# Circuit City stopped extended service



## maleintheusa (Sep 28, 2005)

turns out my warrantee has been cancelled
i bought the R-10 at Circuit City in Sept 05 with a 5 year extended warrantee. Last night it died. I called to get service and they tell me they no longer service tivo units. So they are refunding me the price of the R-10 plus pro-rated warrantee. That's a kicker! i suppose i can open the box now since it has no warrantee. I'll probbaly end up sending it somewhere to get it upgraded to a bigger holding capacity.


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## litzdog911 (Oct 18, 2002)

What's wrong with it? You can upgrade the hard drive yourself using the resources in the Tivo Upgrade Center Forum, including ....

http://www.tivocommunity.com/tivo-vb/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=25

http://www.weaknees.com/index.html

http://tivo.upgrade-instructions.com/

http://www.newreleasesvideo.com/hinsdale-how-to/

http://www.ptvupgrade.com/products/instantcake/

http://www.9thtee.com/


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## maleintheusa (Sep 28, 2005)

i suppose it must be the hard drive that went. The screen froze and it started rebooting non stop for an hour. i would put new hard drives in myself but i don't know if I could. I've replaced a hrad drive in a pc before but that didn't require formatting the hard drive. I will look at the resources you posted and see what they offer. Thanks for your help!


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## ebonovic (Jul 24, 2001)

I would want my entire warranty back... not just a prorated one...


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## mr.unnatural (Feb 2, 2006)

> I would want my entire warranty back... not just a prorated one...


Nice idea but unfortunately the world doesn't work that way. I'd try and find out when they actually stopped servicing Tivo units and then see about getting the warranty refund prorated from that date. Chances are you may get pretty close to a full refund.

Personally, I'd consider suing Circuit City. What's the point of buying an extended warranty if they can stop honoring it anytime they wish? Better yet, call some of your local TV stations that have consumer watch segments and let them go and interview the folks at Circuit City to find out why they feel they can welch on a service they sold you.

It seems pretty clear to me that Circuit City doesn't actually service anything they sell. Best Buy does exactly the same thing. They just get refurbished units and swap them with what they sold you. Now that the supply of refurbed units has dried up for them, they can no longer offer you any sort of repair "service" on a DTivo.


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## maleintheusa (Sep 28, 2005)

i was told i should go to the store and buy another one with a different warrantee. I decided to look and I can get an R-15 but I don't own it. I have to pay a monthly lease for it of $5/month. UFR!


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## markb (Jul 24, 2002)

mr.unnatural said:


> Personally, I'd consider suing Circuit City. What's the point of buying an extended warranty if they can stop honoring it anytime they wish? Better yet, call some of your local TV stations that have consumer watch segments and let them go and interview the folks at Circuit City to find out why they feel they can welch on a service they sold you.


Huh? Seems to me they are honoring the warranty by refunding the purchase price. What's wrong with that?


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## reh523 (Feb 28, 2006)

markb said:


> Huh? Seems to me they are honoring the warranty by refunding the purchase price. What's wrong with that?


 I would say nothing...... Bad would be if they just gave you the warranty money back that would suck......


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## maleintheusa (Sep 28, 2005)

I bought the R-15 at Circuit City again. The reason I was kind of upset is that I originally purchased a five year warranty for $45.00. Now I pay $5.00 per month which comes to $60/year. That means my five year warranty now costs me $300.00 for five years and of course, i do not own the box now. It is the property of DirecTV.


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## narnia777 (Jan 12, 2003)

The lease fee for your first receiver is covered by your plan. Only additional receivers have the $5.99 fee or what ever. Owned receivers it's called a mirror fee on leased it's called a leased fee. Same price.

Jim


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## rmassey (Sep 5, 2002)

I have an HDVR2 sitting idle on the shelf. It started with the dreaded reboots when it updates to 6.2. I then upgraded to an HR 10-250 and never touched it again. When I purchased this in Dec. 2002, I opted for the CC 5 yr ext. warranty. I actually used the warranty once when my house was hit by lightning and took out the Tivo, they sent me a refurb in 3 days and I sent back the fried one. This refurb is now just sitting on the self. 

