Htc Sv One Screen Cracked By Itself

Gringo180

Hi guys, weird one here. My new phones screen cracked there just by itself, it happened as there was an incoming call and just as I was about to answer, it was as if a tiny electrical charge flashed across the screen and now there is a real fine crack going right across the screen and a yellow kind of stain just under the crack itself??? Got it on billpay from meteor 2 weeks ago so what will happen now have I got the rights to a new phone?? Cheers.

Sulla Felix

Gringo180 wrote: »

Hi guys, weird one here. My new phones screen cracked there just by itself, it happened as there was an incoming call and just as I was about to answer, it was as if a tiny electrical charge flashed across the screen and now there is a real fine crack going right across the screen and a yellow kind of stain just under the crack itself??? Got it on billpay from meteor 2 weeks ago so what will happen now have I got the rights to a new phone?? Cheers.

Well, you almost never would have a right to a new phone. If they concede that it's their phone and they don't think you just broke it, you've a right to a refund, replacement or repair, at their discretion.

Go into the store and explain the situation. 99% sure that they'll go the repair route first. You're not, afaik, entitled to a replacement phone in the meantime.

Gringo180

Sulla Felix wrote: »

Well, you almost never would have a right to a new phone. If they concede that it's their phone and they don't think you just broke it, you've a right to a refund, replacement or repair, at their discretion.

Go into the store and explain the situation. 99% sure that they'll go the repair route first. You're not, afaik, entitled to a replacement phone in the meantime.

Thanks for the reply, will go into the shop tomorrow and explain what happened.

massy086

i would get onto htc only. metoer will send it to fonemenders they will say either water damage or it broke in your pocket and its your fault. this will take weeks and then you will only end up trying htc for a repair anyways.i always deal with the manufacture directly and its the quickest way trust me

Gringo180

Hi folks just an update on this. Brought the phone back to the Meteor shop I bought it from and they sent it away, a week later I get a text saying "Your device is outside manufacturer warranty & repair estimate has been raised" (the phone itself is only 26 days old). So I went over to the store and they told me it would be 150 euro for the crack to be repaired.

Now I would not of even bothered bringing the phone back and going through all this hassle if the crack came through my own negligence but it did not, it is a defect with the phone and now they are trying to give me back the phone without it being repaired or replace for a new one which I feel is very unfair

Is there anyway I can take this further and if so would my case be against Meteor or HTC?

Thanks.

GarIT

HTC don't have to do anything and if the phone is opened by HTC Meteor can say the phone wasn't opened by themselves and the warranty is void. Just lodge a small claims case against Meteor.

As far as your concerned Meteor made the phone, they are responsible for manufacturing faults and it is their responsibility to fix it.

Gringo180

GarIT wrote: »

HTC don't have to do anything and if the phone is opened by HTC Meteor can say the phone wasn't opened by themselves and the warranty is void. Just lodge a small claims case against Meteor.

As far as your concerned Meteor made the phone, they are responsible for manufacturing faults and it is their responsibility to fix it.

There is even a yellow burn mark along where the crack is, its so obvious that this is a defect with the phone its just frustrating that there technicians are saying its physical damage and trying to make me pay for something I did not do.

Thanks for your swift reply.

Gringo180

And another thing is should I leave them with the faulty phone and not use my bill pay sim card until I bring the matter to the small claims court?

GarIT

Gringo180 wrote: »

And another thing is should I leave them with the faulty phone and not use my bill pay sim card until I bring the matter to the small claims court?

That's completely up to you, it's your responsibility to bring the phone to court though so it might be best to hang onto it. They have refused to offer a solution, it's clearly their fault so it should be pretty straightforward. It would go much in your favour to have a written statment from an independent repair company saying that a visual inspection says its a manufacturing fault. Without that it's up to the judge to have a look and see whose fault it is.

foggy_lad

GarIT wrote: »

HTC don't have to do anything and if the phone is opened by HTC Meteor can say the phone wasn't opened by themselves and the warranty is void. Just lodge a small claims case against Meteor.

As far as your concerned Meteor made the phone, they are responsible for manufacturing faults and it is their responsibility to fix it.

This is incorrect.

OP If HTC have a warranty you can if you chose send the handset directly to them explaining the situation and they will have much more sophisticated equipment which to examine the screen than meteor's fone-fix company have.

Also the manufacturer would be considered an authorised repairer so there would be no problem from meteor later if HTC open and find in your favour and fix or replace the handset!

cgarvey

Sulla Felix wrote: »

you've a right to a refund, replacement or repair, at their discretion.

No, no; just no. It's not at their discretion at all (even if they print it on signs saying it is). It's entirely up to the consumer and retailer to reach agreement on which remedy is acceptable. If they can't agree, then it's off down the legal route (with Small Claims Court a handy option for most small-value disputes).

