Sony Not Accepting a $2 Warranty Repair

furythree on 13/12/2016 - 10:41

Hi All

just wondering if its part of ACL/legislature or whatever to require an invoice for warranty?

my dad bought an expensive set of Sony headphones at the airport and tossed the receipt away (cause he has never needed to claim warranty or needed to get a refund)

Anyway, the headphones came with a stereo Male to Male plug as usual but one end of the cable had a crap plug that basically pulled loose and off completely after a few weeks of minor use

So i called up sony, they wanted full documentation and wouldnt even accept bank statements as proof of purchase. Unfortunately my dad cant get back inside the airport to contact the company for a replacement receipt.

So sony wont accept claims over a $2 cable because of this red tape

Also i have tried 7 different aftermarket cables, none of them work because the stupid headphones have the AUX port place on the side of the headphones where the surface is at an angle. So you need their special cable with a narrow plug body to fit in properly, every other plug is too fat or wide

Does anyone know if them requiring a receipt as mandatory is normal?

Thanks

Electrical & Electronics

Comments

  • cjbowden on 13/12/2016 - 11:01
    +5

    Under consumer protection laws, you are required to prove you purchased the item, but are not required to keep the original receipt. The ACCC is really cracking down on manufacturers making claims about warranties that are contrary to the law (a number of people including HP got fined massive amounts for this).

    I suggest your Dad threaten to contact Consumer Protection in your state, and if they dont cave, then make a complaint with your local Consumer Protection agency.

    • Diji1 on 13/12/2016 - 12:05
      -1

      Don't bother with the threat, just go straight to Consumer protection agency, they've already refused to do what their meant to do.

      • pantsparty on 13/12/2016 - 12:14
        -1

        And what is that? They asked for adequate proof of purchase and the purchaser could not provide this. This is entirely within their rights.

        • Apothecary on 13/12/2016 - 13:08

          Bank statement is "proof of purchase"

        • pantsparty on 13/12/2016 - 13:15
          +1

          @Apothecary: Per the ACCC: "you will need to keep the receipt or other type of proof of purchase. Sometimes you may need to provide more than one of these things to support your claim – for example, when a credit card statement does not clearly itemise the product."

        • Apothecary on 13/12/2016 - 13:18

          @pantsparty: ah poo.

        • [Deactivated] on 18/12/2016 - 22:18

          @pantsparty: plenty of receipts are from business machines which print on coated paper - might last a month before becoming illegible.

  • CyberMurning on 13/12/2016 - 11:17
    -8

    try ACCC and TIO they will melt like cheese in todays sydney weather

    • bobbified on 13/12/2016 - 11:29
      +5

      and TIO

      TIO is for disputes on telecommunications-related products and services - not for headphones!

      • m9 on 13/12/2016 - 11:34

        In that case try HIO

  • k-rokfm on 13/12/2016 - 11:31

    IMO your dad is all out of luck. Get him to try and email the airport for the sellers details or find out if they have a contact number.

    Your dad needs to supply a proof of purchase, ie a receipt. A bank statement can be a proof of purchase however he may need additional sources if it doesnt list the item specifically:
    https://www.accc.gov.au/consumers/prices-surcharges-receipts…

  • bobbified on 13/12/2016 - 11:32
    +4

    Putting your rights and everything aside (if you can't be stuffed with all the red tape), it might actually be easier and simpler to find that or similar cable on ebay.

  • pantsparty on 13/12/2016 - 11:32
    +5

    To me this sounds reasonable. No receipt = no warranty. Anyone who buys something expense and throws away the receipt without keeping a copy is asking for trouble in my opinion. I agree its silly given its only worth $2, but perhaps you could just purchase another one for $2?

    • Diji1 on 13/12/2016 - 12:06
      -5

      To me this sounds reasonable. No receipt = no warranty.

      That's wonderful but the ACCC doesn't agree with you.

      • pantsparty on 13/12/2016 - 12:11

        In this case what else could you use per the ACCC guidelines as proof of purchase other than a receipt? Per the ACCC:

        "you will need to keep the receipt or other type of proof of purchase. Sometimes you may need to provide more than one of these things to support your claim – for example, when a credit card statement does not clearly itemise the product."

      • hell0 on 13/12/2016 - 12:15
        +2

        "That's wonderful but the ACCC doesn't agree with you."

        Yes, you have to have a proof of purchase, but how will you do that unless you have a receipt?… A bank statement doesn't itemise what you purchased so that isn't acceptable either.

  • m9 on 13/12/2016 - 11:39
    +2

    OP, what's the model of the headphones?

    And are you able to post some pictures of the faulty plug as well as the port on the headphones?

    I'm sure some of us here can help.

    • furythree on 13/12/2016 - 20:17

      MDR-100ABN

      its got nfc and BT, but my dad is a tech noob and prefers using the cable since syncing bluetooth is like rocket science to him. Since apple are (profanity) and wont open up NFC, he has to manually sync it.

      as i mentioned above ill need a replacement AUX cable that has a narrow plug body because the nice people at sony purposely made the hole slanted so standard plugs dont fit properly

  • wei13 on 13/12/2016 - 11:45
    +2

    I personally don't think asking for a receipt is a lot to demand from a business perspective.

