store manager, the rude sob hung up on me. :\

The law is clear: MSY sold it, MSY have to honour the warranty the manufacturer promised you. MSY don't get to arbitrarily alter ASUS's warranty as they see fit.

I hear you, dude. I will mention this to the store manager if I get a chance to speak with him/her.

One other question: There is no mention in the 3-year warranty part about the customer having to pay for delivery of the faulty goods to and from the distributor/manufacturer. My friend was in a similar situation with an ASUS motherboard - which screwed up after 1 year and he had to pay the retailer all courier charges for the replacement from the manufacturer [since the retailer like MSY only offered 12 months warranty on all parts]. This is illegal as well, right?

Hellman109 writes...

Because it's ASUS' warrenty not MSY's.

Yes, BUT the conveyance of that warranty, is VIA THE RETAILER, not directly.

I don't dispute who is ultimately offering the warranty, I am saying how a consumer is legally entitled to go about making a claim against it.

It appauls me how everyone wants rock bottom prices and every bit of service.

It appauls me how rock bottom price retailers blatently voilate the law, and everyone just accepts it because they have a "sign" or "policy" saying that's what they do.

Buy from HN and they handle all this crap for you, as it's built into their prices.

no, HN just comply correctly with the law. To comply with the law is just a business expense, just like wages, electricity, rent, etc. This is ultimately reflected in the price.

El'cheapo retailers merely seek to eleiminate that particular business expense, by ignoring it. The difference is, if you don't pay your rent you get thrown out, if you don't pay your electricity you get the power cut off, if you don't pay your wages your staff don't show up, etc. just because the law is slow to prosecute those who violate warranty law, is not a good reason to break the law, unless you hav ethe morals of a fencepost.

Or, to put it bluntly, theft is still illegal, no matter how often you get away with it.

CylonSpy writes...

Before I do that should I have another chat with MSY or do I have sufficient grounds to lodge a complaint?

I'd suggest you do so, and if they won't budge, get it in writing on their letterhead and have the manager sign it. That's a lot stronger than a verbal statement, and reproduceable in court as evidence. Verbal statements are much harder to prosecute.

If these guys do know they're violating your rights, the request for in-writing "evidence" may stir them up to a point whereby the do honour it, because they'd just rather not get caught with proof.

If they refuse to give you sometying in writing, AND refuse the warranty, you should be hearing alarm bells at maximum volume!

This is illegal as well, right?

Yes. The consumer pays for all costs to/from the retailer, and NOTHING more. you should never pay the retailer for "handling" or "freight" - these are business expenses just like wages, and not your obligation.

To put it another way, "All warranty repairs are FREE, but transportation to/from place of purchase is the consumer's cost".

CylonSpy writes...

The problem is I cannot go over to the MSY Malvern store [where I purchased the video card from] and claim my warranty - as they only provide 12 months warranty on all parts and systems.

OMG

It's not MSY.

How about you actually walk into the store and ask? I'm sure they'll send it away for you.

You should try contacting MSY before saying that they won't honour it.

Plus the 3YR warranty is with ASUS, not MSY.

MSY are generous enough to give 1 YR's warranty on their products, they have a fantastic returns policy and I've had nothing but good experiences with them.

But geez just buy a new card for $50

I do agree with you that it IS illegal for a retailer to try and reduce the term of a warranty
however outside of the first year it is NOT their responsibility unless otherwise stated
if they tell you to take it up with the manufacturer they are NOT reducing the term of the warranty
only informing you of what to do with it

you seem to be mistaking the manufacturers warranty for something else
if a box has "3 year warranty" on it then it abides by the manufacturers terms
if a salesperson tells you either verbally or in written form that
they will carry out the warranty procedure for you beyond the first year
then that is an express warranty and at which point they must honour their promise

im assuming it is this
No. Although you can share the liability for a faulty item with the manufacture, it is ultimately your responsibility to resolve the complaint.
that is causing you to be so vehement
IF a manufacturer has stated in their warranty conditions that is only RTB for the first year
then a retailer is NOT trying the modify the conditions of the warranty
and is not breaking the law

Moredhel writes...

however outside of the first year it is NOT their responsibility unless otherwise stated

Rubbish show me the law that states this. Go on, link to it. You can't, because no such law exists.

As for the rest of your post; I've made my case, I'll leave what I've said as-is. No point arguing further.

you have failed to argue your OWN case
show me clear law that says a retailer DOES have to
you link to a whitepaper that says warranty exists, big woop

if you cant find some info to back you up then consider commonsense
if the warranty info says 1 year RTB, 2 year RTM
and it was illegal for that to be so, then the manufacturers would have been busted down by now surely ?

drunkntigr writes...

OMG
It's not MSY.

How about you actually walk into the store and ask? I'm sure they'll send it away for you.
You should try contacting MSY before saying that they won't honour it.


It seems you are very drunk and did not follow this thread at all. I did
contact MSY - please read before you reply with utter *garbage*.

I did ring up MSY to ask about whether they can still do a warranty job on the ASUS video card before contacting ASUS and posting this thread!

Now why would I waste my time going all the way to the MSY store with my video card knowing fully well from my phone call that they won't deal with my warranty claim?!?

Plus the 3YR warranty is with ASUS, not MSY.
Once again, read some of the posts - before retorting with a stupid reply.

drunkntigr writes...

MSY are generous enough to give 1 YR's warranty on their products, they have a fantastic returns policy and I've had nothing but good experiences with them.

So what? Other stores are just as generous and good with their returns policy. Maybe you missed the point completely.

Asus is ultimately responsible, and if you send a strongly worded email or telephone to the Sales Director for Asus in Australia you might get some satisfaction; you can also consider serving ASUS thru VCAT or Fair Trading

Albert Liang
Tel: +61 (2)8799 3222; Fax: +61 (2)8799 3299; Mobile: +61 (0)414 909 608
Email: albert_liang@asus.com; URL: www.asus.com.au