TV Engineer needed, Bristol

bosseyed

Just a very quick one - My TV is dying day by day and Dixons have agreed to cough up for a new one (or at the very least contribute to a replacment) if I can get a qualified Television engineer to confirm that the screen is faulty and uneconomical to repair (which it is - Sharp say £2,000 to repair screen, which is twice the original price of the TV.....)

So, I need a qualified TV engineer in the bristol region to pop out to my house and take a peek, anyone got any recommendations? Hopefully one thats not expensive!

Ta in advance....:D

JasX

presumably you need to use one 'approved' by Dixons or you'll be shelling out twice? or at least details of whatever qualification/trade body registration Dixons will recognise so you can make sure your repair man's report will be acceptable to them and you'll not pay twice?

and make sure you get their requirements and offer to pay up in writing

poppy10_2

Do they still have TV repair men? I thought they had all died out in this age of disposable gadgetery

KillerWatt

If the manufacturer themselves have already confirmed that a repair will cost £2000, why do you need a television engineer to confirm?

dragon934

Surely the onus is on them to confirm the fault? If they've agreed to repair it, then they have accepted your not at fault, and so why would you have to pay a penny?

Spank

KillerWatt wrote: »

If the manufacturer themselves have already confirmed that a repair will cost £2000, why do you need a television engineer to confirm?

Maybe he phoned Sharp & they just told him how much a new screen is without seeing his TV.

bosseyed

Spank wrote: »

Maybe he phoned Sharp & they just told him how much a new screen is without seeing his TV.

Precisely this - spoke to Sharp, who suggested that the symptoms my screen is displaying means its died, hence £2,000 to replace it. Sharp are happy to send an engineer out to confirm, but I'm trying to find someone cheaper - the only engineers I can find thus far are £100+ per visit.

Incidentally, Dixons are only involved as the TV is well out of warranty, but having consulted Sharp and their longevity data and also the longevity data given on the RETRA website (television/radion retailers association) I've gone back to Dixons suggesting breach of my statutory rights as the TV can reasonably be expected to last twice as long as it has - which is their issue to resolve, not Sharps. And quite reasonably, Dixons want confirmation that the TV is actually dying and that I'm not some massive chancer (well, more than I sound already....)

And actually, yes JasX, a good idea - would be sensible to get Dixons to confirm in writing their intentions prior to forking out for an engineers report.

spenderdave

Dixon's and Curry's do operate this way, and I have been approached in the past by a customer wanting a quote for this purpose. (I declined, partly because as a very small business I didn't want to get involved). As I understand it Dixon's pay the cost of the technician giving the quote, either direct to him or refunding the customer. So don't worry about that aspect.

Having seen some of these recent Sharp LCDs, I do know that that they have a common problem which may be the LCD panel but more likely the main electronics pcb. Cost is probably not as high as you quote but even so more than the new cost. The only people who can really do a sensible repair are Sharp dealers as they are the only ones who have access to the full spares, and can for instance do a PCB or panel swap out of their stock. Very few independents can do this - and in fact cannot even easily diagnose what the fault actually is. Sadly modern sets are not designed for repair, and the reason why there are very few TV repairers left is for this very reason, it is not economic any more.

Dave (hanger-on repairer of CRT sets in Bracknell....)

Hammyman

There is no way on this earth it would cost £2000 to replace a screen on a Sharp TV no matter what model it is.

bosseyed

Hammyman wrote: »

There is no way on this earth it would cost £2000 to replace a screen on a Sharp TV no matter what model it is.

Meh, thats what the guy at Sharp tech helpline told me. He also suggested I just break the telly and claim off the house insurance though :rotfl:

Thanks spenderdave, useful info.