Android, iOS & Mobile Phones

[Benecya]

How Do Warranty Service Contract Buyouts Work?

Recently when reviewing MOTOROLA's warranty information, I can across an odd phrase in section 7:

"After We authorize Your claim, We will at Our option complete the lesser of (a) the repair of Your product with new or refurbished parts, (b) replace it with a new or a refurbished product with comparable specifications or (c) Buyout your contract for the lesser of current market value of a Product with comparable specifications or retail price paid for Your Product minus sales tax and claims paid. The decision to repair, replace or Buyout will be made solely by Us. If Your product requires repair, service will be provided by an authorized service center, the retailer or dealer where Your Service Contract was purchased or by subcontractors. Onsite, Carry-In, or Mail-In Depot Service will be determined by Us at Our determination, unless You have purchased Onsite service. You may be asked to provide proof of purchase as a condition for receiving service under this Service Contract. Your original purchase receipt should be kept with this service Contract in a safe place. Onsite service where applicable requires clear, complete and easy access to the product by the authorized servicer and does not include removal or re-installation of an installed product. It is possible that certain onsite repairs will not be completed onsite, but will require that the product or parts of the product, at the servicer’s discretion be removed for shop diagnosis and/or repair and then returned. If onsite service cannot be attempted in Your residence due to environmental and/or technical requirements, or if You are located more than fifty (50) miles from the nearest authorized service center, the cost to transport and/or ship Your Product for service will be covered under Your service plan and will go against Our maximum liability owed to You under this Service Contract."

What does this mean? Are they talking about the warranty contract or the service contract? Prorated minus the current market value or the value of the device at the time of purchase (divisible by twelve months) minus the value of months utilizes....

Help!!!!

[Benecya]

Can MOTOROLA option to buy me out of the warranty if the cost to replace/repair/service the device will exceed its current market value? $449 for the remaining months left in my warranty period, then I can just end this nightmare with my unsupported end-of-life device I bought with a subsidy and move on to an unlocked droid maxx 2???? Possible? Or am I being unrealistic?

[avm5689 Contributor]

Hmm..... I'm not quite sure about this one. My guess would be to ask Motorola about it? I mean, they wrote it, so hopefully they know what this is about. 

[Benecya]

Have you ever heard of something like this? Seeing that best buy would call in the authorized reseller/retail agent category who both honors warranties of manufacturers and occasionally doing repairs on their behalf, have you ever come across a clause like that? Seems like more manufacturers would prefer to discharge a warranty obligation for a device they no longer support rather than repair it... I'll let you know what they say and get back to you

[Tasha-BBY Retired: Social Media Specialist]

Good morning Benecya, 

While you would need to speak to Motorola directly regarding the specifics of their warranty, it sounds quite a bit like our Geek Squad Protect and Support plan. At our discretion, we may repair a device with new or refurbished parts, replace the product with a refurbished or new unit of like kind and quality, and if neither of those two are an option, we would then look at providing you with a store credit of the current market value up to the purchase price. 

The option that you are worried about sounds like they would compare the current market value of a comparable product to the price you actually paid (minus taxes and claims) for the device you are having serviced, and they would provide you with some form of a refund for the lesser value of the two. I imagine this option would only be looked into if they are unable to perform a repair or provide a replacement device. However, as I mentioned, I would encourage you to reach out to Motorola for specifics on their warranty.  

I hope this helps! 

[Zion21]

With all this legal walls of text who can really figure it out? You never know what you are getting into

[Benecya]

I figured out that they said if I ever need help figuring it out it was the responsibility of every employee at MOTOROLA. Which is obviously a farce because I've resorted to asking best buy when everyone at MOTOROLA kept playing answer everything but the question I asked games. This is pitiful, why right something in the contract if you aren't Willing to acknowledge its existence, how can I be accountable for compliance if no one knows what the standards are. It's insane. Everyone o talked to made me repeatedly give them verification info instead of transferring me or finding the answer in their training manual or anything. Then like magic we'd be disconnected. Had to start all over. Thinking about writing them snail mail to see if they don't receive it.