Question for those who have claimed warranty on PBTech electronic goods

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Sinuation

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#2852056 17-Jan-2022 11:18

grimwulf:

In my experience, PB tech - at least in the Wellington branch have been helpful.

Things that can be easily switched to another machine like CPU/Graphics cards/memory they generally do themselves in store - the one time I had a motherboard issue, it had to go up to Auckland because they couldn't test it in Wellington.

I know it's easy to get worked up and start chanting about the CGA - but for complex technology parts like this that aren't enclosed replaceable devices - the retailer's frankly doing you a favor by testing/troubleshooting before returning to the manufacturer. The RMA process with overseas manufacturers is a hit and miss merry go round.

(There is a flip side, Noel Leemings for example use this 'repair' option as a default - I bought some earbuds from them that had an easily replicatable fault that I demonstrated in store - they insisted that it needed assessemnt/repair and charged me when it came back stating there was nothing wrong with it. Turned them back on in store, and what do you know, same problem. Had to FIGHT them for a refund...)

It may be the case that there's nothing wrong with the motherboard itself, thus, PB's troubleshooting potentially could save you a lengthy month+ of RMA waiting. When mine did have to go off for RMA, when the 'new' one came back PB tested that one and it had the same fault!! So they then offered to swap to a different manufacturer's board and I went away happy.

Echo the other comments here about the time of year too - kinda have to give them the benefit of the doubt - everyone needs a break, and even then, it's a very busy shopping period so that means a higher than usual returns/testing/RMA queue too.

I know firsthand the pain here, but I was happy to have the PB techs handle the RMA for me frankly - there are plenty of horror stories on the web of trying to deal with some manufacturers overseas helplines directly...

By all mean's I'd suggest contacting them for an ETA - but my advice would be to give them a break - at the end of it all if you're not happy with the outcome - you can use that information when making your next purchase.

Problem is, is I've personally tested the motherboard myself and even had a third party do it for a sanity check. Both of us came with the conclusion that it was dead.

My contacting methods, aside from physically showing up, seem to bear no fruit. I'd love an ETA, honestly.

Sinuation

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#2852058 17-Jan-2022 11:22

sparkz25:

Sinuation:

The GPU is around a month or two old.

The motherboard is older at a year and a half.

Both are within warranty.

Ahhhh good luck, you need to keep at them! We are still waiting on a main board that failed 4-5months ago for an RMA to be sorted!.

I personally brought a New MSI board when the 5900x came out and it was faulty from day one, took it back 2-3 days later after hours of testing and fault finding and all i got told was that they will have to send it away to get tested!

I was a bit dumbfounded really, no matter how much arguing or reasoning i did with them they would not replace it, as it was clearly faulty, and wouldn't post at al unless you re-flashed the bios every time you started it up, in the end i told the guy at parts/service to stick it and that i would be going higher got the paper work and went to my account manager and told him that it was a load of S*** and that he needed to pull finger.

I Ended up walking out the door with a new Gigabyte Mainboard and its worked perfect ever since!

Ring them now and chase them up! then keep at them every day.

Weirdest thing for me is that, a few years prior, I saw them testing the motherboard in-front of my own eyes. And they concluded it was dead and gave me no hassle for a replacement.

Now they can't do the same thing that they've done for me before? Bit odd, honestly.

If it takes any longer I'll likely do something with CGA or follow ups. More than half a month of waiting kinda sucks.

Can't ring em either, the call just ends by itself and no one seems to pick up.

wratterus

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#2852061 17-Jan-2022 11:27

That time frame is fairly standard at the moment. I think they are under the pump pretty hard.

Lias

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#2852247 17-Jan-2022 13:02

1101:

The cga is very straightforward. You should read it sometime.

no its not.

using phrases such as reasonable time etc .
So much just isnt straight forward in the CGA, much is open to interpretation .

Reasonable time : expecting issues to be resolved QUICKLY during holiday periods is not reasonable

Returns/replacements need to be processed/approved by PBT's supplier .