Gringo180 wrote: »

Hi folks just an update on this. Brought the phone back to the Meteor shop I bought it from and they sent it away, a week later I get a text saying "Your device is outside manufacturer warranty & repair estimate has been raised" (the phone itself is only 26 days old). So I went over to the store and they told me it would be 150 euro for the crack to be repaired.

It being outside manufacturer warranty (assuming they mean because of user-damage, not because of time lapsed) is meaningless in your case with the retailer. If anything, it strengthens your case that you were reasonable and willing to accept a repair, which they declined to do free of charge (and, thus, failed to remedy the fault).

If I was you, I'd be Googling for other instances of the same problem. If it's a common problem, I'd go back to the Meteor shop with such examples and say that you want the fault repaired, the device replaced, or a full refund and contract cancellation (if that's applicable). I'd then go down the registered letter approach, if you get nowhere in person. Finally, if it is a common fault, then I'd go to the Small Claims Court (having given sufficient notice by registered letter).

In parallel, I'd also contact HTC and ask them would they be willing to repair it (under warranty), describing the problem (and links to other sites/forum posts of the same issue). If they are, make sure to ask Meteor if they are willing to accept that as a remedy (so as not to dilute your case should anything else go wrong with the phone in the future).

How successful you are with any of this is down to how common the problem is. If it's not common, you could have a battle on your hand trying to prove it was a defect and not down to your use/misuse of the device. For example, could condensation build-up have created a short-circuit across the screen like that, etc.?

Gringo180

Thanks for all the replies folks much appreciated. Just another question, who do Meteor send the phone off to for inspection and are they an independent body. If not surely they would have an unfair bias in favour of Meteor?

GarIT

foggy_lad wrote: »

This is incorrect.

OP If HTC have a warranty you can if you chose send the handset directly to them explaining the situation and they will have much more sophisticated equipment which to examine the screen than meteor's fone-fix company have.

Also the manufacturer would be considered an authorised repairer so there would be no problem from meteor later if HTC open and find in your favour and fix or replace the handset!

Meteor could still argue against it, you'd need to clear it with them first. If it failed later Meteor could argue that HTC broke it and not them.

seannash

a lot of mixed advice regarding this but you will not get a free repair with meteor so stop exploring that avenue as your wasting your time.

contact HTC directly and deal with them.

meteor are a reseller of the phone and the warranty lies with the manufacturer(let's not argue this as even though there is legislation to say meteor have to honour the warranty they won't but HTC will)


also not paging your bill is going to do you no favours.your contract is for the service not the free or subsidised phone you got.

whether or not your using the phone you were provided has nothing to do with your contract

GarIT

seannash wrote: »

a lot of mixed advice regarding this but you will not get a free repair with meteor so stop exploring that avenue as your wasting your time.

contact HTC directly and deal with them.

meteor are a reseller of the phone and the warranty lies with the manufacturer(let's not argue this as even though there is legislation to say meteor have to honour the warranty they won't but HTC will)


also not paging your bill is going to do you no favours.your contract is for the service not the free or subsidised phone you got.

whether or not your using the phone you were provided has nothing to do with your contract

Why would we not argue with something when what you are saying is bad advice and the opposite of the law.

foggy_lad

seannash wrote: »

a lot of mixed advice regarding this but you will not get a free repair with meteor so stop exploring that avenue as your wasting your time.

contact HTC directly and deal with them.

meteor are a reseller of the phone and the warranty lies with the manufacturer(let's not argue this as even though there is legislation to say meteor have to honour the warranty they won't but HTC will)


also not paging your bill is going to do you no favours.your contract is for the service not the free or subsidised phone you got.

whether or not your using the phone you were provided has nothing to do with your contract

Lets argue this point please! the warranty is all to do with HTC but any time a private individual buys something from anyone acting in the course of their business the private individual has statutory rights!

seannash

foggy_lad wrote: »

Lets argue this point please! the warranty is all to do with HTC but any time a private individual buys something from anyone acting in the course of their business the private individual has statutory rights!

yes and they'll say its physical damage ,not covered u deer warranty and that will be the end of it.
I worked for a phone company and dealt with this everyday,they won't repair it for free.


my point is that the op will get this resolved quicker by dealing directly with htc

Zhane

I agree, Meteor have had the phone assessed and the repair company has said its physical damage. Now you could go down the route of pursuing Meteor but its gonna lead to heartache and a long drawn out process. Contacting HTC directly will sort it out.

techdiver

https://community.virginmobile.com.au/t5/Phones-Forum/One-day-old-HTC-One-S-screen-cracked-by-itself/td-p/1220