Warranty is not as it seems...

SGD1216

I received my new Galaxy 5 about a month ago.  After 3 weeks, I had the need to use my speakerphone - something I don't use often since I have bluetooth in my car.  The other party can hear me talking, but it is muffled and they can not understand what I'm saying.  I tried it with several different people over the next couple of weeks to make sure it was my phone that was causing the problem.

Today, when attempting to get it fixed, I found out that the 1 year warranty replaces your phone with a refurbished ("like new" as they call it), unless you are within the first 14 days.  Additionally, when you receive the replacement / likenew / refurbished / used phone, it's warranty start date goes back to your purchase date of the original phone.  My concern is that the refurbished phone is refurbished for a reason, which you would need a longer warranty for and yet it is shorter.

I wasted 2 hours on the phone with Verizon reps that could only tell me they "understand my frustrations" and read the policy off to me over and over again.  Spoke with a rep and 2 supervisors and they all read from the same script.... and I mean they read!  They could not even insure me that my replacement "like new" phone would be a phone someone didn't like and turned back in vs. a damanged / defective phone that was repaired.  I'm sure no one will call me to try to help me resolve this issue.

I would have thought that after being a customer for 14 years (I was a customer with Airtouch Cellular!) with 4 phones on my account, they would have worked with me on resolving this.  I have never had any trouble out of Verizon.  For this reason, my family members are always upgrading to the newest devices, which extends our service for 2 more years each time.  This has apprarently been a big mistake on our part!

If you get a new phone from Verizon, my advise would be to move fast!  Check out ALL - and I mean ALL - the options on your phone (there are quite a few on the Samsung Galaxy 5) within the 14 days to decide if you need a warranty replacement.  Who has time for that?  The phone should work to begin with and they should back up their products.  I really don't want to hear about Samsung, becuase I bought the phone from Verizon and that's who should be helping me out.

rcschnoor

It IS Verizon who is helping you out, but it ISN'T Verizon's warranty. It is Samsung's warranty. Verizon simply acts as a middle man to facilitate the warranty so you are not without a phone while obtaining warranty service.

If you are unhappy with how Verizon is "helping" you out with Samsung's warranty, simply contact Samsung about the warranty on THEIR phone. Then you would have to send the phone into Samsung, have them determine if it is a covered warranty issue and then either fix your phone OR send you a refurbished one just like the one you got from Verizon. Of course, then you would be without a phone for a couple of weeks or so while you are waiting for your phone/replacement to be returned. In the end, you would still be in the possession of a refurbished device.

No cellular provider warranties phones. It is always the phone manufacturer which provides the warranty and who is responsible for it.

If you purchase a Verizon phone from Best Buy/Amazon/etc... it is STILL the manufacturer who warranties it, not Verizon/Best Buy/Amazon/etc...

Furthermore, the warranty IS as it seems. This is ALL spelled out on the box your phone came in. There is nothing written there which would lead you to believe you will receive a NEW phone as a warranty replacement.