I purchased a verizon handset from gentconnected in mid-march and the phone has experienced a slow and painful regression into a state of constant soft and hard resets. So I talked to the good folks at Kyocera and they sent me a replacement handset, pre-authorized a $700 charge on my credit card and gave me five (5) days to return my original handset.
Well, provided my original handset is returned within five days and indeed is a lemon (if it's not,then the term "lemon" needs to be redefined for me), Kyocera will not charge my credit card. However, if they determine my old handset was a-ok, then I can get hit for up to $700. Now odds are, I'm in the clear here. The old phone had no cosmetic defects, it simply malfunctioned. But I'm wondering if anyone else out there had a similar experience, sent in a phone they thought was a dud, but later got hit on the credit card. I read about an experience similar to mine on epinions.com and am now more than a little nervous.
Originally posted by emeyer88 I purchased a verizon handset from gentconnected in mid-march and the phone has experienced a slow and painful regression into a state of constant soft and hard resets. So I talked to the good folks at Kyocera and they sent me a replacement handset, pre-authorized a $700 charge on my credit card and gave me five (5) days to return my original handset.
Well, provided my original handset is returned within five days and indeed is a lemon (if it's not,then the term "lemon" needs to be redefined for me), Kyocera will not charge my credit card. However, if they determine my old handset was a-ok, then I can get hit for up to $700. Now odds are, I'm in the clear here. The old phone had no cosmetic defects, it simply malfunctioned. But I'm wondering if anyone else out there had a similar experience, sent in a phone they thought was a dud, but later got hit on the credit card. I read about an experience similar to mine on epinions.com and am now more than a little nervous.
Thanks.
Eric
I have not heard of that. When I had problems with my first 7135, Kyocera replaced it at their discretion based on what my answers to their questions and my description of the problem. If they think the situation warrants a replacement, then you shouldn't be on the hook for anything beyond sending your old 7135 back to them.
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Re: Re: Obtaining a replacement phone from Kyocera
Quote:
Originally posted by Robert K. I have not heard of that. When I had problems with my first 7135, Kyocera replaced it at their discretion based on what my answers to their questions and my description of the problem. If they think the situation warrants a replacement, then you shouldn't be on the hook for anything beyond sending your old 7135 back to them.
I've been talking to Kyo about a possible replacement for a recharging issue. They have authorized an advance replacement but have made it clear that if they determine the phone is not defective once they get it, they will charge me the $770 and will NOT give me a chance to get my old phone back. If it is defective, but they determine there is cosmetic damage, they charge me $51. The only out is that I can return the new phone before I send the old one back and not be charged. But, once I send the old phone to Kyo, there is no way to get it back. This is an expensive gamble that leaves you totally subject to their decision. Since I do not know how tough they are being and my problem does not happen consistently, I am reluctant to send the phone back under this plan.
Re: Re: Re: Obtaining a replacement phone from Kyocera
Quote:
Originally posted by Lnoble I've been talking to Kyo about a possible replacement for a recharging issue. They have authorized an advance replacement but have made it clear that if they determine the phone is not defective once they get it, they will charge me the $770 and will NOT give me a chance to get my old phone back. If it is defective, but they determine there is cosmetic damage, they charge me $51. The only out is that I can return the new phone before I send the old one back and not be charged. But, once I send the old phone to Kyo, there is no way to get it back. This is an expensive gamble that leaves you totally subject to their decision. Since I do not know how tough they are being and my problem does not happen consistently, I am reluctant to send the phone back under this plan.
Yeah, I don't like the sound of that arrangement either!
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Re: Re: Re: Obtaining a replacement phone from Kyocera
Quote:
Originally posted by Lnoble I've been talking to Kyo about a possible replacement for a recharging issue. They have authorized an advance replacement but have made it clear that if they determine the phone is not defective once they get it, they will charge me the $770 and will NOT give me a chance to get my old phone back. If it is defective, but they determine there is cosmetic damage, they charge me $51. The only out is that I can return the new phone before I send the old one back and not be charged. But, once I send the old phone to Kyo, there is no way to get it back. This is an expensive gamble that leaves you totally subject to their decision. Since I do not know how tough they are being and my problem does not happen consistently, I am reluctant to send the phone back under this plan.
You should have the option to just send your current phone back to have them make a 'call' on it before you get a new phone. The only drawback is that you are out your phone for a week or so.
I am returning my phone as it has display problems. I had the option for them to repair mine by sending it in and being without it, or doing the advanced replacement and them temproarliy chargin me the $770 until they get my damaged phone back.
I did opt for the advanced replacement option, but my case is clearly cut and dry. If it was not, I would be hating life and reactivating my StarTac and overnighting my phone to Kyo.
Jeff
__________________ Jeff Tampa FL
Blackberry 7230 w/ T-Mobile
My 7135 just died I got it from verizon last week on friday, last night it just went dead did a soft & hard reset also removed the battery and the palm logo comes up and just blinks over and over went to verizon today and the tech looked at it and said he will return it and ordered me a new one from the warehouse in rochester ny and I will have it on tuesday
I also contacted Kyocera about some problems I'm having with my display and battery which doesn't want to hold it's charge. I too opted for the advanced replacement option.