I disagree (but IANAL). Yes, some parts of the CGA are ambiguous and open to interpretation, but when you view the legislation as a whole, and consider the purposes outlined under section 1A, it should be clear that the goal of the legislation is always for the benefit of the consumer. In my view (and again IANAL), where there is ambiguity, it should always be interpreted in the favour of the consumer because of that defined purpose. The legislation does not take into consideration delays due to staff on holiday, supply chain shortages, the great resignation, upstream supplier problems, or anything else. PB Tech is a large nationwide company, it is not at all unreasonable to expect them to maintain staffing levels over the summer period. The law allows the consumer to reject the goods if the supplier doesn't remedy the issue within a reasonable time. I think two weeks is more than reasonable time to test the motherboard and confirm it's faulty. What is happening here of course is that PB Tech doesn't want to refund or replace with new, because eventually in a month or two they will most get a refurbished board from their upstream. They want the consumer to wait that timeframe, so that they are not out of pocket. The law does not offer them that luxury.

As the goods have "failure of substantial character" (e.g. they are not working as opposed to minor faults), OP can simply reject the goods and choose a replacement or a refund (OP's choice, not PB Tech's). Even if the faults were minor, IMHO OP could reject them for not having remedied the failure within a reasonable time.

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Sinuation

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#2852323 17-Jan-2022 16:26

Lias:

I disagree (but IANAL). Yes, some parts of the CGA are ambiguous and open to interpretation, but when you view the legislation as a whole, and consider the purposes outlined under section 1A, it should be clear that the goal of the legislation is always for the benefit of the consumer. In my view (and again IANAL), where there is ambiguity, it should always be interpreted in the favour of the consumer because of that defined purpose. The legislation does not take into consideration delays due to staff on holiday, supply chain shortages, the great resignation, upstream supplier problems, or anything else. PB Tech is a large nationwide company, it is not at all unreasonable to expect them to maintain staffing levels over the summer period. The law allows the consumer to reject the goods if the supplier doesn't remedy the issue within a reasonable time. I think two weeks is more than reasonable time to test the motherboard and confirm it's faulty. What is happening here of course is that PB Tech doesn't want to refund or replace with new, because eventually in a month or two they will most get a refurbished board from their upstream. They want the consumer to wait that timeframe, so that they are not out of pocket. The law does not offer them that luxury.

As the goods have "failure of substantial character" (e.g. they are not working as opposed to minor faults), OP can simply reject the goods and choose a replacement or a refund (OP's choice, not PB Tech's). Even if the faults were minor, IMHO OP could reject them for not having remedied the failure within a reasonable time.

Yeah I'd rather not get a refurbished board at all, if I can help it. Motherboards are too complex to get refurbished, imo.

Handle9

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#2852325 17-Jan-2022 16:33

grimwulf:
In my experience, PB tech - at least in the Wellington branch have been helpful.

Things that can be easily switched to another machine like CPU/Graphics cards/memory they generally do themselves in store - the one time I had a motherboard issue, it had to go up to Auckland because they couldn't test it in Wellington.

I know it's easy to get worked up and start chanting about the CGA - but for complex technology parts like this that aren't enclosed replaceable devices - the retailer's frankly doing you a favor by testing/troubleshooting before returning to the manufacturer. The RMA process with overseas manufacturers is a hit and miss merry go round.

(There is a flip side, Noel Leemings for example use this 'repair' option as a default - I bought some earbuds from them that had an easily replicatable fault that I demonstrated in store - they insisted that it needed assessemnt/repair and charged me when it came back stating there was nothing wrong with it. Turned them back on in store, and what do you know, same problem. Had to FIGHT them for a refund...)

It may be the case that there's nothing wrong with the motherboard itself, thus, PB's troubleshooting potentially could save you a lengthy month+ of RMA waiting. When mine did have to go off for RMA, when the 'new' one came back PB tested that one and it had the same fault!! So they then offered to swap to a different manufacturer's board and I went away happy.