So please tell me the details of the current CC warranty program. Can I jsut call them and they will send me a check for my purchase amount + pro rated warranty, and then I get to keep the DTivo? Given that the HDVR2 are no longer made, I always wanted to hang on to this one, in case I ever wanted to activate another DTivo in the house.


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## maleintheusa (Sep 28, 2005)

I suppose anyone with an extended warranty on their DirecTivo from CC can get a full refund if the unit breaks. Now I find out this new R-15 I bought is not a Tivo but a DVR which really is a very bad thing when compared to Tivo.


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## rmassey (Sep 5, 2002)

maleintheusa said:


> Now I find out this new R-15 I bought is not a Tivo but a DVR which really is a very bad thing when compared to Tivo.


If you didn't know that before you got the R-15, you really need to read teh forums more frequently. This is pretty common knowledge here.


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## litzdog911 (Oct 18, 2002)

What did you do with your R10 DirecTV/Tivo DVR? It's very easy to simply swap the hard drive by buying an upgrade drive kit from sources like Weaknees or 9thTee.


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## appleye1 (Jan 26, 2002)

reh523 said:


> I would say nothing...... Bad would be if they just gave you the warranty money back that would suck......


I agree, but sometimes even the warranty money would be good.

I bought a big screen TV a few years back from a local chain. Paid around $4500 plus $500 for a 5-year extended warranty. Two years into the warranty the chain wen belly-up and the warranty just went poof. It appears that whatever deal they had with the warranty company didn't include paying in advance, so the warranty company cancelled all the contracts.

The State of Virginia ended up suing the bankrupted company and actually got a settlement. I received a check for $56 that I could use to purchase another extended warranty.  The OP should count his blessings. He got a great deal.


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## HomieG (Feb 17, 2003)

appleye1 said:


> I agree, but sometimes even the warranty money would be good.
> 
> I bought a big screen TV a few years back from a local chain. Paid around $4500 plus $500 for a 5-year extended warranty. Two years into the warranty the chain wen belly-up and the warranty just went poof. It appears that whatever deal they had with the warranty company didn't include paying in advance, so the warranty company cancelled all the contracts.
> 
> The State of Virginia ended up suing the bankrupted company and actually got a settlement. I received a check for $56 that I could use to purchase another extended warranty.  The OP should count his blessings. He got a great deal.


While still not a guarantee, when purchasing extended warranties, always look to see if the warranty is bonded or insured. Many of them are. I would never purchase an extended warranty if it was not bonded or insured, for the very reason you mention. Sorry that happened to you.


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## maleintheusa (Sep 28, 2005)

What a nightmare this has been but it's over i hope! I went to CC and asked the sales associate for a DirecTV with Tivo. He gives me a box, I pay and go home to find that it is a DirecTV with their own pvr, it isn't Tivo. I take that back and exchange it for a Stand alone Tivo. i got home hooked it up and then noticed it didn't have dual tuners. i took it back and exchanged it for a a stand alone Tivo with dual tuners(the boxes look exactly alike). Got home read the manuel first and then hooked it up. I then can't get it to work. I call Tivo. They tell me they are sorry but the unit will not work with DirecTV even though it says it will on the box and in the manuel. I end up taking it back and getting a credit to my card. I call DirecTV. They sell me an insurance policy for any unit in the home for like $6/month. They then send me a replacement R10 and then I send the old one to them. DirecTV says they no longer make DirecTivos but they, at the moment, are servicing them. So i hope this unit lasts for many years because I don't think i can handle Tivo without DirecTV. Should they ever stop servicing them, I will then use an upgrade kit. Thank you evryone for your help


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## magnus (Nov 12, 2004)

litzdog911 said:


> What did you do with your R10 DirecTV/Tivo DVR? It's very easy to simply swap the hard drive by buying an upgrade drive kit from sources like Weaknees or 9thTee.