Kyocera sent me a follow up email saying that the replacement phone will be "REFURBISHED". I called up and voiced my disapproval about getting a refurbished phone, especially since my current phone cost me over $600 and is only a few months old. After my conversation, they agreed to send me a brand new one. But based on what I'm reading here, I am reluctant to send my old one back for fear that they may decide there's nothing wrong with my unit and then slam me with a $700 charge on my credit card. If so, rest assured it will be disputed!
Everyone should take note that Kyocera's replacements are going to be refurbished. Below is a copy of the email I received from them regarding the replacement:
· Advanced Replacement Option
a. You have elected to have a handset in like new condition shipped to you within one to two business days, prior to Kyocera Wireless receiving your original handset back*. The product returned to Kyocera Wireless Corp. must be in like new condition, free of the following (including but not limited to, scratches or cracks on the display, cracks in the plastic housing, missing or broken keys) If it is determined that the original handset does not meet these standards you will be charged for cosmetic replacements. Your replacement phone will arrive with packaging and a pre-paid shipping label to be used to ship your original handset back to KWC. We will need to pre-authorize an amount of $700 plus tax to secure the return of your original phone. In the event the phone is not returned to Kyocera Wireless within 5 business days from receiving your replacement phone, the $700 cost of the replacement phone will be charged to your credit card.
b. Upon receipt, your phone will be examined and tested. If it is determined that a manufacturing defect is not present, there will be a Inspection and Testing Fee. As stated within the consumer limited warranty if we identify any customer caused damage or cosmetic repair, (including, but not limited to, scratches or cracks on the display, cracks in the plastic housing, missing or broken keys, water damage, etc…) at the time your original handset is received, repair or cosmetic replacement charges may be applied to your credit card. This charge will not be billed if the repair is covered under your Consumer Limited Warranty and the phone is returned
*Note: The replacement phone is a refurbished handset.
Everyone should take note that Kyocera's replacements are going to be refurbished. Below is a copy of the email I received from them regarding the replacement:
· Advanced Replacement Option
a. You have elected to have a handset in like new condition shipped to you within one to two business days, prior to Kyocera Wireless receiving your original handset back*. The product returned to Kyocera Wireless Corp. must be in like new condition, free of the following (including but not limited to, scratches or cracks on the display, cracks in the plastic housing, missing or broken keys) If it is determined that the original handset does not meet these standards you will be charged for cosmetic replacements. Your replacement phone will arrive with packaging and a pre-paid shipping label to be used to ship your original handset back to KWC. We will need to pre-authorize an amount of $700 plus tax to secure the return of your original phone. In the event the phone is not returned to Kyocera Wireless within 5 business days from receiving your replacement phone, the $700 cost of the replacement phone will be charged to your credit card.
b. Upon receipt, your phone will be examined and tested. If it is determined that a manufacturing defect is not present, there will be a Inspection and Testing Fee. As stated within the consumer limited warranty if we identify any customer caused damage or cosmetic repair, (including, but not limited to, scratches or cracks on the display, cracks in the plastic housing, missing or broken keys, water damage, etc…) at the time your original handset is received, repair or cosmetic replacement charges may be applied to your credit card. This charge will not be billed if the repair is covered under your Consumer Limited Warranty and the phone is returned
*Note: The replacement phone is a refurbished handset.
I received the exact same e-mail when I returned my handset.
The $700 charge for sending in a phone that they may decide is not a "lemon" sounds nuts. At least "Inspection and Testing Fee" sounds more reasonable, giving the impression of being more on the order of a standard restocking fee.... Did they give an indication of how much this would be, or did they say 700 as well??
I've been thinking about this, though.... I was thinking about the fact that Verizon will be "officially" releasing in a week, and how a few people have commented in passing about how their Alltel-bought-Verizon-activated phones may suddenly suffer an "accident", so that a phone with firmware upgrade can be had immediately. I wonder if Kyocera is fearing a rash of specious warranty claims, and trying to guard against this, to keep their supply of phones for new buyers? Just trying to think if there's any sense behind this strange policy.... And maybe being hopeful that once the Verizon release is over, and any initial rush of people who bought and found glitches with their new phones has passed, Kyocera will adopt a more customer-friendly procedure.
Originally posted by turboCat The $700 charge for sending in a phone that they may decide is not a "lemon" sounds nuts. At least "Inspection and Testing Fee" sounds more reasonable, giving the impression of being more on the order of a standard restocking fee.... Did they give an indication of how much this would be, or did they say 700 as well??
But they are not charging a $700 dollar fee for inspection. This is smart business here and is the norm for expensive advance replacement.
First, the $700 is only authorized, it's not charged yet. Basically, it earmarks the money for them if they need it.
The ONLY time that you will be charged the $700 is if Kyocera tells the credit card to charge the $700 because they didn't recieve it.
Second, an inspection fee is not that weird. I would personally do the same thing. If someone sends in a phone that is not faulty, they should have to pay for the tech's time and shipping costs. I bet the cost would be about $50-$100 for shipping and time cost. The best part of this is that they already have you authorized for up to $700, so if you are trying to scam them to get a newer phone, they could put in $100 off of the $700 authoriziation and there's no way to stop them.
