Be Careful Purchasing a Warranty

I needed a new cell phone, but I didn’t want to be locked in to a plan anymore. So I researched the kind I wanted and made my way into my local Best Buy store – still one of my favourite places to shop, but I’ll be more careful in future.

Anyway, I found exactly what I wanted and on sale. $50 and no contract because it was with Koodo, I was all set. Or so I thought. The options I chose were available for $35 a month, no contract. So far, so good. Then the salesgirl asked me if I wanted the store’s warranty plan. At any time for the next three years, I could bring the phone in and exchange it for another one without the hassle of sending it to the manufacturer. And it was only $6.77 for the warranty. Of course, I said yes, and that’s where the story starts to go sour.

This wasn’t my first time getting a warranty. I got one at Staples for my ebook reader – no problem. Got one at the Source for my headphones and printer – no problem. But with this Best Buy warranty, there was a definite problem. You see, every other warranty I ever got was a one time fee for the length of the warranty. Not so with the one for this cell phone. That was a monthly charge, for three years!

I know, I should have looked carefully at the invoice, but I didn’t. I took it for granted it was a one-time fee like all the others. In fact, I called the other stores to make sure I wasn’t mistaken and they had never heard of a monthly charge.

So now I have a three year warranty for a phone with no contract because I didn’t want to be locked in to a monthly fee of any kind. Since I didn’t realize I was paying monthly, by the time I noticed, the 30 days to change my mind had already passed. I called customer support and was told that the warranty was transferable, so if I didn’t want a cell phone anymore, I could get someone else to take it over and pay the warranty. Or I could stop using the phone altogether and simply pay the remainder of the warranty period upfront.

Now I don’t know about you, but having to pay over $200 to get out of a warranty for a $50 phone does not appeal to me. And I doubt anyone else would be dumb enough to take it over, nor would I want to try to get them too. So I’m stuck. But I have learned my lesson and will not be getting another warranty anytime soon.

I hope my experience has helped you too. Don’t take anything for granted and read before you sign.

Technorati Tags: warranty, Best Buy