Anyone have problems w/McIntosh warranty


I live in the middle of no where/ mid-west USA,no local dealers within 100s of miles from me.I bought a NEW McIntosh amp from dealer and had it shipped to me.The dealer first asked me to verify that I had no local dealer and told me over the phone that all paperwork would be in the crate, to send in the warranty info supplied which I did..McIntosh informed me via a letter that because it was purchased over the phone and shipped to me the warranty is invalid/void..Im posting half in protest to their policies and the other half to warn potential buyers..Last time I buy McIntosh!!!!
missioncoonery
I do not understand this policy. Since there was no authorized McIntosh dealers in your area, you purchased an amplifier from an authorized McIntosh dealer expecting a full warranty. If this sale is against McIntosh policy, the dealer should be responsible (he sold it to you) and not the purchaser. It is my opinion that McIntosh should provide full warranty for this unit. I emailed someone I know at Mcintosh and asked him for his opinion. I will post his response when I get it.
Here is my take...You bought it from a Mcintosh authorized dealer...you get the warranty.

I am in the car bus and have been to court, there isnt a judge in the world who is going to let the consumer,who acted in good faith.left holding the bag, Mac can say whatever they want on their website, it doesn't matter.

I am a BIG Mac fan, and I understand their policy,BUT, in my opinion, they are swimming in the wrong pond by trying to "disclaim" the warranty based on HOW you got the product.
Nor can any Manufacturer disclaim the warranty based on what price you paid for the product.

Nor can any manufacturer shut off a retailer for discounting....hence..MSRP...Manufacturer SUGGESTED RETAIL price.

Think about it, you are travelling and stop in a Mac shop and buy a product,take it home, send in the warranty card,you get the warranty, you pick up the phone and order it over the phone....no warranty ???

What if you are disabled and cant physically make it to the shop,still no warranty ??

Like I said, I love Mac and support their dealer and products, but in my humble opinion, they really need to redo their policy.

I am not a lawyer, but if push came to shove, and consumer went to court over this.....it is a no brainer, the consumer would get the warranty, bet the farm on it.
From the perspective of a dealer (though not of Mac), I understand their policy. They want and expect their dealers to sell face to face, not by mail order, not over the Internet. Quite a few manufacturers and distributors have this rule and in fact forbid their dealers from advertising on the Internet and on certain websites (ahem).

In this case the dealer violated the understanding with the manufacturer, possibly backed by a written agreement, by selling over the phone, effectively mail order. In any event what he did was unethical.

Presumably the customer was not informed of the manufacturer's policy about warranty coverage prior to the sale, so presumably the purchase was made in good faith, but it can't be proven. Meanwhile the manufacturer's policy is clear. So in this case I'd say the customer is out of luck, no thanks to the shady dealer who made the sale and didn't keep up his end of the bargain. The manufacturer chooses to stick to their policy in order to thwart such sales from occurring.

Maybe McIntosh should honor the warranty but demand payment from the dealer of a certain percentage of the cost of the component. It would be an expensive lesson to the dealer. If the dealer refuses or delays payment he should lose the line.

There's a lesson for everyone in this.
I hate to jump on the bandwagon becuase I feel your anger and disappointment, but Mcintosh is not the culprit here. This is a common policy of many high end companies that want to rightfully protect their dealers. Sometimes even if the dealer is authorized to sell the gear, he is not supposed to cross over into another dealers territory. Other companies will allow their dealers to sell the gear from a store only, but not over the internet! It sounds to me like you purchased your Mac from an unauthorized dealer or maybe it's grey market. I hope he gave you a good price!! You probably will never need the warranty anyway because it is so well made.
I would think by law they have to honor the warranty if it is new. A complaint to the http://www.bbb.com is in order. Law trumps policy.