Manufacturer Warranties and Protection Plans

[J_F_E_D]

     I recently transferred between colleges and I bought a MacBook from best buy on January 31st of 2009 to help me with my work. I bought it at Best Buy because of their Geek Squad accidental coverage service plan. The plan was a three year plan that is supposed to cover, "Normal Wear and Tear", "Accidental Damage from Handling", "Battery Replacement", "No Lemon Policy", "Power Surge Repair", and "Good Maintenance Reward". Recall that this is a three year plan. Today, this morning I dropped my MacBook and there was a bend in the aluminum next to the keyboard and the back cover wouldn't fit on right which makes it scratch any surface it sits on. So, I took the damaged MacBook into Best Buy in Springfield, VA and an hour later in line, I was informed that the laptop had to be sent into headquarters to be fixed taking up three weeks and stopping me from using my computer for school. I also found out that this so called, "three year" contract is fullfilled (a.k.a. voided) if they replace my computer. First off, why is it called a, "three year" plan if it can be voided by doing what its supposed to do. If thats the case, it should be called a three year or one replacement plan. I'm ridiculously vexed with Best Buy right now because I cannot get my computer fixed because I actually need it for class and if it were to be replaced, it would take slightly less time but it would void my service plan that I bought to cover me for, "three years." Anyhow if someone could get back to me with some advice I'd appreciate it. Oh yea, I would suggest that HQ mandates each and every agent to actually tell you about the service (FAIL) plan that you are being sold and not just inform you of its name. Once again I am terribly annoyed with Best Buy right now.

     To all the Moderators:

          I know that this is not your fault and that there may be little to nothing that you can do about this but the company you work for is failing with customer service and is indeed losing business from it. (Just thought you should let your superiors know about this.)

Thanks for your time and effort and I cannot wait to hear your comments on this.

Jon

P.S. How can I have spent this much on a laptop and a service plan to get turned around and bent over by the company that I bought it from?

[starhelper2587]

Somewhere in your original warranty info it should have stated that the warranty is fulfilled once a product is replaced.  It makes sense b/c if someone buys a $1000 TV and a $300 warranty (or whatever the cost) and the TV is replaced for another $1000 model 6 months later, that client paid $300 for a new TV instead of having to pay the extra $700 to make $1000.  I know most don't read the fine print in warranty or cc brochures, but it's a good practice to get into.

[Adamtech Emerging Expert]

Hi there and welcome to the Community! When an item is replaced due to accidental damage, the service plan is considered fulfilled and a new service plan may be purchased on the new item. Think about it this way, you dropped your Macbook  you got a brand new Macbook (an upgrade to the one you purchased ) for $399.99. Even through it is now fulfilled, it saved you from having to purchase a new computer.

It works the same for car insurance. You pay on October 1st for a 6 month policy. You total the vehicle on October 31st. The insurance company gives you the value of your car. You have to purchase a new policy on the new car with no monies from the previous policy carrying over or being refunded to you.

[Aaron-BBY Community Connector]

Hey Jon (J_F_E_D),

Both Adamtech and starhelper2587 have mentioned excellent situational examples, but there are a few things that I would like to clarify.

First and foremost, it’s important to understand that your Geek Squad® Black Tie Protection would only be considered fulfilled if your computer is replaced under your ADH coverage, our No Lemon policy, or after your factory warranty coverage has expired.  This means that Apple can approve the unit for exchange as many times as necessary while the original one-year warranty is still in effect and your service plan coverage would transfer over to the new unit each time.  Our service plans do not take the place of the factory warranty - they work in conjunction with it.

As far as repairs are concerned, please remember that while our in-store technicians are able to perform basic upgrades and software services on-site, they are not always authorized by every manufacturer to perform physical repairs under either your factory warranty or service plan coverage.  To ensure that your laptop is repaired to the manufacturer’s specifications, we require that all laptop hardware repairs be addressed by one of our off-site service centers.  It’s typically been my experience that most repairs take 2-3 weeks to complete, but rest assured that we strive to make sure each and every repair is completed as soon as possible.

Last, but not least, remember that you may always cancel your service plan if you are not satisfied with its coverage.  To do so, you would simply need to bring a copy of your original receipt to the customer service desk at your local Best Buy® store and an associate would be glad to help you out.

I hope this answers your questions, but please feel free to let us know if you need any additional assistance.