tv warranty of not?

[jlinder]

Re: tv warranty of not?

Biggest problem I have seen is with what happens if you have a problem. Example - Brother in law bought an expensive set then paid for the top of the line warranty.

Set went bad. Over the next 2-3 months he sat there with a dead set while the store he bought it from came out with a board which didn't work. Then they told him "oh, maybe it's one of the other boards. We'll order one and have it in 2-4 weeks to try out. Turns out there is no hard time limit (or one that you would want) on how long they can take to fix it.

Another example - stories of people who buy the top line service plan for their computer. Guaranteed 24 hour on site service.

Turns out there is a little clause - you only get a tech if the company considers the repair sufficiently complicated that you cannot do it yourself.

One guy who was being sent part after part that he was told to replace - no tech. Finally they sent him a motherboard to replace with the claim - it did not warrant a visit from a tech. He was replacing every part in the computer and it still did not qualify for the tech service he had purchased.

Whatever you do don't buy a warranty unless you have a WRITTEN level of performance. Watch out for those little phrases like "at the companies discretion". My experienc is that unless you are very lucky it will always be something you will not like and probably even find beyond belief.

Get something that gives you solid rights - like if they cannot fix it in a certain period of time (spelled out) you get a new set. Even get that spelled out - no way the exact same model will be available if/when you have a problem.

BTW -
1. Check into Costco. They have a great reputation for standing behind their products.

2. When you buy a set look for the native resolution of the screen. They all claim 1080i or 1080p capable. This means they can receive the signal. It doesn't mean they display all the pixels. I have seen many people brag about their set displaying 1080i (1920 x 1080 pixels) when the screen is only 1366x768.

 

[Pony]

Re: tv warranty of not?

This fiscal year, Ardor's Kuhrt estimates warranty revenues will deliver 36% of Best Buy's operating profits and all of Circuit City's.

That arcticle is more than just a little old.......that is 2005 old. Not only has Best Buy's business model changed since then, the service plan structure has been completely reformed on more than twice since that time. We still joke everyday about how different the company is since that time......we call it "old school" BBY. It would take me all day to explain how different things are now........

Consumers Union says only two products deserve extended warranty consideration: projection TV's and digital cameras. Both are expensive to repair and need repairs frequently.

When was the last time you saw a projection TV available to purchase? I haven't seen one in the store since early 2006. We don't really carry many DLP's anymore let alone projection TVs. Seriously the technology changes so frequently that usually by the time the manufacture warranty is up, the manufacture has already stopped making parts for the TV.....and if it is available it usually isn't cost effective to fix it. That happens all the time. The only reason I bring this up is because you are quoting things that applied to the electronics industry 3-4 years ago. I still 100% agree with digital cameras. (I see 5-10 shipped out for service every week)

Since you are in the business, can you share the percentage of post-factory warranty claims to item sales? How about the percent of extended warranty claims which are actually covered at no cost to the consumer out of the total number of extended warranty sales?

The only way the consumer pays anything when they have a claim is if they choose to upgrade the product from whatever the comparable unit is. Then the difference has to be paid......but that is 100% the choosing of the consumer.

I don't have any numbers handy, but it is not easy to put a guestimate on it. A lot of these issues are in home and I may never actually see it. There may be hundreds and hundreds of post factory warranty issues that never get addressed because the consumer didn't have a extended plan and just bought a new one. There is no way to have line of sight to that. I will say that is not uncommon to see a LCD set less than 3 yrs old come into the store to be recycled.

You are correct, the percantage and chances of your TV failing are low......but at the same time we are talking about a 4 yr window on products that have barely been on the market that long. It is personal preference on whether the plan is right for you. Would I buy one on a $600 TV.....probably not. Would I buy one on a $1500 TV.....maybe if I don't feel comfortable paying that again within 3 yrs if something goes wrong. Its insurance basically. If you want to take the chance that something wont happen then that is your choice. Like I said I have had 2 TVs fail in the past 2 years and had to make claims on them. Both times they were fixed at no cost to me, where if I didn't have the plan I would have had to buy a new set. Sometimes you have to use them, sometimes you don't. They are nice to have when/if something goes wrong. I would say at least once a week we are filing a service claim on a TV......again its up to the consumer.

If you get a sales associate pushing it on you, they are not supposed to. They should be explaining the benefits and at least offering it. They have to offer it....that is there job. I get yelled at by customers that are mad that they were not told about plan a year ago when they bought something and now have to shell out $ for a new one. It happens. Best Buy is not commissioned. They get the same $ whether you buy the plan or not.

The bottom line is, if you are trying to save a buck by buying cheap junk which has a high failure rate, why not use the money you would dish out for an extended warranty (normally 20-30% of the price) and buy a higher priced, more reliable, better (factory) warranted item instead?

This is true most of the time.....though the two TVs that I personally had to file claims on were a Sony and a Samsung.....go figure. The last claims I have seen in the store were for 2 LGs and a Toshiba. Most of the cheaper TVs are cheap to the point where the consumer can't justify the plan......that makes it hard to draw conclussions as to the failure rate of any given brand. There are also fewer of those sets sold.