科普贴 - 关于extended Warranty

yzh89

最近consumer NZ 在做活动，心血来潮花3刀买了个3个月的member。 今天突然想起某天在NL买一个打完折39的水壶的时候被问了3次要不要买extended Warranty， 最后一次是在我刷卡之前还在问我真的不后悔， 很是郁闷。下面是consumer nz 上对于而extended warranty的评论，很有意思，希望有帮到大家。文章有点长，没有耐心的朋友直接看最后的 our advice 吧

What is an extended warranty?

You can buy an extended warranty for a huge range of items,from breadmakers to plasma televisions, and even for furniture.

You can buy an extended warranty for a huge range of items,from breadmakers to plasma televisions, and even for furniture.

An extended warranty means you don't have to pay for repairsfor a specified period after the manufacturer's own warranty has expired.Manufacturer warranties can last for anything up to 2 years, while extendedwarranties generally give cover for 3 to 5 years beyond that.

You can buy an extended warranty for a huge range of items,from breadmakers to plasma televisions, and even for furniture. Extendedwarranties are also offered on cars, but in this article we focus on home-basedproducts.

Customers' uncertainty about their legal rights and theirinsurance cover creates an opportunity for retailers to sell extendedwarranties. The costs involved can be significant - up to 15 percent of thepurchase price.

You are already covered

When you buy an extended warranty, you're probably payingfor protection you're already entitled to under consumer laws or your home andcontents insurance or the manufacturers' warranty. In some cases, the extendedwarranty offers less cover than you're entitled to under the law.

The Consumer Guarantees Act

Under this Act, manufacturers and retailers are obliged toguarantee the products they sell are of an acceptable quality and fit for theirpurpose. Most appliances, certainly the big ticket ones, can be expected toperform well for many years, not just the period covered by the manufacturer'swarranty.

This means that if your product fails when it's stillreasonably new, you can have it repaired or, if that isn't possible, replaced,even if the manufacturer's warranty has expired. So there's no value in havingan extended warranty if the only thing it gives you is cover beyond the periodof the manufacturer's warranty.

The Consumer Guarantees Act also offers broader cover thansome manufacturer warranties imply. For example, if a product fails when it'sstill reasonably new, and hasn't been misused, the manufacturer can't say thefault is because of "wear and tear" and refuse to repair it - even ifthe warranty says wear and tear isn't covered. So, there is no additionalbenefit from an extended warranty that gives cover for "normal wear andtear".

Home and contents insurance

The extended warranty may cover accidental damage, but sodoes your home and contents policy. For example, your contents insurance shouldcover damage to computers and electronic appliances from power surges.

An inferior alternative

For some people, the hassle of getting legitimate repairsdone using the Consumer Guarantees Act is daunting and extended warranties arean attractive alternative form of protection. But some extended warrantycontracts have significant cover limits and are an inferior alternative to theAct.

For example, the contract may exclude damage caused duringdelivery and total loss of the product due to the non-availability of parts.Some warranties do not pay for freight and travelling time for a legitimaterepair.

It's important to remember that nothing in the warrantycontract can reduce your rights under the Consumer Guarantees Act, so if youhave a faulty product but aren't getting compensation because of a restrictiveclause in the warranty contract, you can challenge the contract.

Are they ever worth it?

There are situations where an extended warranty is worthconsidering. These are when the warranty goes beyond the Consumer GuaranteesAct.

An example would be guaranteeing replacement with a new itemif something goes wrong, rather than having to wait for repairs. The warrantymay give cover for a very long period (for example, in the form of an extendedservice contract). If you anticipate giving the item a heavy workload (imaginea washing machine used by a family of 8), you could see your rights under theAct expire quickly and an extended warranty may be of value.

And remember the Consumer Guarantees Act doesn't apply togoods normally used for business purposes (such as farm machinery). It doesapply to all goods normally used for personal or household purposes, butretailers can opt out of the Act if you're buying those goods for businesspurposes. To opt out, the retailer has to provide a written statement that theAct won't apply. So if you're buying items for business use, extendedwarranties may give you protection you don't automatically have by law.

Buyer beware

Legal rights

When a retailer offers you an extended warranty, they mustgive you information about your existing legal rights under the ConsumerGuarantees Act (CGA). If you decide to buy a warranty, you’ll have a“cooling-off” period of 5-working-days to cancel and get a refund if you changeyour mind.

The front page of the warranty agreement must include:

A summary of your rights and remedies under the CGA.

A comparison of these rights with the extra protectionsoffered by the warranty.

A summary of your right to cancel the agreement.

The warrantor’s name, street address, phone number, andemail.

All the terms and conditions of the warranty must beincluded in the agreement, including the duration of the warranty, and whetherit expires when a claim is made.

When you buy a warranty in-store or over the phone, thetrader has to give you oral notice of your right to cancel the agreement. Youcan give notice to cancel either orally or in writing.

You’re also entitled to cancel the agreement at any time ifthe warrantor fails to give you the information they’re required to by law.However, this right doesn’t apply if the failure is minor and has notmaterially disadvantaged you.

Penalties

Traders risk being prosecuted by the Commerce Commission ifthey fail to comply with the requirements for extended warranties. Penaltiesfor breaches are $10,000 for an individual and $30,000 for a company.

