Staples - Beware the small print in their extended warranty

rogcal

After jumping through all the hoops Staples require you to jump through, I have just had the pleasure of being told that despite my purchasing an extended warranty for a Gemini Joy Tab tablet which has now failed after 20 months of normal use, my claim for a replacement will not be met because it is a "software issue".

Is it my fault the software glitch occured, no. Did I have a choice of which software was installed, no. Did I abuse the tablet in any way, no.

Similarly, did I have a choice in which chipsets or other hardware components were used in its manufacturer, no but if they had failed it would have been a different matter.

Argos for me next time, no hoops to jump through, no sneaky (buy that I mean buried in the small print) conditions and speedy resolutions.

The bottom line for anyone considering purchasing an extended warranty from Staples, read the small print and don't fall for the hype contained in the Staples Replacement Plan leaflet.

"If your product stops working within two years after the manufacturer warranty expires ............., you can either replace it or pay the difference to upgrade to something different. You decide"

Hollow words indeed and I would love to be able to decide!

p.s. I should have explained that the hoops you have to jump through include calling the Staples revenue generating (for them) 0844 number on two occasions and their tech helpline (thankfully an 0800 number), for a grand total of 50 minutes. Oh well, you live and learn!

fluffnutter

Someone tried to flog me a warranty once that cost more than the product I was buying. Just saying.

They're usually a waste of money.

Exile_geordie

What is the software issue then? The Techie board may be able to assist you with it.

George_Michael

rogcal wrote: »

Argos for me next time, no hoops to jump through, no sneaky (buy that I mean buried in the small print) conditions and speedy resolutions.

Argos extended warranty exclusions include -

13. The plan does not include:

• the failure of the product to operate correctly caused by the withdrawal of services by a third party;
• software (including operating systems) loss or failure.
• damage or failure of the product due to: a software virus; the configuration of user settings; or the process of backing up or recovery of data; loss, corruption or damage to data or operating system.

http://www.argos.co.uk/static/StaticDisplay/includeName/replacementCovertandc.htm

Software issues can be caused by many different things, the majority of which are nothing to do with the hardware. This is why software is normally an exclusion in any extended warranty.

A software related issue can normally be resolved by simply restoring the unit back to its "out of the box" state.

rogcal

Thank you George for highlighting the Argos condition re software but the reality of returning an item to Argos for replacement under an extended warranty is that even with a software issue being the cause of the items failure, they will replace it. Been there got the tee-shirt etc.

Incidentally, restoring the tablet back to an "out of the box" state has been carried out twice (with the assistance of the Staples Tech Team) only for the unit to fail to boot up again after a few hours use.

paddyrg

rogcal wrote: »

Incidentally, restoring the tablet back to an "out of the box" state has been carried out twice (with the assistance of the Staples Tech Team) only for the unit to fail to boot up again after a few hours use.

Then it doesn't sound like a software issue if it fails even after a factory restore with no added/updated software. Stand your ground.

shaun_from_Africa

rogcal wrote: »

Incidentally, restoring the tablet back to an "out of the box" state has been carried out twice (with the assistance of the Staples Tech Team) only for the unit to fail to boot up again after a few hours use.

Following the reversion to out of the box settings, did you reinstall anything else between that time and when the unit failed again?

If so, try another reversion but this time don't put anything back on and leave it for a fair few hours to see what happens.
It would also be worth making sure that the Wi-Fi is disabled just in case the unit does an automatic update, something that might also be the root of the problem.

It might also be worth making a detailed log of exactly what you have done so if/when you go back to Staples you will be able to shoot down any arguments they might try over software causing the problem.

bod1467

Is this an Android device? If yes, if the OS has been updated at any point then a "factory restore" will only actually restore the currently installed version of Android - it won't revert back to the version originally supplied, as that version is no longer on the device.

fluffnutter

One of the main reasons that software issues aren't covered is because software is rarely a static state. Why should a warranty pay out because you've spent two years downloading from https://www.pornoapps4u.com and buggered, quite literally, your tablet?

Most software issues can be resolved with a system restore. Has this been tried?

rogcal

System restore carried out twice as stated in earlier post (try reading a post properly, it does help).

I shall berate my wife for downloading !!!!!! (it's her tablet) or perhaps it's the QVC website that's done the damage.

After another 60 min session on the phone with a very nice chap in Chennai, he said it may not be a software issue after all as this problem has manifested itself before due to an issue with the battery management of the tablet and is in that case a hardware fault.

So a replacement tablet is on the cards after all. Phew!

fluffnutter

rogcal wrote: »

(try reading a post properly, it does help).

I could say the same about Argos's warranty T&Cs.