warrant void for intenal screen just because of a tiny "dent"

[chris7227]

on10th sep 2022 morning i realise that there is a small bubble on the screen protector of my Z fold 3 internal screen so i make an appointment with samsung service center at westgate singapore for a screen protector replacement. at 730pm i took a picture and send it to my friend as he is considering buying a Z fold 4 & the screen was perfectly fine and still working in perfect condition.

this morning 11 sep 2022, there is a BLACK line on the center for the internal screen so i call samsung again to cancel my monday appointement as i will be going down today.

@ Westgate Singapore, i was attended by the Center Mamnager, the monement i show her my screen and also proof of photo that the screen was perfectly fine yesterday.. without listening she start to search for user defects... then she finally found a tiny "dent" at the top right corner on the left external case and said " Sir your warranty is void because of this Tiny Dent and u will have to pay for the screen replacement of $695... if u have samsung care + u can activate the 1 time 50% off would u like to activate it? are u ok to pay for the screen replacement.. 

i never ever once drop my phone and i am using samsung original case since day 1 when i recieved my z fold 3. the so call dent may be cause by things in side my pocket.

the center manager CONFIRM that the screen damage was caused by the so call exterior dent and insisted that she will have to void my warranty and i will have to pay for screen damage, when i ask her is there anyone who i can talk to, she smile at me & said i am the Manager.

[renevous]

I think I read of something like that on a forum where yes,the screen is super sensitive and before closing eg went to the beach where big dust and sand will occurs have to really clean it before closing it off.... I am shock it cost almost 700 and with the discount is 350! Wow... scary... sorry to hear your damages and the amount you expect to pay for it... their warranty I will only assume is purely maker defects. Anything is not. So why they advertise accidently dropped and damages care plus do cover? Is this the cover they meant? Scary...

[SamsungNantakkumar]

Hello chris7227. I am Avinash, from Samsung.

We're sorry to learn of your experience with your Galaxy Z Fold3. Thanks for your feedback and we'll be sure to share this with the team.

Be informed that the Warranty does not cover: Cosmetic damage to outer surface/finishing and external parts of the Product, including without limitation cracks, dents or scratches on the exterior casing, screen, camera lens, buttons and other attachments

Kindly refer to our warranty page:

https://www.samsung.com/sg/support/warranty/

Thank you.

[FrankGPani]

Sigh, another useless post from Samsung staff, a Moderator no less.  If he would have bothered to read the post from chris7227, the issue stated wasn't one of cosmetic damage but rather one of the faulty main/internal display. 

My own experience arranging for an in-warranty repair was a nightmare. Each customer service contact I spoke to promised to get back to me via email, phone call or text, and almost all didn't. Mind you, I'm supposed to be on Samsung Care+ premium support.

To be fair, this is no unexpected for the kind of poor service you get. I suspect, like many MNCs, support has been outsourced and off-shored to you-know-where. it's not unique to Samsung only. The KPI for support staff is to close tickets, often with standard canned responses, which doesn't necessary solve your problems.

[chris7227]

Cs call me say after the management team and the service center assessment and gather information he try to confused me with my phone has physical damage so warranty void then when i ask what kinda of impact that such a small dent outside the case that will cause the whole center of the fold inner screen to be damage and he reply oh it is a cosmetic defect so warranty void.. and when i ask again cosmetic defect will spoil a $2000 phone? He changed again oh sir so it is a physical damage + cosmetic defect... thank you for your FEEDBACK and there is nothing i can do!.. throughout the call, he was not listening to me at all.. just following the standard protocol provided by Samsung... when i told him service center manager dont want to listen to me and now customer service do the same to me Do Not Listen to customer... he just sir u may continue to talk.. i requested for higher authority and his reply is the same as service center.. Sir i am actually a senior staff here... THERE IS NO ONE U CAN TALK TO AND EVEN IF U GET SOMEONE TO CALL U BACK THE OUTCOME WILL NEVER CHANGE..

Omg.. does all Samsung Saff holding on to a senior position??

Finally he agree to get someone to call me and the wait time will be 3 days.

THIS IS THE MOST MISERABLE PART.
I ask why do i need to wait for 3 days when i already waited for 2 day... his answer was. SIR we need time to gather information with regards to your phone so will need 3days.

When he call me he is very firm that he the management together with the service center had investigate throughly that my phone is out of warranty.. and now the so call investigation was the photo of my phone i email to the CEO and base on the service center who said only this ( There is physical damage on the phone) so this is the investigation that took them 2 days... 1 photo and 1 call.

Totally disappointed with Samsung service!!!

Time to go Apple after supporting a disappointed company for 13 years!!!

[FrankGPani]

Sorry to hear about your main screen and your **bleep***tty experience with Samsung service. I had my own inner screen replaced before (patch of bright stuck pixels) but fortunately, that was covered by the warranty. The service technician scoured the exterior of my phone for physical damage---he couldn't find any---before he concluded repair was covered by warranty. Thank goodness.

In case you aren't aware, why the cost of the replacement of the inner screen is so expensive as they swapped out quite a lot of parts that are bounded to the main display. I was surprised that even both of the batteries got replaced as part of the repair, which was a bonus. 

Moral of the story is you must use a phone case and baby a folding phone. The flexible screen and moving parts like the hinge just isn't as sturdy as a regular phone.

[chris7227]

Samsung originally case was on since day 1 lol

[FrankGPani]

So was the "left external case" in your post referring to the phone exterior or the case itself? If the latter, then another lesson is to remove your phone case before sending the phone in for repair. i.e. no visible sign of damage.
Also, see https://r1.community.samsung.com/t5/galaxy-z/fold-hinge-protection/m-p/18594801#M1052

BTW, not sure how true but read that some phone manufactures have started to turned on crash detection like the new Apple Watch (accelerometer and gyroscope) not so much to save you, but to alert them if you've accidentally dropped your phone so that they can deny warranty claims!

[chris7227]

Apple do change their standard. For example if you macbook had a dent and your screen having problems they will do assessment like which part is the dent if it is near the screen yes warranty void if it is away from the screen ie keyboard area then no its the screen issue. They have changed alot and apple care + cover unlimited accidental damage protection

AppleCare+ for iPhone extends your coverage to two years from your AppleCare+ purchase date1 and adds unlimited incidents of accidental damage protection. 

[FrankGPani]

I have AppleCare+ on my MacBooks and have successfully claimed against them (twice). For expensive devices like a laptop and Fold, these are akin to an insurance policy.

But back to the main point in that Samsung refused to honor their warranty on your Fold due to a "dent". That really blows.
Maybe you can share a picture of said dent here, but if the dent is on the case itself and not the phone, then I will be truly speechless.