Void warranty due to water damage...

FamilyMan

Hi,

I purchased a rather lovely (well, so I thought at the time) Sony Vaio Duo 11 from PC World in November of last year at the cost of £1,000!

It was the best laptop I've ever had. But, a few weeks ago I went to turn it on and nothing happened. It appeared as though the battery was dead. I tried to charge it, but to no avail. I then took it back to PC World, who said they would send it in for repairs.

3 weeks later (that was rather a long time to respond, I thought) I got a phone call from PC World telling me that Sony have found that the laptop has water damage and is therefore not covered by their warranty and I would be liable for the repair costs of £675. I was gob-smacked.

I can categorically state that there was no water damage whilst in my care. PC World have just got back to me today, stating that they did not damage it so they can no longer help me with my claim. I am still awaiting to hear back from Sony, but it doesn't look good.

I don't like this situation of 'it wasn't me', because that's exactly my position. I am a 43 year old professional, if I had damaged the laptop in my care I would have tried to claim through the house insurance not through the warranty. I am so angry because there is no way I can prove this wasn't my fault. Any idea of where I stand on this?

Thanks for any insight.

Kind regards,

Julian

Spankey

ask sony to supply you the photos which prove this water damage , there must be water stains inside the laptop if what they claim killed your laptop actually did.
Let them know they will need this photo proof to show a county court judge when you sue them in small claims court.

macman

What fault has the alleged water damage caused to 'kill' it?
I'm afraid you've found out why DSG are rated as the UK's worst retailer.
I think you should consider geting a report and estimate from an independent laptop shop, not relying on the cowboys at PCW.
PS: Water damage can be down to moisture or humidity, it doesn't mean you have to have given it a bath. Just enough to turn the stickers red, and they'll use that as an excuse to void the warranty.

S0litaire

Probably no "water stains"

Laptops and phones tend to have small sensors on the board that "trip" when they detect a lot of moisture.

Usually they are single use stickers, and others are hardware that you can only tell by hooking it up and using diagnostic tools on the boards.

They should only be tripped when immersed in water but heavy moisture / steam can trip them if they are too sensitive.

Ask them what "Physical Evidence" they have to back up their claim.

FamilyMan

Thanks for all the replies. I'm wondering... if this laptop is so susceptible to humidity, maybe that occurred in transit to Sony. When it was sent off over a month ago, we were experiencing sub-zero temperatures. If they took it straight from the cold to a warm room, it could have induced condensation.

Also, if they are saying that it could be caused by high humidity, surely then it is not fit for purpose? I have had dozens of machines in my time and have been fortunate enough not to have had a critical failure before (I have had the odd thing fall-over and needed some repair, but not such massive cost in such a small space of time).

Shouldn't a laptop, especially of such high cost, be more impervious to humidity?

Kind regards,

Julian

andrewjf

Yet another thread about poor customer service from PC World. If I hadn't already made up my mind never to buy anything from these jokers, I'm now convinced.

S0litaire

a few of the less reputable big name companies use "water damage" as a fall-back excuse NOT to repair items on warranty.

If you force the issue they tend to do the repair under warranty but class it as a one off gift because you are a "good customer" etc... etc... and want to keep your loyalty.

make sure you send a nice and polite letter stating the facts only (no theories or finger pointing at this stage!).

They tend to give in after the first letter. If not then it's time to get tough and let them know that going to the small claims court is your next step and ask for the device to be inspected by an independent repair facility (make sure to say that THEY will cover any associated costs if you win).

But should not come to that...

matttye

FamilyMan wrote: »

Thanks for all the replies. I'm wondering... if this laptop is so susceptible to humidity, maybe that occurred in transit to Sony. When it was sent off over a month ago, we were experiencing sub-zero temperatures. If they took it straight from the cold to a warm room, it could have induced condensation.

Also, if they are saying that it could be caused by high humidity, surely then it is not fit for purpose? I have had dozens of machines in my time and have been fortunate enough not to have had a critical failure before (I have had the odd thing fall-over and needed some repair, but not such massive cost in such a small space of time).

Shouldn't a laptop, especially of such high cost, be more impervious to humidity?

Kind regards,

Julian

Do you know the operating temperatures and humidity rating for the laptop? Smartphones tend to state these in the 'tech specs' section.

spannerzone

It's a good point about it getting cold while in transit then being opened up in a warmer environment.

Years back when I had an electronics shop we'd often find that items delivered to us from a truck would be almost dripping wet with condenstation. We guessed that the truck had been loaded the previous day and driven overnight. We'd receive the items early AM and if we opened the goods (TV, video equipment etc) we'd always allow an hour for it to acclimatise. I remember one TV where the screen was thick with moisture like you'd get in a bathroom after a heavy shower.

I'd agree that writing a letter stating that you categorically dispute the water ingress claim and see what they say, hopefully they'll recheck and decide they can repair it after all. I'm sure they use this as a get out.

If not then ask for detailed photos of the said damage saying you'll need them along with the laptop to get an expert second opinion in preparation for the small claims court....that might also provoke a response with luck.

Nilrem

matttye wrote: »

Do you know the operating temperatures and humidity rating for the laptop? Smartphones tend to state these in the 'tech specs' section.

Unfortunately the humidity specs don't coincide with what the moisture strips detect.

IE humidity specs might only quite "use", but the sensor strips can be triggered in transit long before you actually ever receive the item, and because they are usually deliberately hard to see these days, you have no way to check upon receipt.

I've heard people discuss having a repair refused at first in store because a strip was triggered, then asking the store staff to look at the strip in a new phone, for it to also have been triggered.
IIRC at one point they were put behind batteries on some models of phone to make it easier to check (and buyers in the know could check them instore upon purchase) - as opposed to inside a sealed unit where the consumer can never check themselves without breaking warranty.

It's also worth noting that apparently the sensor strips are often triggered when atmospheric conditions are within the specs, because the phone or laptop can have condensation form moving from a cold area to a warm one, or because you hold the device near a sensor (and sweaty hands can trigger them).

They are, unfortunately one of the ways some companies try to refuse warranty service, as much as they are a legitimate method of telling if the device has been abused.
IIRC some phones (Iphones?) have multiple strips and a lot of the time people were getting service refused/charged because one near the headphone jack showed moisture ingress, but if people pushed the other sensors would be checked and found to be fine (indicating that basically the headphone one was "tripping" when it shouldn't).

FamilyMan

In case anyone is interested. I have still not heard back from Sony, even though I have tracked that they have signed for the complaint letter that I sent via recorded delivery. They have, however, called PC World again to reiterate that it is water damage. Sony seem to be a very unprofessional company, which I find surprising. I am in the process of trying to get them to write to me, I need a paper trail, not phone calls. This is a very upsetting business. I am a £1,000 down and have no laptop. Regardless of the outcome I would never buy a Sony product again. In fact, at this point after so much trouble, I just want my money back.

Kind regards,

Julian