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Apple Is Forced By EU To Give 2 Years Warranty On All Its Products
dsmalle writes "Apple has adapted its warranty to cover 2 years, under pressure of the European Union and after European consumer organizations sued Apple. From the article: 'The warranty conditions have been changed and these changes can be found on the website of Apple. Products that are purchased on the website of the manufacturer or in stores are now under warranty for two years, as it is required by the EU warranty guidelines. However, the warranty for Apple products that have been purchased elsewhere will not change and they will only be given a limited one-year warranty.'"
This is really amusing to me, that the EU has laws that mandate minimum warranty policies for devices sold.
Some of the only comparable laws I can think of in the US have to do with automobile emissions systems. If your car starts spewing too much pollution before 90,000 miles, the manufacturer is on the hook regardless of what warranty they sold with the car.
I went to eat some animal crackers and the box said, "Do not eat if seal is broken." I opened the box and sure enough..
For once, the headline is understated.
It really doesn't matter what Apple's warranty duration is, because there seems to be a statutory warranty of 2 years in at least part of the EU.
What this story is really about is Apple selling 2-year AppleCare plans in places with statutory warranties of 2 years, which is pretty darned slimy IMHO.
W..w..W - Willy Waterloo washes Warren Wiggins who is washing Waldo Woo.
It's manufacturer warranty - the retailer has nothing to do with this.
.... Just silly... Apple wasn't "forced by EU", was forced by the EU directives that were transposed to law in all EU countries. The headline should be: "Apple forced to abide the law in EU countries".... since it wasn't until now. It's not something that just happened to "fall" on our laps here in EU countries just now... it's decade and an half old law.
This hasn't changed anything. What's the point of a warranty that lasts two years which covers defects that were present on delivery?
(See http://www.apple.com/uk/legal/statutory-warranty/)
Apple should be forced to stop weaselling and just give us what the law requires.
-- An Apple Fanboi
Apple was forced by EU to be more forthcoming about warranty policies.
Apple provided warranty, as a MANUFACTURER, is limited to 1 year and Apple pushed it warranty extension for 2 to 3 years (2 years for iOS devices, 3 years for Macs). It covers a range of issues that can appear after the sell.
EU wasn't really happy with this because EU law mandates a 2 years warranty by the SELLER, for issue existing before the sell. EU thought that Apple was forcing clients to get a warranty extension even if they were entitled to a 2 year coverage (similar but not exactly identical).
Now Apple clearly states this distinction.
So if you bought your Apple product in another shop, after 1 year, you need to get in contact with that shop, that will contact Apple to identify the issue and see if this is linked to a preexisting problem or link to your usage. In the later case, your "seller provided" warranty won't help you.
Sig (appended to the end of comments you post, 120 chars)
It is a retailer warranty. It only applies as Apple sells something directly to consumers.
In other cases, other retailers have to get Apple to fix the stuff, but Apple isn't directly liable.
I always assumed iProducts were forged at Mount Doom. Does this mean I don't need to keep simply walking into Cupertino to recycle my iProducts?
As usual, TFS and TFA got it all wrong.
As so clearly painted out on Apple's website, there are two factors in play.
Apple's warranty continues to stand at 1 year. If anything short of intentional damage happens in that one year, you get full Apple tech support.
EU Consumer Law meanwhile covers a 2 year period, and as the weaker program takes effect during the second year of ownership. Pay attention here, this is important: if the buyer can prove the product was defective when it was sold, then and only then can they take the product to the seller (who is not necessarily Apple) for coverage. This is not the same as a 2 year warranty as you do not get any direct support from Apple - no phone support, no Apple Store, no authorized service providers; you get what the seller can provide, unless that seller is Apple. And even then Apple will not give the buyer the same treatment as a full warranty, and the burden of proof is on the buyer to prove that the product was defective at the time of sale.
