It’s money or nothing: how the storage crisis destroyed your SSD’s warranty
SK Hynix, Micron and Samsung would rather issue refunds for defective SSDs and RAM kits than provide replacements. And due to the current storage crisis, any money you do get most likely won’t be enough to buy a comparable product. How to navigate this situation and what to keep in mind if you need to make a warranty claim.
As reported by Tom’s Hardware and Golem (article in German), among others, PC component manufacturers often refund the purchase price instead of offering replacement products in warranty cases these days. That in itself is nothing unusual. However, this has put customers at a disadvantage amid the current storage crisis. PC components have become more expensive in recent months, and if you want to buy new ones, you’ll have to fork over quite the sum. Worse, a specific model or comparable alternatives might no longer be available at all. Our users are ringing the alarm bells too:
Refunds have always been the norm
Before I get to the numbers, here’s an important point: when a warranty claim is filed, it moves through two levels. One is between the supplier and us, the other is between us and you. The amount a manufacturer refunds to us won’t necessarily be what you end up receiving.
I contacted Digitec Galaxus’s after-sales department to ask whether there has recently been a shift toward issuing more cash refunds instead of replacement products in warranty cases. According to colleague and After Sales Development Manager Kurosh Oroudji, cash refunds have always been the norm between suppliers and retailers. Using a single supplier and the product categories SSD and HDD as examples, he shows me that, over the past year and a half, fewer than ten per cent of warranty claims resulted in a replacement product or a repair. The overwhelming majority consisted of credit notes to us. This is a snapshot of a sole supplier – but according to Kurosh, it reflects the overall picture.
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SK Hynix pays out the lower amount for defective SSDs
A recent case involving SK Hynix was made public via the r/pcmasterrace subreddit. A user contacted the manufacturer about his defective SSD. SK Hynix stated that no replacement units were available and offered a refund of the original purchase price.
According to the SK Hynix warranty terms, this is acceptable. They state that, instead of a repair or replacement, customers will receive a refund of the original purchase price or the current market value – whichever is lower. Accordingly, the company compares the purchase price at the time with the current market value and pays the lower of the two amounts.
Samsung and Micron also causing trouble
Another incident involved Micron and a memory kit from the discontinued Crucial brand. At first, Micron offered only a refund of the original purchase price. Following a customer complaint, Micron adjusted its offering and supplied alternative modules with the same capacity.
In a different case, right-to-repair activist Louis Rossmann had a lengthy dispute with Samsung customer service over a defective SSD. It wasn’t until he threatened legal action that Samsung paid him the current market value of the drive – significantly more than the original purchase price.
The irony here: this is exactly what Samsung’s own warranty terms stipulate. If the company’s unable to repair or replace a product, it’ll reimburse the market value in effect at the time of the claim. It took an escalation for Samsung to follow its own rules.
What to keep in mind when filing a warranty claim
Anyone sending in a defective PC component under warranty should first review the manufacturer’s warranty terms and conditions. The key thing to look out for is whether a reimbursement will be made at the original purchase price, the current market value or – as in the case of SK Hynix – whichever amount is lower. For manufacturers with a market value clause, such as Samsung, it may be worthwhile to refer to your own contract terms in the event of a dispute.
Regardless of the legal situation, however, these cases involving SK Hynix, Micron and Samsung demonstrate one thing above all: the storage crisis affects new buyers as well as existing customers counting on their warranties.
Whether it’s better to repair GPUs and other components at your own expense – as user Lloyd C. recommends – is up for debate. Personally, I’d only take this step if my warranty had already expired. If something breaks during a repair, you won’t receive any money under warranty terms. And if you’re considering a paid repair after your warranty has expired, good news: we offer those as well. When it comes to GPUs, for example, we work with a specialist.
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