Tivo Dead - Telecom shop refused to do anything

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#421505 25-Dec-2010 16:36

ronw: I have a Tivo that has died and is out of warranty. Anyone any idea on what to do to get a repair and who can epair them?

If it's an NZ unit, it should still be covered under the Consumer Guarantees Act. In the first instance I'd follow the same path as if it was under warranty. If phoning the usual number doesn't help then take it back to the shop where you bought it or ring Telecom if you bought it over the phone.

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#427936 17-Jan-2011 11:31

freitasm: So my take on this:
- Customer should have been told when buying the TiVo how warranty/replacement works
- Customer should be reminded in store how warranty/replacement works when approaching store with a question.
- Sales person should have offered to place a call to TiVo and handed the phone over to customer
- Sales person should have said "I am sorry you are experiencing problems with a product we sold through our store. I will help you find a way to get this fixed as soon as possible."

This ^

I bought an Electrolux vacuum cleaner from Noel Leeming that needed repair three times in the first year, under warranty. Two months after the warranty expired it died again. The first person I spoke to at NL wasn't interested so I asked to speak to the manager. The vacuum was repaired within five days, at no cost.

Why tell this story? Telecom, Orb, TiVo, Hybrid, the CGA - it doesn't really matter. At the end of the day this a is customer service story. Phoning the 0800 number may be the only thing to do but that doesn't excuse the $#!T in-store service. Complain to the store manager. They are the one person who can do something about this, on the spot.

Another story: 21 years ago I bought a Fisher & Paykel fridge. 16 years and three international moves later it stopped working. I phoned F&P and the next day someone turned up with a loan fridge and mine was returned, repaired at no charge, within 10 days. Just this Christmas I bought a new $2500 stainless steel fridge. F&P was the only brand I looked at. Why? That one service experience.

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#427940 17-Jan-2011 11:52

Just a quick update on Tivo. It appears that once your warranty has expired you are on your own. There are no repair facilities in New Zealand. Tivo emailed me that the nearest support was AWA Sydney. I was more than happy to pay for support but sending it to Sydney is silly

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#427947 17-Jan-2011 12:01

Don't see why sending to Sydney is silly. It's no more hassle than sending to akl other than putting a little green sticker on it is it?

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#427948 17-Jan-2011 12:02

ronw: Just a quick update on Tivo. It appears that once your warranty has expired you are on your own. There are no repair facilities in New Zealand. Tivo emailed me that the nearest support was AWA Sydney. I was more than happy to pay for support but sending it to Sydney is silly

That goes against the CGA straight away:

From:
http://www.consumer.org.nz/reports/consumer-guarantees-act/introduction

Manufacturers (the definition includes importers) in New Zealand guarantee that:

Spare parts and repair facilities will be available for a reasonable time.

They will honour any written warranty that comes with their products.

Goods are of acceptable quality.

Goods match their description.

and:

Manufacturers and importers
If there is a problem you can complain to the manufacturer, if it has an office in New Zealand, or where the goods are imported, to the importer or distributor.

Where there has been a breach of the Act, manufacturers and importers are obliged to:

Pay compensation, and/or pay for any loss in value; and

Honour any express warranty they gave which gives the consumer greater protection than in the Act.

Complaining to the manufacturer is useful when, for example, the retailer has gone out of business or is proving hopeless to deal with. But in most cases it should be easier to insist on your rights directly with the retailer.

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#427952 17-Jan-2011 12:05

andar:
sbiddle: The Tivo website clearly outlines the process.

They'll even courier you a new replacement device to set up before you even need to return the old one to them!

http://support.mytivo.co.nz/index.php?sid=110897⟨=en&action=artikel&cat=31&id=30&artlang=en

Yep, it does. But I purchased this from a shop so I should be able to return it that shop.

If I wanted support from someone I can't see I would buy it online. I buy stuff from shops in New Zealand because under the law they have to support it.............unless you are Telecom.

Havent read through the rest of the thread yet, but I thought I might clarify...

Consumer protection laws (the CGA) basically state:

It is the retailers responsibility to repair / refund / replace (under certain conditions).

However, this doesn't prevent the retailer from having an arrangement with another company to handle all that.

Telecom have TiVo service available via courier and 0800, and not through the store, likely meets its obligations under the CGA (and in fact in my opinion is a very good way of handling things, rather than training every retail store staff member at every dealer).

It is only once the obligations are not met (ie poor/no service from that 0800 team) that the retailer would then be required to step in and carry out a CGA refund/repair/replace.

If you want to push the letter of the law and make the retailer do everything, then go for it, but as outlined on page 1, you *will* end up with poorer service, by not taking advantage of the after-sales channel set up by the manufacturer.

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#427982 17-Jan-2011 12:44

DonGould: Don't see why sending to Sydney is silly. It's no more hassle than sending to akl other than putting a little green sticker on it is it?

The cost of shipping it to and from Ozz will most likely cost about the same as the repair cost. This is one the most expensive parts of the world to ship stuff to and from..

Regards,

Old3eyes

ronw

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#428045 17-Jan-2011 14:41

It would be expensive to ship to Sydney. As far as I know, Tivo do not repair units they ship you a reconditioned unit for a flat fee. However this is only for machines under warranty which is one year. Once it is out of warranty its not their problem.
Incidentally with Tivo's now selling for $366 to $400 it is probably easier to buy a new unit.
After talking to telecoms 0800 centre I get the feeling that Tivo may not last the distance in New Zealand. It would be a shame if they give up the New Zealand market but the fact that they have no repair sites in New Zealand may be a pointer to them not expecting to be around in 12 months. With Sky and Maori holding out on the EPG I would suggest that Freeview DTR might be a better choice than Tivo. I like the TiVo database system but realize that it takes more to support TiVo than say Magic DTR

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#428073 17-Jan-2011 15:41

If your TiVoHD fails outside of warranty you can get in contact with Darren King (in Australia unfortunately). He knows what he is doing and has repaired Series 1 TiVos for many years.
http://www.kingey1971.com/tivo/index.htm
If it is just the HDD that has failed and you are in Chch, then I can help you with that.

