Anyone have problems w/McIntosh warranty

I have warranty policies stated for the products I sell in my profession. My business model allows for exceptions. Inflexability on the part of McIntosh to allow for exceptions is poor customer service.

You will likely not need to use the warranty, but their refusal to even issue one still sucks.

Missioncoonery,

I would put this issue over to the McIntosh-forum of audiokarma. That's where the real McIntosh-addicts hang out, that's what McIntosh product manager Ron Cornelius reads every day, that's where I put a contentious warranty issue a few years ago, and where, after having laid out all the details, Ron Cornelius brought his influence on the service department to solve the issue - but only after most Audiokarma-visitors agreed with me and the case began to damage McIntosh's reputation.

In short, the problem was that I bought a MA6500 in Moscow, and the warranty papers in the box said "3 years warranty". The dealer, who was McIntosh's official Russia distributor, told me there would be 3 years warranty. But when a defect arose, he told me warranty in Russia was one year only. In one word, he lied to me.

I thought McIntosh was obliged to enforce them to honour what they had told me. McIntosh said in the beginning that any distributor was free to fix his own time of warranty, and that the 3-year-warranty was valid in the US only.

When I asked them why they then included the paper stating the 3-year-warranty with all foreign shipments, I got no answer. As I say, McIntosh acted only - forcing the distributor to repair the amp for free - when the clear majority agreed with me on audiokarma, having presented all the facts.

If there is not dealer in your area, if you indeed sold from an authorized McIntosh dealer, if he did not tell you you would void the warranty by having it shipped, I agree the dealer, but in this case McIntosh, too, has the obligation to cover the warranty.
Regards,
Florian Hassel

My 2 cents FWTW. This would make an interesting business school case. I think Missoncoonery has a legitimate beef. He bought a product from an authorized dealer but got less than the full product he paid for given that a legitmate definition of product includes "goods" + "services" (warranty effectively being a claim on future service). Why is a dealer "authorized" in the first place? Isn't it because the mftr. has determined they meet some basic standards and will be a good outlet for their product (e.g., protect price and provide a good venue for display of their product??). Secondly, what's that dealer "authorized" to do if not act as the mftr's. representative? I think the dealer was wrong not to disclose that shipping would void the warranty; but if Mac identified him as their authorized representative, it would seem to me any individual dealing with that dealer would have reasonable expectations that representations made by that dealer were consistent with mftr. policy. I think Mac should stand behind their product and their chosen representative's (tacit) representation of what he was selling.

Anyone that spends time on this website has the information in front of them for Warranty information from manufacturers listed. Most, if not all have their warranty info on their own website.
Mcintosh has taken care of my warranty issues pronto.