warranty woes

[rocky s.]

So, here's the deal. I got the t-bolt at the verizon store yesterday for $199 via my wife's upgrade (I wasn't eligible for mine until July). So, no problem...we purchased and activated the phone on her account/number and then transferred over to my number. She then took possession of my incredible and they activated that on her number. Win-win right? Well, only issue is the verizon dude tells me that since the t-bolt was activated first on her number and then was transferred to mine, it voids the one year manufacturer's warranty which apparently only gets extended to the original buyer. He said no worries, though, if I purchased the insurance plan for $6.99 a month it would not only have full coverage, it would reinstate the one year manufacturer's warranty. So, I agreed to do this and am still waiting for the insurance to show on my account. Apparently there's some kind of error they keep getting that they have to work through.

In any case, it seems to me a number of you here indicated making use of a spouse's upgrade, etc. like I did. So, I was just wondering if the above non-transferable warranty issue sounds right. Otherwise, I guess having insurance on the phone isn't a bad thing.

Thanks!

 

[Deleted User]

I can't confirm with certainty what the official policy is. However, I can tell you I have done a similar swap on a family plan and had NO warranty problems. It was covered within the first year when I had problems. I had a different experience when I bought a phone from someone else (the original owner): the warranty did not transfer. Phone was only 3-4 months old. VZW would not honor the warranty because I was not the original owner. They actually pointed out a specific clause in the contract that covers the issue (I could not find it to post it here). Bottom line: In my experience, swapping phones around on the same account (family plan) appears to retain the warranty, sellling/giving it to someone else does not. Do you and your wife have totally separate accounts or it is a family plan?

 

[clarkkent]

Not right at all. Talk to another rep or another store. If the phone is still on the same account you are fine. Only when it transfers to another account will it void the warranty. I do recommend insurance anyway thought. You will need a new sim card though if you are moving the phone around. It's tied to the upgrade number.

 

[rocky s.]

Yes, we have separate accounts, so I guess that answers the question - warrany = non-transferable. The sim card issue actually also explains why when they activated the t-bolt to her number and then tried to re-activate it to mine they had to put in an entirely different card and dispose of the original.

Thanks for the response. Hope they get my insurance in place given that this makes the warranty active plus extra coverage.