international warranty question

Hi,

I'm thinking of buying a Dell Vostro 1000 that I found on eBay. It comes with one year warranty, however it would be sent from the USA, and I live in Australia. Will I still be able to use the warranty here in Australia?

Thanks,
Jo.

 

Hi,

The answer to your question is complicated. What you would need to do is verify whether the system is sold in Asia Pacific/Australia. If so, then ask the ebay seller whether it comes with a "return to depot" warranty (i.e. mail in service) or with a "on-site" warranty. If you the system is a return to depot warranty, then once you purchase it, you have to call Dell have the warranty upgraded to an onsite warranty, along with the Service Tag owner transfer. Once you have that set up, you can request an international tag transfer, which would allow for warranty coverage in Australia. If you do decide to go this route, and you are keen on getting warranty coverage, you must be sure that you are in compliance with all export regulations, etc.

Personally, having done this in the past, my recommendation is to simply purchase the system you want in your home country through Dell (especially if the warranty is of importance to you). BTW, depending on your region, be aware that international tag transfers can run up to 30 days. Also, you should be aware that the upgrade cost for NBD onsite warranty can run up to 300 USD depending on the original system warranty and duration as well as service history. You should call Dell for more accurate pricing information.

Good Luck

 

I don't get it, I was under the impression your onsite warranty gives you access to the worldwide Dell network. Why can't you just skip the tag transfer and utilize the warranty if needed? What happens if you are traveling, as I always am? My experience is that based on the information updated about your service tag, you can use the onsite warranty.

http://www1.la.dell.com/content/top...s/en/prog_portables?c=aw&cs=awdhs1&l=en&s=dhs
http://hdstock.mit.edu/answer.php?id=7327

 

If you have the onsite warranty, you certainly can gain access to Dell support accross the world. However, this is only valid as long as the system you own is serviced in the region of the world that you are in. So what you are telling me is that you want to buy the laptop off ebay and keep it under the same ownership as the ebayer? If you want to change the ownership information you have to perform a tag transfer.

 

That requires the tag transfer...my suggestion is that he transfers his tag and ownership to his home address and then when travelling simply call the local service and support number to make use of the international warranty.

 

Aha, I hear what you are saying. I made an assumption that the laptop would be purchased under your name (from Dell).

I have had international service performed here in the Mid-East, it's a great perk and I will never leave home without it.

 

I concur. As someone who travels a lot (>100k mi a year), the international warranty is an invaluable asset.

 

Just to add: as I've mentioned in he D830 and the international warranty caveat thread, you have to make sure you know what you're getting into. The Latitudes and Vostros are the only systems that are allowed to be serviced here in the Philippines, and that was once of the reasons I picked it. Unfortunately, the only warranty that would allow me to avail of International Warranty coverage was Gold (at least, according to the CSR who I spoke to and ordered my system through) so I chose that.

Unfortunately, as has been mentioned above and in other threads, the warranty coverage here is Parts Only. So my constant stream of hardware (and occasional software) issues have led me to spend close to 200USD already on diagnostics and labor fees. Granted, my LCD, hard drive, motherboard and optical drive have all been replaced, but I don't like the fact that I had to spend 400 dollars to get Gold Warranty coverage that I wouldn't completely cover all my needs.

 

You make a good point and it is something that I touched on earlier. It is important to make sure that the system you purchased can be serviced in the regions you intend to travel with (within reason). Also, many countries will offer you only POS (parts only service), but troubleshooting and diagnostics can be done over the phone. You will be responsible for the installation (most of the common parts can be installed with the help of a manual or the support technician). In some cases if onsite service is available, you will recieve the NBD support as per the original t&c of your warranty.

Regarding the comment of Gold Tech. Support - that is an option generally only available in the business division. Technically, if you have NBD onsite, you do not need to get gold tech support for international coverage. The main advantage to Gold tech support is that you have shorter wait times and you will go straight to an L2 tech who would know how to properly send out the parts for a foreign system (as opposed to the standard tech support, where you not only wait longer, but you work with an L1 who needs to consult with a manager/L2 to figure out how to dispatch the parts to you).

One more comment - if you are travelling to a region where your notebook is not supported and you require a part dispatch, Dell will not wash its hands and make you get back to your home country. Instead, technicians can place an order for an "out of region/country part". This will typically take 5-7 bus. days depending on supply and location of the nearest warehouse stocking that replacement.