Warranty?

[69 camaro SS]

I'm looking at a reciever on e-bay. Says its brand new factory sealed. Should I be concerned about getting warranty work done if needed? http://forums.audioreview.com/images/icons/icon9.gif
Unhappy

[jocko_nc]

For a couple-of-hundred to four-hundred bucks, I would not even worry about warranty. Buy on price and roll the dice. Naturally, protect yourself that what was being offered is what actually comes. Use a credit card at all times.

If I were buying a serious piece of equipment, thousands of dollars, I would very much consider the warranty. I would probably buy from a local source with customer service as well.

jocko

[caniac]

If it truly is brand-new and sealed in the box, the warranty from the factory should be in there, right? Just get a dated receipt from the buyer and you're golden.

Of course, as the previous poster said, you have to make sure the seller is being honest.

[markw]

If it truly is brand-new and sealed in the box, the warranty from the factory should be in there, right? Just get a dated receipt from the buyer and you're golden.

Of course, as the previous poster said, you have to make sure the seller is being honest.

Some manufacturers are sticklers in that they will only honor warranties when the unit was purchased from an authorized reseller. Since this is ebay I have serious doubts about that.

But, unless something goes wrong with the unit within the warranty period it's a moot point. It's a tradeoff and a gamble one chooses to take. Money or security?

[kexodusc]

This question comes up a lot. In some states, manufacturers can't just arbitrarily choose when to honor warranties. The logic is the warranty is intrinsic value vested in the unit by the manufacturer, as long as the item isn't stolen, they're legally bound to honor it.
Truth is, the manufacturers know, and even encourage these 3rd party resellers to buy bulk through their authorized dealers. If a company like Harman, Denon, or Yamaha was really concerned, they'd question why a small authorized dealer in Maryland was buying 4000 receivers in one shipment. Answer: the huge cost savings the wholesalers get for buying large quantities. These companies know a shop in a town of 12000 people won't sell 4000 receivers, but they allow the order to go through anyway to move units. Then they turn around and say that receivers are being bought and resold without "authorization". That's BS! A friend of mine runs an a/v shop and has told me his 3rd party resellers haven't had a problem getting warranty done as long as the company can trace purchase through an authorized dealer at some point in the chain. Don't know if that's carved in stone, but it's interesting.

I remember googling on this issue a while back and finding links to a few class action lawsuits that weren't going so well for companies. Don't know if it's been resolved yet though.

A lot of sellers (ebay and otherwise) will offer their own warranty on these products for added protection, repair or replacement. I think that's enough protection for most people.

[jocko_nc]

Kexo is absolutely correct. Warranty obligations are determined by the laws in each individual state, not the terms of the manufacturer. There are "expressed" and "implied" warranties, the concept goes back many hundreds of years. A manufacturer cannot deny warranty for a new product merely because of how it was purchased. Like Kexo said, where do you think all those units on Ubid came from? They came from the manufacturer. This warranty debate is used to differentiate between the full-price retail buyer and the liquidation buyer. The manufacturers want to have it both ways, protecting their margins while dumping excess inventory.

You have a warranty, it just may not be easy getting resolution. It will not be as easy as if you had purchased at Circuit City.

Back to the original question, I might consider a $300.00 reveiver a throw-away. It might not be worth the trouble. I bought a DLP television locally. That thing is big and expensive. I wanted to have easy warranty resolution.

jocko

[jocko_nc]

Also... All the product liability lawsuits are brought on the concept of "implied" warranty. The arguement is that the product is defective and causes harm, therefore the consumer is entitled to damages. There is no way to get out of warranty obligations.

jocko

[Groundbeef]

Also... All the product liability lawsuits are brought on the concept of "implied" warranty. The arguement is that the product is defective and causes harm, therefore the consumer is entitled to damages. There is no way to get out of warranty obligations.

jocko

Here's another angle on the warrenty issue. If your supplier (on ebay) is a small fry operator like myself, they may purchase from a big box retailer if they spot a great sale, or close out or the like. You may email them BEFORE you purchase and see if they can go back to the store and get an extended warrenty for you if that is what you like. OR, have them send the ORIGINAL receipt when they ship you the unit. Chances are if the unit is new in box, it hasn't been sitting in their basement for 90 days, or 1 year or whatever the MFG warrenty terms are.

This way you avoid the whole "third" party transaction. You got the original receipt, and if there is a problem you go back to the original seller (retail merchant) and get your warrenty work done. No one is the wiser. No different than a "gift" receipt. In fact, your seller may even provide that if you ask.