Personally, that's what I would have done as well. And would still do... if you have the tivo box. Get your hands dirty.... you can't screw the box up any worse. Just but an instant cake image and a new hard drive (or a used one someplace) and go to town. learn how to do it yourself so you don't have to worry about a warranty.


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## extension 721 (Sep 29, 2005)

appleye1 said:


> I agree, but sometimes even the warranty money would be good.
> 
> I bought a big screen TV a few years back from a local chain. Paid around $4500 plus $500 for a 5-year extended warranty. Two years into the warranty the chain wen belly-up and the warranty just went poof. It appears that whatever deal they had with the warranty company didn't include paying in advance, so the warranty company cancelled all the contracts.
> 
> The State of Virginia ended up suing the bankrupted company and actually got a settlement. I received a check for $56 that I could use to purchase another extended warranty.  The OP should count his blessings. He got a great deal.


My father had an even worse experience with a store "bernie's newmark and lewis" when newmark& lewis went bellyup, "bernies" continued on without the added moniker. when the air conditioner he bought went bad, he took it back and was told he's have to file against newmark& lewis for the warranty. Needless to say, we warned people against "bernies" and never went there again.


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## rmassey (Sep 5, 2002)

:up: I called CC about a month ago about this Ext. Warr. situation. They offered me a prorate amount on the contract & $99.99/DTivo and said I can keep the HW. Just got my checks from CC yesterday.  Given my original purchase price, rebates, & price matches that I did back in 2002, this effecitvely brings the price per DTivo to $0. Not bad for four years of use. 



rmassey said:


> I have an HDVR2 sitting idle on the shelf. It started with the dreaded reboots when it updates to 6.2. I then upgraded to an HR 10-250 and never touched it again. When I purchased this in Dec. 2002, I opted for the CC 5 yr ext. warranty. I actually used the warranty once when my house was hit by lightning and took out the Tivo, they sent me a refurb in 3 days and I sent back the fried one. This refurb is now just sitting on the self.
> 
> So please tell me the details of the current CC warranty program. Can I jsut call them and they will send me a check for my purchase amount + pro rated warranty, and then I get to keep the DTivo? Given that the HDVR2 are no longer made, I always wanted to hang on to this one, in case I ever wanted to activate another DTivo in the house.


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## Kobe8 (Nov 1, 2004)

rmassey said:


> :up: I called CC about a month ago about this Ext. Warr. situation. They offered me a prorate amount on the contract & $99.99/DTivo and said I can keep the HW. Just got my checks from CC yesterday.  Given my original purchase price, rebates, & price matches that I did back in 2002, this effecitvely brings the price per DTivo to $0. Not bad for four years of use.


Just called and did the same thing. Very smooth transaction.


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## das335 (Feb 8, 2006)

I also successfully got a refund check for my entire purchase price (99.99) today (9/18/2006). I made the request on 8/8/2006 so it takes between 30 and 45 days to get the check. My warranty was set to expire on 9/29/06 so I doubt I will get much of a pro-rated amount for the remaining warranty.

5 years use for 24.99 (cost of extended warranty) and I did get to keep the Dtivo.
:up: :up:


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## newsposter (Aug 18, 2002)

boy i wish i got the warranty on my big screen...then they stopped servicing it...would get the whole price back


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## rmassey (Sep 5, 2002)

Refund Update: 

So far I have received two checks for $99 for each HDVR2, 1 check for 13.29 for the pro rated ext. svc contract and one for 4.xx for the ext. svc contract on the dish. I keep calling to find out where the other check is for the second receiver and am getting the complete runaround from CC. I am being told that an admin fee of $1.xx is being charged for a cancellation fee (Why should I pay a cancellation fee, when they canceled the contract? ) and that $11.97 was deducted for service. I have never had any service done to either Tivo, so this is total BS IMO. 

