Anyone had any luck with an out of 3-year free 3RLOD 360 repair?

CHokKA

CHokKA

CHokKA

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Hey everyone

My 360 has just died for the second time (3RLOD) but I have been told by MS that I am now required to pay for this repair. I don't really think that's fair since it went back a year and a half ago to be repaired for the same issue. I was under the impression that when they repaired it, they were supposed to be fixing the issue that was causing the 3RLOD, but clearly this isn't the case.

Now I've had a look at the price of a new system, and I really can't afford to be forking out over £100 for a new one, and I also can't really justify spending £60 on a repair for my current one given that it is a fault that has happened once already.

I was just wondering whether anyone here has had any success in getting a free repair from MS under the same circumstances? If so, who did you call to speak with about it? I got to speak with a supervisor based in the same call centre (not within the UK) and she just kept telling me that it was "policy" that the repair was going to be a paid repair, but I really don't think that's right considering the same issue has arisen and I am also protected by consumer law against a failure of this nature. If it was a different error then I might end up accepting it at a push, but after sending it back the first time to be fixed, I wouldn't expect that after a year and a half the unit would die again with the same fault. I don't use my XBox as much as most. I use it for maybe 2 - 4 hours per week, and that's being very generous on the times.

Anyone else been in the same situation? What did you end up doing?
 
Friend of mine had the same issue, he ended up complaining so much they gave him a new unit as a replacement. Angle he used was that his unit had failed 3 times before then (so effectively once per year) and therefore wasn't fit for purpose. He basically made it clear that he knew that the older units of 360 were dodgy as hell and they knew it too, hence the original 3 year extension, and because of this deserved a replacement for his 'trouble'.

It's possible, but i imagine a large part of it is luck of the draw of who you talk to.
 
if you fancy trying to fix it your self the oven trick works great, as does the x-clamp mod

I did this with my old 360 (about as old as yours) and it kept it going for ages. finally red ringed again so I bought a new one. bagged my self a Jasper Arcade for £97 and just stuck my HDD in
 
Out of interest OP. What's the manufactured date of the sticker o nthe back of the 360? If it's within three years of that date (which although doesn't get reset upon a repair, it does get a new date. My repair from March 09, has a Jan 09 date).

The warrenty is three years from that date, whatever they tell you. Worth checking before you kick up a fuss.
 
hilly said:
Out of interest OP. What's the manufactured date of the sticker o nthe back of the 360? If it's within three years of that date (which although doesn't get reset upon a repair, it does get a new date. My repair from March 09, has a Jan 09 date).

The warrenty is three years from that date, whatever they tell you. Worth checking before you kick up a fuss.
Click to expand...

Hi hilly

Thanks for the advice, but I forgot to mention that the last time it went back, it was within the 3 year warranty period that MS had upgraded everyone with 3RLOD issues to. The date on the back is November 2005 (26th iirc) so I know it isn't under the 3 years anymore. Still, I don't feel I should be footing the bill for a repair on something that has the same fault as it originally had. I thought they were supposed to repair and prevent against the fault from recurring in the future. Evidently they didn't on my console.
 
Mine was out of the 3yr period I filled the form in and they picked it up.

Its was such a major and well publicised issue they are trying thier best to get them all done.
 
Filling in the form just takes me through to a page asking me to enter my credit card details, so that doesn't work for me :(
 
There isn't much to advise then really. If as you say, the console is out of warrenty and the sticker on the back proves this, you have four choices:

1. Fix it your self using clamps / oven trick.
2. Send it away for repair and pay MS.
3. Try it on with MS and see if they will wave the cost.
4. Buy a new one (not recommended!).
 
Does the clamp fix resolve the 3RLOD? I was under the impression that it was just to be used for the RROD? If there's a chance it might work, then I'll definitely give that a go. Although at the moment I'm just waiting to hear back from Consumer Direct with regard to my right to claim a free repair. I'll keep this thread updated just in case others end up in the same boat sometime.
 
quote a lot of sales of goods acts down teh phone. seem to work with sony whn they did this. also i they have just introduced this some operators may not be clear on rules
 
easy... just lie.

it worked for me.

first time i rang up was some idiot bloke from india called bob (yeah right), he gave me the big speech and even accused me of breaking it myself. After a gave him a **** load of abuse for being a pleb (it was deserved before anyone jumps on their high horse) and putting the phone down i phoned back in a few days.

Second time i got through to a woman, and proper layed it on thick, she never mentioned me having to pay for a repair but when i suggested worriedly and sounding rather upset that i may have to pay, she said i didn't it would be free of charge and done very quickly (which it was about 5days in total). I got it done fast and was pretty chuffed.

The fact the first moron accused me of breaking it myself was pretty disgraceful and a totally stumped him when i said it was a well documented fact that they break etc.

When the woman asked me how long i had it i just said a few months before i actually bought it roughly and she bought it and said that was ok, and got it done free.

so yeah it totally does depend on who you talk to cause some of them are pricks.
 
Well, I just heard back from Consumer Direct. It's a long-winded process that I now have to go through, but I might just do it to say that I've stuck it out.

I have to now write a letter to the retailer that I bought my 360 from, explaining to them the fault, that it has already been repaired once before, and that the fault is the result of a design flaw from when the console was originally manufactured. They then have 14 days to review this letter and then will need to decide on what action to take. I feel really bad that despite it being the fault of MS that the retailer has to deal with it, but the Sale of Goods Act is a contract between me and the retailer, not MS, which is why it has to be done this way. I'm going to write the letter this weekend, and it'll hopefully be posted on Monday by recorded delivery. I'll keep this post updated throughout the process :)

Part of me thinks that I should just lump it and pay out the £120 for a new console, but it's the principle of the whole thing that bugs me. I don't feel I should have to pay out now that the console is no longer covered by MS, so I'm willing to give this process a go first at least.
 
Stick to yah guns mate. £120 quid is an awful lot, i kicked up a stink for the supposed £60 charge, i'd go mental for £120.
 
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