The commission also has the option of issuing aninfringement notice. The maximum infringement notice fine is $1000.

Our advice

If you're buying products for your personal use, we thinkyou shouldn't bother with an extended warranty. With most of them, you'repaying for cover you already have through the Consumer Guarantees Act and yourhome and contents insurance.

If you want to buy an extended warranty because you think itwould be a hassle to exercise your rights under the Consumer Guarantees Act:

Look at the fine print and make sure you buy a warranty thatgives you as much protection as the Act would.

Be aware that some extended warranties run concurrently withthe manufacturer's warranty so the additional period of cover is less than theterm of the extended warranty. For example, a 5-year extended warranty on aproduct with a 2-year manufacturer's warranty gives you 3 years of extendedcover.

Make sure you know who is backing the scheme and howfinancially sound they are.

If you have an extended warranty but you're still havingtrouble getting a faulty product fixed or replaced, exercise your rights underthe Consumer Guarantees Act.

Always keep proof of purchase to ensure the extendedwarranty contract is honoured. You will also need this to claim yourentitlements under the Consumer Guarantees Act.

0222999999

首先consumer NZ是一个盈利机构，并非政府机构。他们的话不能全信。他们存在的价值，就和工会一样，挑消费者与商家打。

另外，他们说的基本上都是理论。CGA很严格，但很松散。我个人对CGA研究较多，也上过许多次庭（没有输过）。比如reasonable，你认为一个水壶用1年不reasonable, 有人可以说reasonable. 是个非常主观的概念。所有商家都可以挑战这一认识。最后的解决方法就是上庭。

其实，我个人挺讨厌consumer NZ的，就是挑事。不止一次，有客人就拿他们说的话来压我，被consumer NZ忽悠得自以为自己占了多大理，我解释也不听。最后我说不信我们可以上庭。结果上庭后，没有一个赢的。

建议大家去看看CGA的原文。这样能够有更好的理解。我的电脑桌面上一直就放着CGA的原文。其最核心的是第6，7条
6. Guarantee as to acceptable quality
(1) Subject to section 41, where goods are supplied to a consumer there is a guarantee that the goods are of acceptable quality.
(2) Where the goods fail to comply with the guarantee in this section,—
(a) Part 2 may give the consumer a right of redress against the supplier; and
(b) Part 3 may give the consumer a right of redress against the manufacturer.

Meaning of acceptable quality
(1) For the purposes of section 6, goods are of acceptable quality
if they are as—
(a) fit for all the purposes for which goods of the type in
question are commonly supplied; and
(b) acceptable in appearance and finish; and
(c) free from minor defects; and
(d) safe; and
(e) durable,—
as a reasonable consumer fully acquainted with the state and
condition of the goods, including any hidden defects, would
regard as acceptable, having regard to—
(f) the nature of the goods:
(g) the price (where relevant):
(h) any statements made about the goods on any packaging
or label on the goods:
(i) any representation made about the goods by the supplier
or the manufacturer:
(j) all other relevant circumstances of the supply of the
goods.
(2) Where any defects in goods have been specifically drawn to
the consumer’s attention before he or she agreed to the supply,
then notwithstanding that a reasonable consumer may not
have regarded the goods as acceptable with those defects, the
goods will not fail to comply with the guarantee as to acceptable
quality by reason only of those defects.
(3) Where goods are displayed for sale or hire, the defects that
are to be treated as having been specifically drawn to the consumer’s
attention for the purposes of subsection (2) are those
disclosed on a written notice displayed with the goods.
(4) Goods will not fail to comply with the guarantee of acceptable
quality if—
(a) the goods have been used in a manner, or to an extent
which is inconsistent with the manner or extent of use
that a reasonable consumer would expect to obtain from
the goods; and
(b) the goods would have complied with the guarantee of
acceptable quality if they had not been used in that manner
or to that extent.
(5) A reference in subsections (2) and (3) to a defect means any
failure of the goods to comply with the guarantee of acceptable
quality.

对于保修问题来说，主要就是图个方便。CGA是说保修要有“合理”的长度，但谁又能说清楚合理是多久呢？如果买了额外保修，3年就是3年，少一天都不行，省得与商家扯皮。

gazer

CGA里这个reasonable的概念是所有商家和用户吵架的永恒主题，基本上到最后都是拉锯战。extend warranty没啥大用，顶多省去你吵架的时间而已。

yzh89

楼上的干嘛动气呢， 我的帖子没有任何的指向性，也没有给出任何的个人意见，只是想让大家多个角度了解事实，你作为商家你当然有你的主张，但是消费者自然也有权利了解事情的另一面， 兼听则明嘛

ybbest

gazer 发表于 2015-7-30 14:53
CGA里这个reasonable的概念是所有商家和用户吵架的永恒主题，基本上到最后都是拉锯战。extend warranty没啥 ...

我觉得家用电器的extended Warranty 还是有用的。前端时间洗衣机坏了（用了3年10个月），当时买的extended warranty 2年，从harvey norman。坏了以后直接给换新的。没有extended warranty的话，manufacturing warranty就只有2年，坏了以后叫人上门修的话至少也要50-80 callout fee，要换零件的话还要再加钱。