I have made 11 phone calls over a 7 month period to get the 13.xx refund that I was told I would receive. Today I have spent 1.5 hours getting transfered around and explaining my story to 9 different people. At this point I am ready to contact the states Attorney General and report consumer fraud on Circuit City. 

I will most definitely never do business with CC ever again and will gladly communicate this story to any consumer that has plans to do business with CC. These companies really have no idea what a negative consumer experience does to their business.


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## ironchef (Dec 27, 2002)

I guess my only question on all this is why they didn't just send you a check for the pro-rated warranty when they stopped honoring it? Why was it only after you tried to make a claim that they fessed up? What would you have gotten back if the DVR failed 1 day after the 5 yr warranty expired? How many people are holding worthless warrantys out there?


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## bengalfreak (Oct 20, 2002)

Not to start a flame war, but any consumer advocate will tell you to never spend a dime on extended warranties for anything. They are pure profit to whoever is selling them and 99.9999% of each warranty sold never has to pay a cent in claims.


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## Billy Bob Boy (Jul 25, 2004)

bengalfreak said:


> Not to start a flame war, but any consumer advocate will tell you to never spend a dime on extended warranties for anything. They are pure profit to whoever is selling them and 99.9999% of each warranty sold never has to pay a cent in claims.


I almost never get extended warranties on electronics since the tech changes so often by the time i would use it there is something new and improved i would want. The only devices i get them on are my laptops. Which i would never buy from the retail store,(the warranty) only the manufacturer. The retail store only offers bring in repair( which entails send out) The man. offers at home service which IMHO is 300 times better than the CC bring your device to us and wait 2 weeks!

Many times the problem is such that the laptop still works but it is a minor issue. If i got a CC warranty i would lose use of the laptop for at least a week say because 1 speaker stopped working.

Speaking of warranties I recently had a very good experience with dell.

My 3+ year old laptop started having issues and was under extended warranty. I got a rep who agreed to do a system swap out and said i would get a machine comparable to what i had. I was expecting a 15" screen unit with a dvd rom and 512 ram and a 30 gig drive which is what i had originally. I paid 1500 for it 3+ years before. I was figuring to get a basic unit as replacement. To my super surprise they sent me a machine comparable to What i paid    3+ years ago 

When i opened the box i said this is a mistake it was a 17" core duo 100 gig hd 1 gig memory with a tv tuner and remote and a dvd burner w all the bells and whistles including 5.1 sound. With media center 2005. 

Sometimes warranties work out REAL Good!


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## rmassey (Sep 5, 2002)

ironchef said:


> I guess my only question on all this is why they didn't just send you a check for the pro-rated warranty when they stopped honoring it? Why was it only after you tried to make a claim that they fessed up? What would you have gotten back if the DVR failed 1 day after the 5 yr warranty expired? How many people are holding worthless warrantys out there?


Well, I never made a claim for service. I saw this thread last July and only attempted to cash out given the facts presented here.

In most cases I do not buy these ext. warranties, but did for the HDVR2 back in 2002. I figured these were new tech and essentially a computer and went with it. I agree most times these are a rip off. In this particular case, I paid about $129 for each HDVR2 and then was given back $99 for each one after four years of use when CC decided to cancel the contract, so I think I did OK in the long run.

It just pisses me off when a company promises something (refund pro rated amount of ext. svc contract) and then they do not follow thur. Personally I will call them till the end of time to get resolution and make them honor their offer. I just went thru this same fiasco with the Apple iPod battery class action suit. I had to call the attorney's office countless times over 14 months to get a $50 credit. I know most people will just give up and claim it's not worth their time. I tend to want to get proper resolution in most cases.

What I have learned here is - Always skip ext warranties and never ever do business with Circuit City.

Refund update #2: - last rep I spoke to yesterday said - Oh yeah, that $11.97 service charge was incorrect, gee sorry... we'll send you a check. We'll also send you a $25 GC for your trouble. - Let's just say I will believe it when I see it in the mail. After 7 months of LIES, I have no faith. I'll use the GC to buy a DVD or CDs and then be done with CC forever. A$$wipes....


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