For a real warranty over 1 year you still need to purchase an AppleCare plan. That gets you full and direct Apple support, and more importantly there is no burden of proof on the buyer to prove that the product was defective at the time of sale.
everything i buy here in europe here has this two-year seller's warranty. and always had. apple didn't sell things with one year warranty because they couldn't do it - even if it was stated otherwise on their warranty card - it was alway protected under the two year seller's warranty. and this warranty has always been different from the manufacturers warranty.
One doesn't simply walk into one infinite loop in Cupertino.
Is it just my observation, or are there way too many stupid people in the world?
You obviously have never owned a new (port merger) Seagate hard drive.
Seven puppies were harmed during the making of this post.
Since there seems to be much confusion, I'd like to add a few points to this article. There are two notions of warranty in Europe.
1.) A mandatory warranty that all _sellers_ of goods have to give by law, which is valid for two years. This covers only problems that existed prior to the purchase. So for example, if some part breaks simple to being worn out, the _seller_ has no obligation to cover it. If a problem occurs within the first six month after purchase, it is assumed by law that the problem existed prior to the purchase. The burden of proof that the problem did not exist prior to the purchase is up to the _seller_. In practice, such proof is difficult, and thus _seller_ will usually handle the problem. After six month up to two years, the burden of proof is up to the buyer. Since again, this is almost impossible to do without an expensive expertise, this effectively limits this warranty up to six month. Note that this is an issue between the _seller_ and the _buyer_, even though if a defect occurs and the seller is not the manufacturer, say the seller is amazon, the seller when faced with a defective product will claim the same warranty to the manufacturer. Some might have other agreements with the manufacturer.
2.) Almost all manufacturers give on top a voluntary warranty to the customer of two years. This warranty is completely voluntary, and the customer has no real legal means to enforce it.
What happened here is that Apple is one of the very few manufacturers who only give voluntary warranty of one year. They (essentially the apple store) tried to sell additional warranties for up to three years (Apple Care), but without making it clear, that the buyer can anyway claim warranty against the seller of goods for up to two years (even though, this is hardly enforceable after six month, unless it is a problem so widespread that it would, say, lead to a class-action lawsuit in the US). The judges asked Apple to make this more explicit. Instead, Apple finally went ahead and introduced voluntary warranty conditions that are similar to any other manufacturer in Europe.
The EU has consumer protection laws, the USA has class action lawsuits and guns. It probably balances out in all but bodycount.
politicians are like babies' nappies: they should both be changed regularly and for the same reasons
retailer has everything to do with being responsible to the consumers they retail to. some chains in eu are trying to sell'n'dump-responsibilities but it's not really legit over here(one example is that doesn't matter what smartphone you buy in finland, there's 90% possibility that all warranty issues are handled by one company... it sucks, as the consumer shouldn't have to send his device to a 3rd party company to have it fixed when the retailer is actually responsible for the product they sold).
world was created 5 seconds before this post as it is.
It is a retailer warranty. It only applies as Apple sells something directly to consumers.
In other cases, other retailers have to get Apple to fix the stuff, but Apple isn't directly liable.
No, it's a manufacturer warranty, but generally handled by the retailer, who acts as a go-between for the customer and manufacturer.
I.e. if your iGizmo breaks down, you take it to the retailer, who sends it to Apple, who fixes it under warranty. This is in the interest of the consumer, who has a single point of contact. The manufacturer (or, rather, brand name holder) is still the liable part.
This in contrast to US conditions, where the customer usually has to contact the manufacturer directly.
In addition to the mandatory warranty, the purchaser also has reclamation rights not limited to a fixed term, but the reasonably expected lifetime of a product. For consumer electronics, this is generally interpreted to be in the ballpark of the warranty or shorter, but if you buy, say, house siding that cracks after ten years, or a water heater that that breaks down after four years, you probably have a good case for getting it fixed by the manufacturer.