Echo the other comments here about the time of year too - kinda have to give them the benefit of the doubt - everyone needs a break, and even then, it's a very busy shopping period so that means a higher than usual returns/testing/RMA queue too.

I know firsthand the pain here, but I was happy to have the PB techs handle the RMA for me frankly - there are plenty of horror stories on the web of trying to deal with some manufacturers overseas helplines directly...

By all mean's I'd suggest contacting them for an ETA - but my advice would be to give them a break - at the end of it all if you're not happy with the outcome - you can use that information when making your next purchase.

They are not “doing you a favour”. The absolute bare minimum of customer service isn’t doing you a favour, it’s you getting what you paid for.

Once again any applicable manufacturer delays are not the OPs problem. That is for the retailer to manage. Given PBtech are also the importer for a fair bit of their gear it’s basically a double failure.

It shouldn’t be necessary to push the CGA if they provided any level of customer service but it is.

MaxineN

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#2852330 17-Jan-2022 16:41

Sinuation:

Problem is, is I've personally tested the motherboard myself and even had a third party do it for a sanity check. Both of us came with the conclusion that it was dead.

My contacting methods, aside from physically showing up, seem to bear no fruit. I'd love an ETA, honestly.

Anecdotal but in my personal experience, they've tested everything I have taken in for RMA at the Hornby mega store and they've immediately determined on the spot that yes, whatever it was, it was faulty. From a laptop charger to a literal DoA Z590 Vision D and a chair that broke at no fault of my own.

I guess this all comes down to who you get and at what store.

In my honest opinion and I am going to piss off a few select people but I think you should be hounding them more and also I think you are absolutely entitled to reasonable service and a reasonable experience. This ain't it and some folks are either too used to waiting forever or don't realize that everyone is back at work and this should have been looked at already. Hell they should have been able to test the motherboard at the store. My main store tested mine on the spot and agreed with me. Immediate replacement, no fuss no hassle. Such a shame that they've forgotten about you and forgotten that they can test motherboards on site at the store, it's not hard. You wouldn't be the first person they've forgotten however and surely won't be the last.

Go and hound them. You're the customer and you deserve a reasonable experience and a reasonable time frame. 2 weeks is getting borderline crazy, even for holidays. I don't know how someone can think it's okay to wait 2 weeks when you can test a motherboard on site and immediately find out it's dead.

Ramblings from a mysterious lady who's into tech. Warning I may often create zingers.

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Handle9

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#2852346 17-Jan-2022 16:54

Lias:
1101:

no its not.

using phrases such as reasonable time etc .
So much just isnt straight forward in the CGA, much is open to interpretation .

Reasonable time : expecting issues to be resolved QUICKLY during holiday periods is not reasonable

Returns/replacements need to be processed/approved by PBT's supplier .

I disagree (but IANAL). Yes, some parts of the CGA are ambiguous and open to interpretation, but when you view the legislation as a whole, and consider the purposes outlined under section 1A, it should be clear that the goal of the legislation is always for the benefit of the consumer. In my view (and again IANAL), where there is ambiguity, it should always be interpreted in the favour of the consumer because of that defined purpose. The legislation does not take into consideration delays due to staff on holiday, supply chain shortages, the great resignation, upstream supplier problems, or anything else. PB Tech is a large nationwide company, it is not at all unreasonable to expect them to maintain staffing levels over the summer period. The law allows the consumer to reject the goods if the supplier doesn't remedy the issue within a reasonable time. I think two weeks is more than reasonable time to test the motherboard and confirm it's faulty. What is happening here of course is that PB Tech doesn't want to refund or replace with new, because eventually in a month or two they will most get a refurbished board from their upstream. They want the consumer to wait that timeframe, so that they are not out of pocket. The law does not offer them that luxury.

As the goods have "failure of substantial character" (e.g. they are not working as opposed to minor faults), OP can simply reject the goods and choose a replacement or a refund (OP's choice, not PB Tech's). Even if the faults were minor, IMHO OP could reject them for not having remedied the failure within a reasonable time.

