Warranty Thoughts
I had to look into an exceptionally poor (ongoing) warranty experience today. It made me run through a little self assessment of whether they are worth while or good value.
The case I looked at today was for a laptop from a major brand with a Next Business Day Warranty.
The brand new laptop started crashing after less than 40 days of ownership.
Basic diagnostics lead to raising case with HP who wanted the laptop reset.
After being reset and the issue remained
It took 4 business days to get the initial site visit.
Engineer arrived intending to replace a motherboard but determined the issue was an SSD problem and a replacement would need ordered.
Replacement SSD arrived 2 days later.
Operating System reinstalled by customer (not covered by warranty)
Laptop found to still have the same issue after testing
Warranty ticket re-raised and 3 business days later no call back from HP warranty support despite being chased.
Has next business day been of value under these circumstances? Its difficult to argue its not.
What should businesses and IT Managers be doing to get the best protection for their staff right now and should they still be buying warranties especially with people working from home? - Yes warranties are still important but here are some considerations.
Choose machines from a brand you trust
Get feedback from peers, colleagues and suppliers as to their experience.
Choose established product lines
Devices which have rigorous testing and quality standards and known lengthy support periods
Search online forums and reviews related to the machine of interest.
Look for positive and negative feedback on devices you might choose.
Look on social media for other customers support experience.
Again look for positive and negative feedback and how it is handled.
Remember most people don't shout about good experiences so weight the opinions carefully.
Machines will break, through wear, over use or by accident and whether that is covered or repairable in a timely manner under warranty will depend on the type of warranty and the nature of the issue.
The alternatives to having warranties:
Users are unable to work for days until repair is made or machine is replaced.
Keeping a stock pile of replacement laptops which will age and depreciate while not in use.
Do I think Next Business Day Warranties are worthwhile for businesses and business users? Yes I do. As long as they are from a reliable source and especially so if the machines are a solid work horse.