A big difference between that and regular warranty is that for regular warranty, the manufacturer is liable by default and has to show that the customer misused the product to get out of it, while for the reclamation rights, the customer has the burden of evidence.
Still, it is useful, and while I lived in Europe, I exercised this right a couple of times (broken washer/dryer, guitar neck that warped).
An alternative title would be:
"Apple made to comply with existing laws that are quite reasonable, everyone else complies with and which aid the consumer."
So I don't really see what the fuss is about. If you're building expensive devices and putting them into people's hands, expecting them to last two years isn't a hardship, unless your business is BUILT upon their obsolescence. In which case, this is a win for the consumer is stopping you doing things like that.
"Apple FORCED to make devices that last more than a year on average". Gosh. The horror.
And every other electronics manufacturer trading in the EU has to do the same and has done for a while now. Hell, I can get CARS with a five year warranty, and there's no end of things that could go wrong on them and it costs the manufacturer 10 times as much if they do go wrong or they have a design flaw.
"Apple THREATENED WITH LAWSUIT if they don't give consumers a good deal"
Well.... bloody good job!
Only if you're the sort of idiot that thinks you should throw something away because something new has come out, or thinks that they shouldn't resell devices they aren't using (resale value depends on the quality of the initial build, don't forget) or, worse, thinks that 1 year is a long time for a commercial product costing more than my car to last.
The "annual upgrade cycle" is the realm of the idiot. It means that no device you buy has EVER had more than a year or so of testing, or expected to last more than a year. Hell, I nearly peed myself when I heard about Apple STILL not being able to get clock-changes correct throughout Europe. I think this the first year they've ever managed it, after several highly-public gaffes in previous years.
When I pay for a product, I expect it to be built to a certain quality - not be part of an enforced obsolescence scheme. If you want to buy a product that somehow magically degrades after a year (either because something new has come out or because the manufacturing was diabolical), you do that. Personally, I know that the chip inside the machine will run at the same speed next year as it does this year AND that every piece of electrical/electronic equipment I own has lasted at least 2 years (and some up to 20!).
No, it's a manufacturer warranty, but generally handled by the retailer, who acts as a go-between for the customer and manufacturer.
Not really. I as the consumer enter a contract with the retailer. I pay them money and they provide me with a product, they are responsible for delivering a decent product and therefore have to give a warranty. Where they got the product from and how they provide the warranty is none of my concern, I didn't enter a contract with the manufacturer, as far as I know they don't exist.
If Apple though increasing prices would get them more money, then they would already have raised them.
Much higher prices...
Goods that last are not compatible with modern capitalism, once everyone who's going to buy a product has bought one, it will never break resulting in no further sales and the vendor going bankrupt.
If you force vendors to produce reliable products, then they will find some other method to force you to keep paying them, wether its forced obsolescence (ie the product still works, but is no longer compatible with anything else) or a rental model where you never own the product and just have to keep paying for it perpetually...
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Actually you both are right, to a certain degree. You have a contractual relationship with the retailer, the retailer is obliged to give you a warranty. But then the retailer is in a contractual relationship with the manufacturer (sometimes by multiple levels of indirection) and part of the deal is that they service this warranty. But that is up to the retailer and the manufacturer to agree upon. They can, for example agree to lower the price and drop the repair service; they often do that on small things, where they just give you a new item when the original broke.
i think you just proved his point 100%. the retailer acts as a go-between. the manufacturer doesn't exist TO YOU. but they do exist. and they are the one that provides the warranty
While they may well be involved in the implementation of the service that makes the warranty work, the retailer provides the warranty (except in the UK if you've paid by credit card, in which case it is the credit card company that does it formally). It's their responsibility in law to get things fixed for you, and that can't be passed on to anyone else. Of course, the retailer may well just pass the faulty item along to the maker for fixing, but if the maker stalls them or messes about then it's the retailer who has to make you good. They sometimes need reminding of this, but it rarely reaches court these days as the laws in the area are very strict and have to be to avoid trouble from slimy retailers and manufacturers; this area is very well tested in other areas of consumer products, and electronics firms are by-and-large relatively honest. (That's a reflection on how bad some other market sectors have been in the past, really.)