All in all, this is exactly what I would expect when sending in items for repair.
Of course I would be pissed if there was a problem and they claimed otherwise.
If they truly charged you $700 for a new phone and kept the "non lemon" phone, they would be opening themselves up for a lawsuit, because you've paid for two phones, both which they would claim is free of defect, and you only have one in your posession
Dan
Jazzman, sorry if my above post was unclear. I was responding to the following two quotes:
emeyer88: "However, if they determine my old handset was a-ok, then I can get hit for up to $700."
Lnoble: "They have authorized an advance replacement but have made it clear that if they determine the phone is not defective once they get it, they will charge me the $770 and will NOT give me a chance to get my old phone back."
I was saying that a restocking fee was normal. The fact that it's a perfectly sound business practice, which makes sense particularly given the fear that customers will try to use a warranty return to get a quick software upgrade, was exactly my point. OTOH, Lnoble's quote in particular indicated that they would charge the entire $770, even if they had the phone back, if it was not found defective. It was this that I was saying was not a friendly impression to give to a customer.
Well I got my advanced replacement phone today. It was a brand new 7135 in the box with all the accessories. The only difference in the phone was the little ALLTEL logo between the main display and the grafitti area instead of the 7135 that was on my original Get Connected version. This is ok with me seeing as my service is with ALLTEL.
The only thing I opened was the phone and I swapped out the battery cover. I even kept my original battery.
Got the phone activated and restored my back up and I was off to the races.
All in all a decent experience.
All I need to do now is call Airbourne to pick up the package to get it back to Kyocera.
The only dissapointment was that the ALLTEL firmware was the same as the original Get Connected phone...no update. BUT, since I have had no major problems (knocking on wood :smash)... I guess all is good!
Jeff
__________________ Jeff Tampa FL
Blackberry 7230 w/ T-Mobile
Originally posted by turboCat OTOH, Lnoble's quote in particular indicated that they would charge the entire $770, even if they had the phone back, if it was not found defective. It was this that I was saying was not a friendly impression to give to a customer.
Here is the question I asked Kyo support:
"My question: If you decide for any reason that the phone is not replaceable under warranty, will I be given a chance to return the new phone and get back my old phone to avoid the charges?"
The answer:
"If your handset has a scratch on the front housing, there would be a cosmetic charge of $51 to your credit card. However, if your phone is deemed un repairable then you would NOT have the option of returning your advance replacement unit to avoid charges. "
In light of the back and forth I had with them, I took this to mean that if they decided it was not a warranty issue, they would just charge me and I could not undo the swap.
I'm sticking with my original phone, especially in light of the problems people are having with the newer versions.
Originally posted by Lnoble Here is the question I asked Kyo support:
"My question: If you decide for any reason that the phone is not replaceable under warranty, will I be given a chance to return the new phone and get back my old phone to avoid the charges?"
The answer:
"If your handset has a scratch on the front housing, there would be a cosmetic charge of $51 to your credit card. However, if your phone is deemed un repairable then you would NOT have the option of returning your advance replacement unit to avoid charges. "
In light of the back and forth I had with them, I took this to mean that if they decided it was not a warranty issue, they would just charge me and I could not undo the swap.
I'm sticking with my original phone, especially in light of the problems people are having with the newer versions.
That is bogus man. I wonder what was happening that brought all of this about? Did you get the impression that by "unrepairable" they were referring to a hardware issue? (what kind of software issues could you be at fault for irrepairably "breaking"?). It doesn't make much sense to me the way they are now approaching swaps.
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The background is that my phone doesn't always charge to 100%. Kyo support "thinks" it is a problem with my 7135's internal charger since the batteries charge to 100% if put in the cradle outside the phone. Because the problem is intermittent, I wonder whether it is a software problem with the way the apps are measuring the battery charge. Because the phone otherwise works well, I don't want them to get the phone and then decide it was not a problem with the phone. Given that background (some of which was covered in phone conversations with support), I took the answer to be that if the phone is not something they can "repair" I am charged for the new phone. I agree it doesn't make much sense--and maybe there is a misunderstanding, but I'm not taking a chance.
What I heard from Kyo about the potential charges for advance replacement:
$770 temporary charge (permanent if you don't return the defective unit in 5 days)
$51 for cosmetic damage
$28 if they determine nothing was wrong with the supposed "defective" unit
Originally posted by KLiuLess What I heard from Kyo about the potential charges for advance replacement:
$770 temporary charge (permanent if you don't return the defective unit in 5 days)
$51 for cosmetic damage
$28 if they determine nothing was wrong with the supposed "defective" unit
This sounds much more reasonable. I assume from the other posts that there is a good chance it will be a refurbished phone.
Originally posted by Lnoble This sounds much more reasonable. I assume from the other posts that there is a good chance it will be a refurbished phone.
Yup mine will definitely be a refurb. The word the rep used was "rebuilt".
Also, she said that it would be an Alltel to match the defective one, and not a VZ. Too bad... ok, not so bad, I just want a usable 7135 (should be arriving today, yay!)
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