PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

yuroba
Community Member

Why isn't Ebay making online store merchants honor the warranties that are offered on their site? Seller is selling struts an shocks that are obviously lesser quality that stated in their listing, when it goes defective after a year, they WILL NOT honor the warranty, the company Tenneco will not honor a warranty from an online retailer and ebay will not make honor the warranty; what are my options?

Message 1 of 17
latest reply
16 REPLIES 16

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

It has been more than one year since you purchased this item

 

What guarantee did you expect?  Lifetime?

Message 2 of 17
latest reply

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

Not at all, they offered a Limited Lifetime warranty.  They are struts, if you own a vehicle, do you change your struts every year or should they last for a minimum of 3 years?

Message 3 of 17
latest reply

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

"Limited "

 

???

 

What exactly did "limited" mean?

Message 4 of 17
latest reply

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

Limited means that they haven't been modified in anyway or used for any other purpose than what they were manufactured.  Example would be if you were to break it intentionally or drop it on the floor, then the warranty doesn't apply. If the part breaks from normal wear and tear and you did take care of it, then you can use the warranty. 

If you own a vehicle can you imagine every year spending depending on the vehicle from $110 - $200.00 on the part and up to $250 in labor to replace JUST your front struts or shocks every year?

Message 5 of 17
latest reply

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

Sorry, I should have been clearer with my question.

 

In the listing for the item you purchased, what is the exact wording of the "Limited Lifetime" warranty.

 

I do not mean what you and I expect or understand.  What is the exact wording used by the seller in the listing?

Message 6 of 17
latest reply

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

Yes, it says 'Limited Lifetime Warranty'.

Message 7 of 17
latest reply

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

They said on their listing that Tenneco Inc would warranty the shocks/struts but when you contact Tenneco they say on their voice message that they will not warranty any products sold by online retailers.

 

 

Message 8 of 17
latest reply

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

I am sorry but I guess there is nothing anyone can do for you in this case.

 

eBay never guarantees that a warranty will be honoured by a seller.  Considering over a year has gone by, you are, unfortunately, out of luck.

Message 9 of 17
latest reply

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

Thanks anyhow.  How do ebay shoppers protect themselves from sellers that are dishonest and misrepresenting warranties?

Message 10 of 17
latest reply

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

To be candid I do not think anyone buying online (eBay and elsewhere) expect a guarantee or warranty longer than one year.

Message 11 of 17
latest reply

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

Thanks for your help.

 

M.

Message 12 of 17
latest reply

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

"What exactly did "limited" mean?" 

 

In Canada with the way our roads and streets are and the winter weather,,,limited Lifetime ends on car parts when you leave your drive way,,,And yes I own a car,,2 as a matter of fact,,and yes I have replace struts and/or shocks as offen as 2 years,,but then again, I replace parts before a complete failure happens.

Message 13 of 17
latest reply

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

You will no help from ebay, they are bigger crooks than SOME of their sellers!
Message 14 of 17
latest reply

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

Anonymous
Not applicable
If you need warranty, you are better off buying them in person than online. I got a VCR with a 3-year warranty and have exchange for a replaement (new one) every 2 years!! Same thing with KitchenAid blender and stand mixer with 3 year warranty and they tend to break down after a year and I get free replaements every time, paying nothing extra. It is a risk to buy them online for small appliances, etc. Better off buy them in person in your local areas.
Message 15 of 17
latest reply

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

They said on their listing that Tenneco Inc would warranty the shocks/struts but when you contact Tenneco they say on their voice message that they will not warranty any products sold by online retailers.

 

So either the eBay seller was lying or Tenneco was.

 

Given that Tenneco has a reputation to uphold, I would say that they are telling the truth. They cannot and will not honour a warranty unless the seller is one of their licenced retailers.

Message 16 of 17
latest reply

PLEASE HELP - not honoring warranty offered!

Okay, I'm going to step in here and give you my two bucks worth (inflation has hit hard in my area and the old adage "two cents worth" has been replaced).

 

I am a car guy, bunch of other stuff too but for this particular post let's go with the car guy.

 

If you replace the struts on your car within the past two years there is no way they should require replacement.  Now please consider this, are you positive the struts are the issue?  There are many other parts that could affect the suspension on your vehicle.  Bearings come to mind as well as other multi link suspension parts.

 

 However, let's all assume the problem is the relatively newly replaced struts and also assume you don't enter Monster truck events every other weekend...   My guess would be they ARE defective.  Once again, we do not have the full story but, there may be a lesson here, buyer beware.   Ebay is swarming with people whom at a moments notice would fleece you like the proverbial lamb, you need to carefully think about the downside of pushing that "buy it now" button.  

 

Face it, you have no recourse, and that goes for everyone who purchases a product from an internet source with a "instore warranty".

Do not consider that as part of the deal, in fact discount those words entirely, sure you may actually get lucky, but stop counting on such claims.

 

I know of other "car guys" who bought parts from an ebay source.  Some got ripped and some like me happened to get a great deal on a non moving part.  Beware, be thoughtful and read previous purchasers comment prior to the purchase.

 

Hey, it's your car, go to a local mechanic, create a bond with him and take you car there every time.  Failing that, buy your jobber (aftermarket) parts from a reliable source such as lordco.  Please also consider the local auto dismantlers and buy used - at least then you get original parts.

 

fraser 

 

Message 17 of 17
latest reply