"Little does he know, but there is no 'I' in 'Idiot'!"
> Apple can try what it wants but if anyone makes a simple complaint, Apple is going to lose. Even this new thing is meaningless. In Europe, you got two years warranty at least. Take Apple to court, you will win since the law leaves no room for interpretation.
Some people prefer not having to take a seller to court in order to have the law honored. Most people do not have the time nor the inclination to bring a random seller to court. So this matters because it settles the record straight for all consumers without any of them having to bother much (other than paying for the taxes that bring both the law and its enforcement).
Perhaps if you are a lawyer or has lawyers as close friends of family, "taking someone to court" is going to be easy, but it sure as hell not as trivial as "coming back to the shop where product was bought and handling in (without any arguing) for repair".
In Europe?
Warranties on *all* electrical goods in Europe are two years by law. Apple isn't being singled out here.
Here in Spain (YMMV): After a short "DOA" period from the day you bought it (maybe a couple of weeks), pretty much all warranties are dealt with directly by the manufacturer. When things go wrong you call the number on the warranty card in the box.
The last couple of things that failed on me (Samsung monitor, Benq DVD burner) I called them and they sent a guy right to my door with a replacement. No store was involved.
No sig today...
Apparently you don't understand EU law. For instance in the Czech Republic, which implemented the EU regulations in question, the manufacturer is not obligated to provide the customer with jack diddly-squat. The customer has a contractual relationship with the retailer, and it is the retailer who is liable for all warranty repairs. He may at his own discretion: 1) fix the defect himself, 2) send the item to the manufacturer or to its designated representatives, or 3) replace the item. Now in cases where Apple also acts as the retailer, then they are liable. But for those purchasing from other retailers, either internet or brick-and-mortar shops, it is the retailer that is liable for all warranty claims.
That doesn't stop us non-Apple users from bringing suit against Apple
In that case, how are you going to prove standing?
Warranties on *all* electrical goods in Europe are two years by law.
This isn't the first time I hear that claim on /. but I don't think it's true. The consumer agency in my country states the following on their website:
Now, while the quoted paragraphs state that you may be able to demand compensation even after the warranty has expired, it says nothing about EU-wide 2 year warranty... which seems odd if such a thing exists.
If there really is that kind of law, could some kind soul tell me where to find it?
>In other cases, other retailers have to get Apple to fix the stuff, but Apple isn't directly liable.
Apple still have to give that EU retailer the same 2 years warranty, that law isnt just for the final consumer, its for every electric appliance sold as new. (used equipment have different warranty times)
Higuita
My experience with hand tools is that they will get stolen or lost LONG before they will break. The lifetime warranty is great (in theory), but when somebody walks off with your wrench you still have to go out and buy a new one. There will always be a business for high quality hand tools.
It is a retailer warranty. It only applies as Apple sells something directly to consumers. In other cases, other retailers have to get Apple to fix the stuff, but Apple isn't directly liable.
The great thing about EU warranties is that you don't have to think about this at all. Both the original supplier and the original retailer are liable. You as a consumer just turn up and hand it over to whoever you find most easily. In some countries the retailer may deny this. If you turn up with a return notice in writing, however, they normally just roll over and do whatever you tell them to. Remember they have 28 days (details probably depend on the country) and after that you can get your money back. This means you want a dated receipt when you hand over your broken product.
Always keep your original proof of purchase (though you might not need that in the UK and some other places if you have some other evidence) and you will get your stuff fixed. Often this is easily worth the difference in price between the US (including sales taxes) and EU. Try comparing with the price in the US with an extended warranty and suddenly you will think you have a bargain.
=~ s,(.*),<sarcasm>$1</sarcasm>,g if any_point_you_wish();