Pretty much.

Sinuation

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#2852348 17-Jan-2022 17:01

MaxineN:

Sinuation:

Problem is, is I've personally tested the motherboard myself and even had a third party do it for a sanity check. Both of us came with the conclusion that it was dead.

My contacting methods, aside from physically showing up, seem to bear no fruit. I'd love an ETA, honestly.

Anecdotal but in my personal experience, they've tested everything I have taken in for RMA at the Hornby mega store and they've immediately determined on the spot that yes, whatever it was, it was faulty. From a laptop charger to a literal DoA Z590 Vision D and a chair that broke at no fault of my own.

I guess this all comes down to who you get and at what store.

In my honest opinion and I am going to piss off a few select people but I think you should be hounding them more and also I think you are absolutely entitled to reasonable service and a reasonable experience. This ain't it and some folks are either too used to waiting forever or don't realize that everyone is back at work and this should have been looked at already. Hell they should have been able to test the motherboard at the store. My main store tested mine on the spot and agreed with me. Immediate replacement, no fuss no hassle. Such a shame that they've forgotten about you and forgotten that they can test motherboards on site at the store, it's not hard. You wouldn't be the first person they've forgotten however and surely won't be the last.

Go and hound them. You're the customer and you deserve a reasonable experience and a reasonable time frame. 2 weeks is getting borderline crazy, even for holidays. I don't know how someone can think it's okay to wait 2 weeks when you can test a motherboard on site and immediately find out it's dead.

I seriously sound like a parrot, but that's how it was with my first DOA motherboard. They tested it right in-front of my eyes in like 5 minutes. They even drove to another depot to get the replacement. That was great.

No idea why this one had to be sent back to the head RA branch. Perhaps it's due to the warranty claim.

1101

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#2852699 18-Jan-2022 09:42

Sinuation:

No idea why this one had to be sent back to the head RA branch. Perhaps it's due to the warranty claim.

Some suppliers/manufacturers will accept resellers test results/proof & allow seller to give a new unit from sellers stock as replacement (thats less common now)
Some suppliers have specific requirements for RA's , that HAVE to be met.

The retailer is honestly stuck in the middle . They have have to follow the suppliers RA requirements , that can cause delays . And the retailer has CGA requirements that suppliers dont give a rats arse about . Ive been in that position working for resellers .

There can also be delays in testing at the retailer, courier delays sending it to supplier , testing at the supplier , admin delays at supplier, courier delays in getting the replacement back... assuming replacements are in the country.

If it takes more than 2 weeks , somethings a bit fishy . It may be a parallel import , so could be a pain organizing RA's

Sinuation

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#2852705 18-Jan-2022 09:52

1101:

Sinuation:

No idea why this one had to be sent back to the head RA branch. Perhaps it's due to the warranty claim.

Some suppliers/manufacturers will accept resellers test results/proof & allow seller to give a new unit from sellers stock as replacement (thats less common now)
Some suppliers have specific requirements for RA's , that HAVE to be met.

The retailer is honestly stuck in the middle . They have have to follow the suppliers RA requirements , that can cause delays . And the retailer has CGA requirements that suppliers dont give a rats arse about . Ive been in that position working for resellers .

There can also be delays in testing at the retailer, courier delays sending it to supplier , testing at the supplier , admin delays at supplier, courier delays in getting the replacement back... assuming replacements are in the country.

If it takes more than 2 weeks , somethings a bit fishy . It may be a parallel import , so could be a pain organizing RA's

The info's appreciated, mate!

But yeah I'm probably not going to let this go longer than 3 weeks, that's just absurd with how much they want me to wait.

timmmay

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#2852711 18-Jan-2022 10:00

I had PBTech build me a PC. It didn't work reliably - couldn't even boot. I took it back, it took them a few days but they worked out the fault (power supply) and replaced it. I think with a component like a GPU they should be ok, but everywhere is busy, and not everyone is back from Christmas leave yet.

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