    Maybe can try calling the store? Sales usually can be looked up, and receipts can be re-issued. (Although when I was in retail we hated doing that as it can take quite a bit of time).

  • voiletmay on 13/12/2016 - 11:49

    If your dad bought it via a credit card (or maybe even eftpos) he can possibly use the statement from visa/eftpos as his proof of purchase.

    I knew someone who did that once due to a lost receipt.

    • k-rokfm on 13/12/2016 - 12:21
      +1

      If it doesnt itemise what has been purchased then it will be unlikely accepted. He however can use it to trace the purchase through the original seller and hopefully be able to get a new receipt printed out.

    • ilikeradiohead on 13/12/2016 - 13:56
      +1

      Additionally, a lot of CCs have warranty insurance if the seller refuses to honour their warranty/refund.

      • yaziyo on 18/12/2016 - 00:14

        Those generally have an excess you have to pay. It's not going to be worth it for a cheapo cable.

    • furythree on 13/12/2016 - 20:56

      they wont accept it

  • altomic on 13/12/2016 - 13:03
    +1

    bikies

  • pais on 13/12/2016 - 13:12
    +4

    Sometimes I worry about people. "Sony, the bunch of tightarses, won't honour a $2 warranty without proof of purchase!"… says man that won't buy a $2 cable.

    From a business good will perspective, yeah sure, they can throw you the shitty cable. If not, just go buy it yourself and get on with life.

    • furythree on 13/12/2016 - 20:23
      +1

      sometimes i worry about people who dont read

      ive tried 7 cables

      Sony put the port at an angle so that a standard cable head doesnt fit in. the body will block it slightly so the AUX doesnt lock it in

      The original sony cable has a really narrow housing around the jack area so it slots in with no issues.

      But dont let the facts get away with your elitist comment

  • altomic on 13/12/2016 - 13:36

    have tried 7 different aftermarket cables, none of them work because the stupid headphones have the AUX port place on the side of the headphones where the surface is at an angle. So you need their special cable with a narrow plug body to fit in properly, every other plug is too fat or wide

    Have you tried sanding them down to see if the will fit?

    • [Deactivated] on 13/12/2016 - 22:10

      I use clippers to cut away plastic. I do this for a phone in a case that result in need for thin plug. All end up very thin, and metal cylinder goes back far inside plastic cover and never get to the wiring part.

  • rambao9 on 13/12/2016 - 13:47
    +3

    Clickbait title…

  • dizzle on 13/12/2016 - 15:14

    Your issue isn't actually with Sony. They require a receipt or proof of purchase (Many bank/CC statements only say the shop it was purchased from and not the item purchased) and I find that acceptable. However, the place you purchased it from (particularly the airport) often ask for contact details. Usually this is for marketing and at the airport it is for duty free tracking, but it also serves to track your purchase. If you contact the airport with bank statement showing date and time, more than likely they can provide you a proof of purchase. If you can't get back to the airport, call them or e-mail with information and they will let you know how to fix it.

    For those stating consumer law, the last time I looked it was the responsibility of the retailer to get it sorted (ie the airport). Yes the manufacturer may choose to help to speed the process up or as goodwill, but if you paid money to JB/Myers/Airport duty free, it is up to them to fix any issue and get recompense from Sony. I'm agreeing with that because most stores when face to face with the customer are more likely to give in. Go high enough and someone will tell the store manager to "sort it out"

    If you purchase it elsewhere you can't expect a refund from Sony so deal with the retailer.

  • try2bhelpful on 13/12/2016 - 16:47
    +1

    Not helpful now, but just a suggestion for future reference. If your dad doesn't want to keep the receipt then take a photograph of it so you can send that to Sony. They may still quibble but it should have all the relevant details on the purchase. I never understood why people don't keep their receipts. Everything goes into my wallet and then into a bag when I get home; I sort through them about once a month or so into warranty keepies and others get put into the shredder.

    • furythree on 13/12/2016 - 20:23

      i didnt even know he purchased them

      he paid full price too!

      • try2bhelpful on 14/12/2016 - 07:14

        ahhh. How horrific for you. I presume you have staged an intervention now.

  • Seraphin7 on 14/12/2016 - 08:48

    Have you asked Sony if they can sell you a replacement cable?

  • StingyBritches on 14/12/2016 - 09:38

    Slightly(?) off topic, but concerning Sony warranty…

    I wonder had he registered the headphones under warranty would the same issue would have arisen?
    Good luck with doing so though… I tried to register my new Sony Blu-Ray player and can't do so. I logged in to my Sony account only to be told something along the lines of 'On-line registration is coming soon." How the hell in this modern world can Sony be so off the ball? Anyone else tried to register warranties with Sony lately? If you've succeeded please tell me how.

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