Dish's warranties

[cdru]

I am currently debating the differences between the different warranties that Dish offers with an acquantice. Can someone here please help to settle the dispute.

The DHA plan here states that the plan comes with "Standard Equipment Warranty Included". They also state that you can upgrade to the Dish Home Protection Plan. Terms and Conditions page shows:
Warranty
Standard warranty includes no-cost repair/replacement of manufacturer defects during the first 90 days. After the first 90 days, a $14.95 shipping charge applies to warranty equipment replacement by mail, and a $99 in-home warranty trip service charge applies.

So...my/our question is, how long is the DHA plan's warranty in effect. Standard equipment warranties are 1 year. Is the same true for DHA? Or are you paying for a "extended" warranty of sorts that continues for the life of the lease. If it is an "extended" warranty, is the only major difference between it and the DHPP warranty the reduced service call fee?

The actual dispute that we're having is what happens when a receiver craps out in 18 months. Is it covered under the warranty or does the customer have to buy another one to replace the leased one...and then still have to return it.

 

[skaeight]

As I read it, the DHA warranty is in effect for the life of your lease. If you look at the free-for-all terms:

Warranty
Standard one-year warranty includes no-cost repair/replacement of manufacturer defects during the first 90 days. For the remainder of the first year, a $14.95 shipping charge applies to warranty equipment replacement by mail, and a $99 in-home warranty trip service charge applies. For complete warranty information, including our optional DISH Home Protection Plan, revisit our website at www.dishnetwork.com or call us at (800) 333-DISH for full terms and conditions.

at http://www.dishnetwork.com/content/getDish/disclaimers/freeforall/index.shtml

it specifically says one year. The text you posted which comes from the DHA terms, says nothing of the sort. The DHA warranty seems to be very very similar to the now defunct $1.99 equipment warranty they used to offer.

I'm not sure how much this matters, but I also called dish and asked about this issue, and the CSR did say that the equipment was covered for the life of the lease. Once again take that with a grain of salt, because it seems like every CSR has a different answer for everything. However it does seem to coincide with the stated terms for the DHA plan.

However, if you want discounted in home service calls after 90 days, or free shipping on returned recievers, you would have to go with the $5.99 warranty.

For me I'm still weighing the pluses and minuses, but its looking like I'm just going to go with the standard DHA warranty, as it would cover all of my equipment.

 

[Hall]

I didn't know we were "debating" this issue....

Anyway, at this point, I'm confident and satisfied that the equipment has a lifetime warranty. The CSR, for what they're worth, that I spoke to the other night seemed very familiar with Dish's terms. The add'l $6/month isn't worth it to me....

 

[cdru]

I didn't know we were "debating" this issue....

Sure we were debating it. Oh wait...I was uh...debating it with another person. Yeah. That's it. Another person that I apparently told incorrect information and wanted to save face. That's it. Thanks for ruining it.

 

[boba]

The reality of this new program will show up in month 13 of your lease. Will DISH try to weasel out of it or will they honor it, only time will tell for sure. You can be sure that DHP with the included service contract was better after 90 days of leasing. If you have a need for service on the 91st day DISH will charge you for service. Of course with DHA you don't have a commitment so you can tell DISH service it free or come out and pick it up and I'll put in DirecTV. I'll bet you get FREE SERVICE under those terms.

 

[dlsnyder]

I'm not sure that threatening to go to DirecTV would get them to do anything special. It seems like all the CSRs do now is just tell you there will be a $25 reconnect fee if you want to come back. They don't seem to care about keeping dissatisfied customers.

 

[Hall]

Of course with DHA you don't have a commitment so you can tell DISH service it free or come out and pick it up and I'll put in DirecTV. I'll bet you get FREE SERVICE under those terms.

And if you don't, hang up and call back. You can surely get a rep who's not an uncaring, hard-ass without too much trouble. I don't think I'd care about the $15 shipping charge once (or twice). I'd hope that's overnight or two-day shipping too. If it becomes "routine" though, there's a bigger problem. I mean, a regular receiver is like most electronics. If it doesn't fail within a short time of using it, usually they last a long time. So long, they're obsolete by the time something does happen to them. With a DVR though, you've got the hard drive to worry about. It's mechanical whereas a normal receiver has NO mechanical parts.