Replacing a borrowed drill

somethingcorporate

How long has your friend had the drill back before it broke? If months it's unreasonable to suggest removing the cover months before has caused it to break is stupid. I'd be refusing to pay if I were the friend that borrowed it.

vuvuzela

aeb wrote: »

Only to look inside, he didn't use the drill at all.

So if after agreeing "He was lent a specialist drill on the understanding that if he took the cover off the warranty was void and he would replace it"

Why on earth did he want to look inside the thing and void the warranty ? Some people are unbelievably stupid, I have to say.

bargainbetty

Your friend removed the cover with the permission of the owner, but returned it in working condition. The drill is now broken.

Who damaged/broke the drill? If the owner agreed to risk the warranty being void, that is his/her problem. If the owner then broke the drill, or loaned it to someone who broke it, that is a matter for them and whoever damaged it.

Your friend needs to ask a fwe more questions, and personally, I wouldn't pay up until I knew all the answers.

Guardsman

I did not realise that the drill stopped working months later and for all you know it could have been left out in the rain or dropped off a ladder.
I think the drill owner is taking advantage of your boyfriends good nature.

JimmyTheWig

somethingcorporate wrote: »

How long has your friend had the drill back before it broke? If months it's unreasonable to suggest removing the cover months before has caused it to break is stupid. I'd be refusing to pay if I were the friend that borrowed it.

I don't think anyone is claiming that the OP's friend broke the drill. The owner broke the drill, or the drill stopped working all by itself.
The point is, however, that the owner now can't get it repaired under warranty as the cover was removed.

bargainbetty wrote: »

Your friend removed the cover with the permission of the owner, but returned it in working condition. The drill is now broken.

Who damaged/broke the drill? If the owner agreed to risk the warranty being void, that is his/her problem.

I think the owner only agreed to the OP's friend removing the cover on the basis that the OP's friend would be responsible for any issues that this caused.

aeb wrote: »

He will stick to his word and replace it, the question is as it is 9 months old can he replace it with a working nearly new one (which will cost about the same as the broken one) or, as the owner is saying, a brand new one (costing much more due to a recent price increase)?

Good for your friend. He appears more honest than many.
I think it is your friend's responsibility to take over the role of the warranty. Either pay to get it fixed or pay for a new one. I think that if the warranty company decided not to repair it they would replace it with a new one, so replacing it with a second hand one isn't really an option in my opinion.
Alternatively, the owner may accept, say, £75 cash rather than the £90 drill.

paddyrg

I'd say the nearly-new one from t'interweb is a fair alternative, and to take the broken one in return. May be that it is easily fixed and your friend will have a working drill.

I have to say, borrowing a new thing which clearly says 'warranty void if you open it' just to open it and have a look is rather silly - it's not as if there's a shortage of out of warranty drills out there, which he can look at all day long... At least if he gets the broken drill back, he can look at it all he likes now, and as I say maybe fix it and flog it anyway

Guardsman

I would insist that the drill owner sends the drill back to the manufacturer and let them decide if the warranty is void or not and get them to give a reason why they consider it being void.
A few people are making too much of a issue over the cover being removed when that could possibly and more than likely not be the reason why the drill stopped working.
I'm a tidy man by nature and I look after all my tools but after a few weeks of use labels screws and covers will become scratched so I find it difficult to believe that they could even tell it was opened a few months ago..

After having looked at the user manual for my Dewalt and Makita drills it does say on there that removing covers may void the warranty big difference between may and will.

mttylad

What is this mysterious cover that is being referred to?

What does it cover?

What make/model drill is it? Now I am curious and want to see this cover?

DVardysShadow

Guardsman wrote: »

I would insist that the drill owner sends the drill back to the manufacturer and let them decide if the warranty is void or not and get them to give a reason why they consider it being void.
A few people are making too much of a issue over the cover being removed when that could possibly and more than likely not be the reason why the drill stopped working.
I'm a tidy man by nature and I look after all my tools but after a few weeks of use labels screws and covers will become scratched so I find it difficult to believe that they could even tell it was opened a few months ago..

After having looked at the user manual for my Dewalt and Makita drills it does say on there that removing covers may void the warranty big difference between may and will.

I agree with the above. However if the warranty is invalidated, I would suggest that the right thing to do is to get a new drill - not a second hand drill of questionable provenance from eBay.

And to insist on having the original drill in return.

Bowling_4_Gold

I don't get why this thread is so complicated?

The mate borrowed a drill and for some reason opened the cover, which invalidates the warranty.

Regardless of whether the mate broke the drill or not, the owner cannot claim under warranty now the drill has broken because of the actions of the mate.

Therefore the mate should (and will) pay for a replacement drill or for the repair to be carried out.

The OP asked can the mate buy a second hand drill instead of a brand new one- my answer would be yes. The owner can't expect a brand new drill out of this- just one that is comparable to one that has been used for 9 months (or however long the OP said).