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#428265 17-Jan-2011 23:21

ronw:
After talking to telecoms 0800 centre I get the feeling that Tivo may not last the distance in New Zealand. It would be a shame if they give up the New Zealand market but the fact that they have no repair sites in New Zealand may be a pointer to them not expecting to be around in 12 months. With Sky and Maori holding out on the EPG I would suggest that Freeview DTR might be a better choice than Tivo. I like the TiVo database system but realize that it takes more to support TiVo than say Magic DTR

I have to admit I wondered if Hybrid can continue to support TiVo in NZ based on their abysmal sales and poor Caspa/DRM system that few people would be using. This raises an interesting question. If Hybrid drop support of the TiVo, they'll be no EPG, hence the TiVo will no longer be fit for purpose. Like many others, we're paying Telecom $10 a month over three years until we own it. What happens if Hybrid disappear before then? Does it become Telecom's problem? Do we stop paying and dump it on their doorstep? Sure hope it doesn't come to that. The hardware is fantastic and Hybrid have only themselves to blame for poor marketing and Caspa implementation.

Tivo upgrades to operate with the new OzTivo EPG, support and service. Over 400 performed here so far. See: www.hillcrest.net.nz

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#428269 17-Jan-2011 23:31

Spong:If Hybrid drop support of the TiVo, they'll be no EPG, hence the TiVo will no longer be fit for purpose. Like many others, we're paying Telecom $10 a month over three years until we own it. What happens if Hybrid disappear before then?

If it came to that, hopefully it might be possible to get the community emulator to support TiVoHD. Currently it only supports Series1 TiVos.

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#428285 18-Jan-2011 00:40

Spong:
ronw:
After talking to telecoms 0800 centre I get the feeling that Tivo may not last the distance in New Zealand. It would be a shame if they give up the New Zealand market but the fact that they have no repair sites in New Zealand may be a pointer to them not expecting to be around in 12 months. With Sky and Maori holding out on the EPG I would suggest that Freeview DTR might be a better choice than Tivo. I like the TiVo database system but realize that it takes more to support TiVo than say Magic DTR

I have to admit I wondered if Hybrid can continue to support TiVo in NZ based on their abysmal sales and poor Caspa/DRM system that few people would be using. This raises an interesting question. If Hybrid drop support of the TiVo, they'll be no EPG, hence the TiVo will no longer be fit for purpose. Like many others, we're paying Telecom $10 a month over three years until we own it. What happens if Hybrid disappear before then? Does it become Telecom's problem? Do we stop paying and dump it on their doorstep? Sure hope it doesn't come to that. The hardware is fantastic and Hybrid have only themselves to blame for poor marketing and Caspa implementation.

interesting question. Even if Hybrid stopped selling TiVos you would think they would still have a responsibility to service them for a reasonable amount of time (don't know what that would be,5-10 years maybe)

It;snot like hybrid are some forign company that can just quit NZ altogether, they are owned (part owned?) by TVNZ

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#428287 18-Jan-2011 00:48

It is an interesting question. If this is all Hybrid do then the company could be wound up, in which case there's little anyone can do.

However the people who purchased on Telecom do have some recourse to just get a refund if Telecom can't fix or replace the units.

I do agree if the EPG isn't supported then it's no longer fit for the purpose you purchased it for. This is one of the risks of selling a product that's subscription based. However I'm interested to hear what others think. It's a curly one in my view.

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#428288 18-Jan-2011 01:47

DonGould: It is an interesting question. If this is all Hybrid do then the company could be wound up, in which case there's little anyone can do.

However the people who purchased on Telecom do have some recourse to just get a refund if Telecom can't fix or replace the units.

I do agree if the EPG isn't supported then it's no longer fit for the purpose you purchased it for. This is one of the risks of selling a product that's subscription based. However I'm interested to hear what others think. It's a curly one in my view.

That is actually the whole problem with the cloud computing model too.

Those who purchased the tivo through telecom are protected by the CGA, for perhaps at least 5 years, which I would think would be reasonable life for that priced product (originally over $750), if not longer. I would suggest that anyone who has one of these things fail after the warranty runs out, to just take it to your local telecom store, and let them handle all the transport costs. Sending to Australia and having to handle the transportation costs, which are huge, as it is a huge box, is unreasonable, and I a, sure would go against the CGA.
I actually had a similar problem with another company that subcontracted out product support offshore, and they wanted me to send the item to them to Australia at my cost, and that was within the warranty period. I just took it back to the retailer and got a refund as I wasn't going to be mucked around.

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#428318 18-Jan-2011 09:20

DonGould: It is an interesting question. If this is all Hybrid do then the company could be wound up, in which case there's little anyone can do.

However the people who purchased on Telecom do have some recourse to just get a refund if Telecom can't fix or replace the units.

I do agree if the EPG isn't supported then it's no longer fit for the purpose you purchased it for. This is one of the risks of selling a product that's subscription based. However I'm interested to hear what others think. It's a curly one in my view.

a small correction. TiVo is not subsacription based.
Do not confuse a financing agreement (paying the unit off over 2 years) with a subscription/monthly rental.

that doesn't invalidate the rest of what you said though.

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