Warranty Repairs

Stores : Please refer to this page concerning warranty repairs

The reason for this page is to try and clear up the warranty mystery . You know the one where everyone who owns a guitar feels that they should have warranty coverage even though they are the second or third owner of an instrument and now it needs a lot of major work. Or they just purchased an instrument and the customer put the instrument in not to favorable conditions and now the problems start.
Let's start at the company warranty policy level. All companies only cover things under warranty to the ORIGINAL owner. And at that, the coverage is limited to some degree as to what is actually covered (read the warranty policy that came with the instrument to determine how long the warranty is for and what is covered). Most companies now feel that a dried-out or over-humidified instrument is not going to get any kind of warranty coverage concerning the problems that arise from these conditions. Let's face it, the company cannot keep watch of every instrument that it sells to make sure that conditions are just right to keep the instrument in perfect condition. More responsibility is on the consumers shoulders to make sure problems don't come up. Reading the manual that came with the instrument is usually a good place to start to find out what that company recommends and how to care for the instrument. Most instrument manufacturers build the instruments in a 45 percent humidity level (this is a good balance in that the conditions can vary greatly around the country depending on the time of year (I know in my part of the states, without any type of control over conditions, the humidity level can go as high as 85 per cent in summertime, down to 10 - 15 percent in mid-winter). Drastic changes are deadly on instruments. Fingerboards will shrink, necks will twist, tops and backs on acoustics will start to crack, action will change immensely. Most times, the manual will suggest what to do to prevent these problems before they even start. Ignoring the recommendations and the warning signs is only asking for trouble and the companies do not like to cover things that could have been prevented. Sometimes, the company will take care of the problem under warranty to be the nice guy the first time around. Try to get coverage when it happens again and you are probably out of luck. Really ignoring the problems can sometimes lead to voiding the warranty all together for the rest of the life of the instrument. At the same time, having work performed by an unauthorized repairman can possibly void the warranty altogether. The companies will not allow for warranty repair if it is for a repair that has been botched by an unauthorized repair shop. Some companies will not allow warranty repair for the botched job but keep the warranty in play for future repairs that will fall under the company policy. Other companies just flat out void the warranty after an unauthorized repair has been done. Find out when you bring the instrument in for repair that the person doing the repair is authorized to do the repair and that the shop is an authorized repair center. This is all critical to keeping your warranty for the instrument.

Insuring smooth warranty repairs

To make sure that you can get the company coverage, requires that you do one of two things.
1.- Register the instrument with the company immediately after purchase if the company requires registration. This will make sure that if anything happens to the instrument in the allotted warranty period, it would be covered.
2.- Keep the original sale slip in a safe place where you can get to it if a problem arises. This means even years after the purchase. Some companies do not have registration but require that you have a photocopy of the original sale slip to be sent in with each claim. This means that even though there was a claim made io the instrument and the copy was sent in with the claim the first time, some companies require that a copy is sent in on every claim made even if that claim is years after purchase. If you cannot locate the original sale slip, you can sometimes go to the store where the instrument was purchased and get a copy from them. If the store has gone out of business, you may be out of luck (depending on the manufacturer). Some companies may require a notarized letter or have a form to be filled out which will be verified with the company records to prove ownership.
Know what to do before contacting a repair center. Make sure that if registration is required that it is done or if the sale slip is needed, that you have a copy in hand before contacting a service center. That way when you walk into the repair shop, the process can get started without waiting for this information to filter through. I've seen where weeks have gone by and the customer is finally coming up with the information that the company requires to perform warranty work and the repair shop can get started. This can be trouble if the customer needs the instrument back in a hurry for a gig in a few days. Once again, the responsibility is on the owner, not the repair shop to make sure you have coverage.

What is covered under warranty

The company policy or their website is the best place to find out this information. Each company is different on what is covered and for how long the warranty last. The repair shop usually will have a real good idea as to what the individual companies cover but even that is not written in stone until the problem is discussed with the customer service rep. for the company and they decide yes or no. The problem is that the policy can change slightly and the repair shop has not yet been notified yet. Most companies will send out notification so the repair shop can plan accordingly but not all the time. I've been surprised a couple of times when changes have been made and you only find out when you try to call in the claim and find things have changed and the company does not cover that particular problem anymore (usually concerning humidity changes). The amount of time that warranty is allowed can also change. Limited lifetime warranty does not mean that every problem or action change is covered forever. In fact, now, most companies will not cover action adjustments even on an instrument that has just been purchased. Some companies may cover action adjustments for only a few weeks after purchase, feeling that if the instrument had no problems at the time of purchase and slight changes to the action have occurred, that this is more a humidity (lack of or too much) problem and therefore, is not considered a manufacturer's defect. The usual wear and tear on instruments is not covered by any company. Finish problems are usually not covered at all by any companies. Some companies will address this only on a per piece basis. They may know that during a certain period, they had a problem with finish materials and may cover certain problems at that time. This is extremely rare to happen. These days, the companies pretty much have their finishing down to a science without too much problem. Cracks are pretty much down to being a glue joint coming unglued as being a manufacturers defect but not an open crack on the top, back, sides or fingerboard. Once again, a humidity or dropped instrument problem, not considered manufacturer defect. As I've been stating previously, companies consider warranty to cover manufacturer defects, not things that happen out of neglect or customer preference.

Parts are another area to cover. Most companies will cover parts under warranty as long as their supplier's coverage does. Because the companies use out of factory supplied electronics, Most times, electronics are covered for a time period of 90 days to one year and that is all. Go past the time limit and you are covering the expense, not the company. Even though the instrument is only a year and a half old, you are probably out of luck for electronic coverage. Changing or upgrading a part will not be covered or changing the material used at the nut or saddles won't be covered and sometimes can void the warranty. Once again, find out how long the coverage is on these parts and what happens to the warranty if materials are changed. Most times, an email to the customer service dept. for the company will get you the answers that you need.

At times, an instrument may have to go back to the company for evaluation or for the repair itself. This doesn't happen too often as the companies have plenty of work themselves and would prefer to have an outside service center do the work. This can facilitate a faster service and repair for the customer. Sometimes the companies are backed up with repair work will it can take as long as a year to receive the instrument back. Check with the company website as to your local service center. If there is not one listed in your area, then contact them to find the closest one. There are times where the store that you purchased the instrument from can only do minor level repairs and not a more in depth repair that is needed. Some stores are not an authorized service center because of not having anyone qualified for doing the repair be it even a minor repair. Once you have found out the name of the nearest authorized service center, contact them. Talk to the repair shop on the phone and try to get a feel of how things will go. If you are comfortable with the conversation or have confidence in a friends recommendation, then get the instrument checked out as soon as possible so that the problem can stay as minor as possible and not grow into a major problem that requires more attention than it should have initially.