Warranty laws and YOU!

Sm1ttySm1t

Sm1ttySm1t

CAGiversary!
I usually post this as soon as I join a gaming community because I feel its important for all gamers. Its regarding Consumer Protection. I live in Maine and work in state government. Because of what I do, I've had to become familiar with some obscure rules and laws that common state residents are NOT aware of. I have also branched out to learn OTHER rules (which are subsets of Laws). One set I've learned belongs to Consumer Protection. In Maine, the consumer protection laws have one called "Implied Warranty". What this does is implies a 4 year warranty on ANYTHING sold in the state of maine (used cars are the one exception).

Let me reiterate-- ANYTHING sold in my state comes with a four year warranty BY LAW.

The only thing that MUST be followed is that the item purchased is used for its intended purposes (i.e. Don't use an LCD TV as a frisbee). Also, if a company states that their item is not intended to last four years, the warranty is not implied. But, what company will make a product and then state "This item will fail within 4 years"?

My most recent RRoD (my 7th!) fell outside of Microsoft's 3 year extended warranty they gave to buyers, but was still within the Maine Implied Warranty -- they fixed it at no cost to me with no hassle whatsoever.

I'm writing to urge you all to check your state's implied warranty laws. I've used mine for televisions, dvd players, my Dell PC, and countless other things.
 
You might want to reign in the "BY LAW" statement because if the Maine courts could have potentially narrowed the interpretation of the statute then it might not apply to every single product in Maine.
 
[quote name='RedvsBlue']You might want to reign in the "BY LAW" statement because if the Maine courts could have potentially narrowed the interpretation of the statute then it might not apply to every single product in Maine.[/QUOTE]

here is an excerpt from it: (cant post a link to it, as I'm a new user)

"All new and used goods purchased for family, household or personal use-clothes, new cars, appliances, sports equipment and more-are warranted by law to be fit for the ordinary purpose for which such goods are used. They cannot be seriously defective. This warranty is known as the implied warranty of merchantability and is found in the Maine Uniform Commercial Code (U.C.C.). The only exception to this law is that used car dealers can disclaim your implied warranties when they sell you a used car “as is”, without any express warranty."
Click to expand...
 
[quote name='HaLLuZiNaTiOnZ']Any idea on websites I could check or search terms I could use to find my states "Consumer Protection"?[/QUOTE]
Just google [your state] consumer protection law
 
[quote name='Sm1ttySm1t']here is an excerpt from it: (cant post a link to it, as I'm a new user)[/QUOTE]

I understand there's a statute which enumerates the implied 4 year warranty. What I am telling you is that as courts rule on cases involving statutes they can modify the interpretation of the statute. You purporting to give out what amounts to pretty broad reaching legal advice without doing any further analysis into any case law interpretations.

Edit-And of course there is at least one case which has interpreted it, Suminski v. Maine Appliance Warehouse. I'll sum the case for everyone. Guy buys TV, comes with 12 month warranty and starts having problems in the 13th month with it turning off on its own. The court found that because the TV worked when he bought it and that since it was only a small component of the TV that required repair it was not unmerchantable when it was sold. The court also went as far as to compare a bad battery in a car not making the entire care unmerchantable. In case anyone wants the citation it is Suminski v. Maine Appliance, 602 A.2d 1173, 1175 (Me. 1992).
 
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[quote name='RedvsBlue']
Edit-And of course there is at least one case which has interpreted it, Suminski v. Maine Appliance Warehouse. I'll sum the case for everyone. Guy buys TV, comes with 12 month warranty and starts having problems in the 13th month with it turning off on its own. The court found that because the TV worked when he bought it and that since it was only a small component of the TV that required repair it was not unmerchantable when it was sold. The court also went as far as to compare a bad battery in a car not making the entire care unmerchantable. In case anyone wants the citation it is Suminski v. Maine Appliance, 602 A.2d 1173, 1175 (Me. 1992).[/QUOTE]
While you are technically correct, the warranty law not covering minor repairs does not sound like a big deal.
 
[quote name='itachiitachi']While you are technically correct, the warranty law not covering minor repairs does not sound like a big deal.[/QUOTE]

That's the thing though, the courts have already given manufacturers a bit of a way out of this warranty by basically saying the entire product has to be defective, not just an individual component, in order for there to be an implied warranty.

[quote name='Chacrana']I feel like this thread is just God's way of telling me to get back to work on my memo that's due on monday...[/QUOTE]
Haha, I just turned in my last memo of the semester yesterday. Thank god that thing is done.
 
My boss at work actually did this in MA. He bought a Sony LCD that failed shortly after the warranty ended and it cost more to fix than to buy a new TV. Sony wouldn't budge until he told them he called the state attorney generals office. They then offered him a heavily discounted refurbed model of the current year.
 
[quote name='daschrier']My boss at work actually did this in MA. He bought a Sony LCD that failed shortly after the warranty ended and it cost more to fix than to buy a new TV. Sony wouldn't budge until he told them he called the state attorney generals office. They then offered him a heavily discounted refurbed model of the current year.[/QUOTE]
I had an issue with my Dell desktop PC. I purchased it in April 2007, and in April of this year the motherboard fried. After contacting their customer service, they attempted to up-sell me a warranty because they had diagnosed my harddrive, motherboard, and power supply as faulty.

After they refused to honor the Maine Implied Warranty Law, I contacted the state Attorney General's office, who contacted Dell. Within a month I had a repair man at my home replacing all items they diagnosed as faulty.

I think you have interpreted my post incorrectly, RedvsBlue. What I'm trying to do is encourage people to learn their own state's consumer protection laws for the sake of saving themselves some money. I've used it on more than one occasion and I'm a little shocked you would go through the trouble of trying to discredit what I'm saying rather than appreciating the advice.
 
[quote name='Sm1ttySm1t']I usually post this as soon as I join a gaming community because I feel its important for all gamers. Its regarding Consumer Protection. I live in Maine and work in state government. Because of what I do, I've had to become familiar with some obscure rules and laws that common state residents are NOT aware of. I have also branched out to learn OTHER rules (which are subsets of Laws). One set I've learned belongs to Consumer Protection. In Maine, the consumer protection laws have one called "Implied Warranty". What this does is implies a 4 year warranty on ANYTHING sold in the state of maine (used cars are the one exception).

Let me reiterate-- ANYTHING sold in my state comes with a four year warranty BY LAW.

The only thing that MUST be followed is that the item purchased is used for its intended purposes (i.e. Don't use an LCD TV as a frisbee). Also, if a company states that their item is not intended to last four years, the warranty is not implied. But, what company will make a product and then state "This item will fail within 4 years"?

My most recent RRoD (my 7th!) fell outside of Microsoft's 3 year extended warranty they gave to buyers, but was still within the Maine Implied Warranty -- they fixed it at no cost to me with no hassle whatsoever.

I'm writing to urge you all to check your state's implied warranty laws. I've used mine for televisions, dvd players, my Dell PC, and countless other things.[/QUOTE]

Good call.

Microsoft must hate you.
 
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