Extended warranty on TV

[Petermack]

I have an issue with an extended warranty on a TV that I bought from harvey Norman 2 years ago and would appreciate some impartial advice.

So I bought a Samsung TV from Harvey Norman in Jan 2014 and bought an extended warranty with it. The TV has now started to give trouble, its losing pixels in a line from top to bottom of the screen. I rang Harvey Norman and they told me that they would send out someone to assess the TV. I got a call today and a gy turned up and started to unplug the TV, so I asked him what are you doing. He told me that they would need to take it away for between 7-10 working days. I asked if they would be supplying a replacement and he told me no.

To cut a long story short , they guy is from a company that repairs TV's. He is not from Samsung. He told me that their contract with Harvey Norman is to repair TV's by whatever means possible. Only as a very last resort will Harvey Norman replace the TV. He says they will always try to use Samsung parts but someytimes they have to use non Samsung parts.

I am a little annoyed that if I let them repair the TV and if it gives trouble again in 6 months the TV is now out of its extended warranty. Do I have a right to a warranty on the repair or am I wasting my time.

 

[glynner]

I would contact Samsung direct as I had problem with fridge freezer bought in same place but it was 5 years old. Samsung were fantastic they sent someone out and as courtesy did not charge as my 5 year warranty had just expired. The repair guy that came to the house said Samsung has the best after sale service. I have since bought other good from Samsung as a result.

 

[Leo]

Did you read the small print of the contract you signed? The extended warranty you paid for is with a company with a relationship with Harvey Norman, not with Samsung or likely even directly with Harvey Norman. HN will get a commission on each one they sell.

They are not required to supply a replacement TV while they take it away for repair. There's also no requirement on them to use Samsung parts, but the nature of current TVs means there are very few parts/modules that aren't custom units that can only be repaired / replaced by any means other than swapping a complete unit, and that means only manufacturer parts are available.

They are entitled to take it away for a 'reasonable period', trouble is, nowhere in consumer law is this reasonable period defined. What you consider reasonable and they do can be very different. If they need to send it abroad for specialist repair, or get specialist parts shipped in, that can take considerable time.

The repair should come with a warranty period covering that particular issue only, but that won't necessarily last very long.

I generally avoid any form of extended warranty, overall they offer poor value for money.

 

[mathepac]

Without purchasing an extended warranty, which is in reality an insurance policy, your rights under consumer law could have provided you with greater protection. Under Irish case law, as a consumer, you may take a case against a supplier, in this case Harvey Norman, if a gizmo they sell you fails to meet the criteria laid down"

of merchantable quality
as described
fit for purpose

An expensive telly that doesn't last two years would seem to me to fail these criteria.

[broken link removed]
It's good to hear @glynner's story Samsung's PR exercise, but in consumer law neither he nor you ever had a contract with Samsung

 

[Guns N Roses]

I generally avoid any form of extended warranty, overall they offer poor value for money.

When we first moved into our first house, we purchased extended warranties on all our appliances. Only once have we had the opportunity to use one. All the rest of the appliances conveniently broke down shortly after the extended warranty expired.

IMO extended warranties are a waste of money and should be avoided like the plague no matter how much sales people try to push them on you. As Leo said, they make a commission on each one they sell.

 

[Mrs Vimes]

I read a report on extended warranties years ago (can't remember where) which said that if there is a manufacturing fault the machine will break down very quickly and be covered anyway and also that the warranties are sold just short of the expected life of the machine so there will rarely be a claim. Apparently hardly anything breaks down between 1 and 8 years.

This would tie in with my personal experience too!

@Petermack, try going back to the store and saying that the tv should last a lot longer than 2 years and that you want it fixed under the sale of goods act rather than relying on the warranty you bought.