Hey Ed,

I suppose extended warranties do provide a type of appliance insurance. Extended warranties are freely available in Australia. However, as is the case with most insurance policies, one has to read the fine print.

I once bought a Yamaha 5.1 AV receiver and paid extra for a 3-year extended warranty. It was supposed to be a “replacement” warranty, that’s how it was presented to me and described in the documentation. However, when push came to shove, it turned out to be a “replacement cost” warranty. Of course, by the time I made my claim the receiver had increased in price considerably and I was left well out of pocket.

I worked in industrial sales most of my career and our company’s reputation was the most valuable asset we had. Many companies today don’t value that at all. The ones that do, get my business and support.

Makes sense doesn’t it Ralph… cheap PR to keep the customer happy. These companies amuse me, they spend millions on advertising and then begrudge a comparatively few measly dollars in order to keep a customer happy. Seems word of mouth isn’t worth what it once was.

Thanks for sharing mate.

Jim and I come from same area and as he says Costco have only moved to Australia and as yet there is no store close to where I live. We do have other store we can buy from near by. A few of them have been the ones I mentioned that have had action taken against them by ACCC. For those not in Australia ACCC stands for Australian Competition and Consumer Commission who have some powers to ensure our businesses are doing the right thing.

Hey David,

Costco has only just moved into Australia and, as yet, they have no store anywhere near where I live, and I won’t buy large expensive items, such as big screen TVs, online. Maybe, one day, Costco will open a store near where I live.

David. Have you looked into the Costco warranty plan? Is their 2 year plan on top of what each manufacture offers? And do not forget, you must have a Costco membership, Mindblower!

I agree Gary, the ACCC has done a great job as an industry/consumer watchdog. However, as I mentioned earlier, the ACCC will not pursue individual consumer complaints. I guess the threat of submitting a complaint to the ACCC might have the desired effect on occasions but it has not worked for me in the past.

Hey Reg,

If you spent over $1000 on a TV in Australia you would be entitled to expect at least three years warranty.

I agree, the expectation of warranty should be at least 3 years. My point exactly. The ACCC does NOT act on behalf of private individuals. It maintains a record of consumer complaints and, if enough complaints are received against a specific organization, they will then take action against said organization.

Hey Gary,

The issue with that is; the only way to to enforce those legislated consumer rights is by taking the vendor or manufacturer to court, in which case the costs and hassle involved more often than not outweigh any benefits. The Office of Fair Trading (in Queensland) is a toothless tiger. They are not a legal organization and, if the vendor or manufacturer tells them to go jump in the lake, all they’ll do is recommend that the consumer initiates his or her own civil legal action. Been there, done that.

Surprised this wasn’t mentioned in the above article. If you spent over $1000 on a TV in Australia you would be entitled to expect at least three years warranty. Jim should have threatened Panasonic with the ACCC and their tone may have changed quite quickly.

My computer monitors (24 inch) are also many years old and left on 24/7 just going into sleep mode and work without problems (so far). Was asked if I wanted to pay extra for am extended policy (2 and 3 year plans only add 1 to 2 years as the first is covered by the manufacturer) , am happy I did not get this insurance waste of money.

For me, electronic parts can either die quickly or last many years. I upgrade my computers, so does this mean I replace all the parts and just keep the box – not at all. I still own a 486 which I purchased second hand 3 decades ago, had running almost 24/7 for over a decade, and shelved a few years ago.

When I purchased a $10CDN toaster many years ago, it came with a warranty card. Pay the two way shipping and either get a brand new or refurbished one. I laughed as the shipping cost exceeded another brand new toaster. But that was decades ago, and I seldom use that toaster.

Yet, I fully understand this silly one year warranty policy. It is the way manufactures can keep the cost down and keep you buying replacements. Since many are all offering the same policy, they do not care if you purchase from the competition, Mindblower!