Electrical equipment repair diagnosis results in 'partial repair' quotation

SeeNoWeevil

I recently sent off a piece of hi-fi equipment to a repair company who offer a no fix, no fee policy with a free estimate. Upon initial contact I was told it was too complex to offer a free estimate and I should send the device in. Ok, fair enough. Upon receiving it they said it would require diagnosis at the cost of around £120. I agreed to this via the online portal and waited. My intention is to actually sell the item once repaired so obviously, I need to know how much a repair is going to cost to decide if it is worth it. Now, my assumption here is that the outcome of diagnosis is a quotation for repair. A few days later I received another email stating that they will need to perform what they call a 'partial repair' in order to 'fully diagnose' the issue. This is starting to become a little concerning given that their partial repair is supposedly to the main components that I was expecting to be repaired to fix the unit (capacitors on the power amplifier). Also, what on earth did I get for my £120 diagnosis? I expected... a diagnosis. This all feels like, we couldn't diagnose the issue but are going to essentially charge you for a second crack at a diagnosis by doing some stuff and hoping we can work out what's wrong then. The terms and conditions on their site gives an example of a 'partial repair' as, repairing the power supply first so a full diagnosis can be completed. To me, this isn't that, at all.

If i reject this 'partial repair', I get hit with a service charge. Call me cynical, but it sounds like a convenient way to get out of the situation of being unable to provide a diagnosis.

Some advice would be greatly appreciated here as I feel like I'm in for a ride of repeating invoices.

Thanks

tacpot12

I can see that you have a quandary, but I would say that replacing the capacitors is similar to needing to replace a power supply so that a full diagnosis can be completed. Either the capacitors are the problem or, when they are replaced, something else can be found that it the problem. I think the issue you have is that you simply don't trust the company not to make up some other fault that they can then charge you to fix. Under the  circumstances, I would get the item back (regardless of the cost of this), and find a company that you trust.  

mattyprice4004

Capacitors in the power amplifier are part of the power supply - so it seems their example is pretty spot on. 
The capacitors provide the 'oomph' needed by the MOSFETs (or other similar technology) and help smooth demand on the main power supply for the whole amplifier. 
(Qualified in electronic repair, and until 6 years ago repaired items like this but for a much lesser rate!) 

SeeNoWeevil

mattyprice4004 said:

Capacitors in the power amplifier are part of the power supply - so it seems their example is pretty spot on. 
The capacitors provide the 'oomph' needed by the MOSFETs (or other similar technology) and help smooth demand on the main power supply for the whole amplifier. 
(Qualified in electronic repair, and until 6 years ago repaired items like this but for a much lesser rate!) 

£120 for a diagnosis that doesn't result in a diagnosis at all, then a further £255 to 'fully diagnose' the issue. Does that sound reasonable to you? If I pay for a diagnosis, then it's hardly unreasonable to expect an actual diagnosis at the end of it. Every item has a maximum repair amount before it becomes uneconomical to repair, that's the whole point of the estimate/diagnosis/quote phase. If you fail to diagnose something, just be honest with the customer.

Al_Ross

They are rip off merchants.

Al_Ross

Name this company please.

Sandtree

What brand and what is the HiFi equipment? Are your repairers official agents of the brand or just a random company?

SeeNoWeevil

Just as an update, I spoke to the company on the phone (obviously not happy paying twice for diagnosis) and they seemed to be back-peddling on the 'partial repair' and tell me this will actually repair the device. It all seems a bit dishonest to me and a way to charge money for a diagnosis while simultaneously taking no risk if the diagnosis is bad, because you just call the repair a 'partial repair' and then charge again to have another go.

Company is Electronic Partners. They claim to repair all the main AVR brands, although this is an Onkyo which actually doesn't seem to be listed. The device is worth around £450 on the used market so I was willing to gamble on a £120 diagnosis. Yes, it's likely to only make a small amount of money after the repair, but honestly, I couldn't stand to part with it for the £40 or so 'spares or repair' value and would rather sell a working device.

Al_Ross

A rogue repair company I'm afraid,see Trust Pilot reviews

https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/ie.electronic.partners

SeeNoWeevil

Al_Ross said:

A rogue repair company I'm afraid,see Trust Pilot reviews

https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/ie.electronic.partners

https://uk.trustpilot.com/review/uk.electronic.partners