2019.03 Rev3
1. Purpose
Avalue establishes the following maintenance specifications and operation procedures for providing the best quality of service and shortened repair time to our customers.
2. Warranty
2.1 Warranty Period
Avalue endeavors to offer customers the most comprehensive post-sales services and protection; besides offering a 2-year warranty for standard Avalue products, an extended warranty service can also be provided based on additional request from the customer. Within the warranty period, customers are entitled to receive comprehensive and prompt repair and warranty.
Standard products manufactured by Avalue are offered a 2-year warranty, from the date of delivery from Avalue. For ODM/OEM products manufactured by Avalue or PCBA with conformal coating, will follow up the define warranty of the agreement, otherwise will be offered 1-year warranty for ODM/OEM products but non-warranty for PCBA with conformal coating. For outsourcing parts kit by Avalue (ex: Motherboard, LCD touch panel, CPU, RAM, HDD, ) are offered a 6-month warranty, and Mobile/Tablet PC battery are offered a warranty of the half year, from the date of delivery by Avalue. Products before the mass production stage, i.e. engineering samples are not applied in this warranty or service policy. For extended warranty and cross-territory services, product defects resulting from design, production process or material are covered by the pre-set warranty period after the date of delivery from Avalue. For non-Avalue products, the product warranty and repair time shall be based on the service standards provided by the original manufacturer; in principle Avalue will provide these products a warranty service for no more than one year.
2.2 Maintenance services within the warranty period
In the case of Avalue product DOA (Defect-on-Arrival) when the customer finds any defect within 1 month after the delivery, Avalue will replace it with a new product in a soonest way. Except for custom products, once the customer is approved of a Cross-Shipment Agreement, which allows for delivery a new product to the customer before receiving the defective one, Avalue will immediately proceed with new product replacement for the said DOA case. On validation of the confirmed defect, Avalue is entitled to reserve the right whether to provide a new product for replacement. For the returned defective new product, it is necessary to verify that there shall be no bruise, alteration, scratch or marking to the appearance, and that none of the delivered accessories missing; otherwise, the customer will be requested to pay a processing fee. On the other hand, if the new product defect is resulting from incorrect configuration or erroneous use by the user instead of any problem of the hardware itself, the customer will also be requested to pay for relevant handling fees.
As for other conditions, Avalue will handle defects by way of repair. The customer will be requested to send the defective product to an Avalue authorized service center, and Avalue will return the repaired product back to the customer as soon as possible.
2.3 Ruling of an out-of-warranty defect
The following situations are not included in the warranty:
- The warranty period has expired.
- Product has been altered or its label of the serial number has been torn off.
- Product functionality issues resulting from improper use by the user, unauthorized dismantle or alteration, unfit operation environment, improper maintenance, accident or other causes. Avalue reserves the right for the ruling of the aforementioned situations.
- Product damage resulting from lightning, flood, earthquake or other calamities.
- The warranty rules of non-Avalue products and accessories shall be in accordance with standards set up by the original manufacturer. These products and accessories include RAM, HDD, FDD, CD-ROM, CPU, FAN, etc.
- Product upgrade request or test request submitted by the customer after expiration of the warranty.
- PCBA with conformal coating.
- Avalue semi-product and outsourced products without Avalue serial number.
- Products before the mass production stage, i.e. engineering samples.
3. Procedure for sending for repair
3.1 Attain a RMA number
A customer’s rejected product returned for repair shall have a RMA (Return Merchandise Authorization) number. Without a RMA number, Avalue will not provide any repair service for the rejected product, and the product will be returned to the customer at customer’s cost. Avalue will not issue any notice for the return of the product.
Each returned product for repair shall have a RMA number, which is simply the authorization of the return for repair; it is not a guarantee that the returned goods can be repaired or replaced. For applying for a RMA number, the customer may enter the eRMA webpage of Avalue https://myavalue.avalue.com.tw/ and log-in with an account number and a password authorized by Avalue. The system will then automatically issue a RMA number.
When applying for the RMA number, it is essential to fill in basic information of the customer and the product, together with detailed description of the problem encountered. If possible, avoid using ambiguous words such as “does not work” or “problematic”. Without a substantial description of the problem, it is hard to start the repair and will cause prolonged repair time. Lacking detailed statement of fault steps also makes the problem hard to be identified, sometimes resulting in second-time repairs.
In case the customer can’t define the cause of problem, please contact Avalue application engineers. Sometimes when the problem can be resolved even before the customer sends back the product.
On the other hand, if the customer only returns the key parts to Avalue for repair, it is necessary that the serial number of the entire unit is given in the “Problem Description” field, so that warranty period can be ruled accordingly; or Avalue will handle the case as an Out-of- warranty case.
3.2 Return of faulty product for repair
It is recommended that the customer not to return the accessories (manual, connection cables, etc.) with the products for repair, devices such as CPU, DRAM, CF memory card, etc., shall also be removed from the faulty goods before return for repair. If these devices are relevant to described repair problems and necessary to be returned with the goods; please clearly indicate the items included in the eRMA application form. Avalue shall not be responsible for any item that is not itemized. Moreover, make sure the problem(s) are detailed in the “Problem Description” field.
In the list of delivery, the customer may fill-in a value which is lower than the actual value, to prevent customs levying a higher tax over the excessive value of the return goods. The customer shall be held responsible for extra fees caused by this. We strongly recommend that “Invoice for customs purpose only with no commercial value” be indicated on the delivery note. Also for the purpose of expedited handling, please printout the RMA number and put it in the carton, also indicate the number outside of the carton, with the recipient addressing to Avalue RMA Department.
When returning the defective product, please use an anti-static bag or ESD material to pack it properly. In case of improper packing resulting in damages in the transportation process, Avalue reserves the right to reject the un-repaired faulty good at the customer’s costs. Furthermore, it is suggested that the faulty goods shall be sent via a door-to-door courier service. The customer shall be held responsible for any customs clearance fee or extra expenses if Air-Cargo is used for the delivery.
In case of a DOA situation of a new product, Avalue will be responsible for the product and the freight. If the faulty goods are within the warranty period, the sender will take responsibility for the freight. For an out-of-warranty case, the customer shall be responsible for the freight of both trips.
3.3 Maintenance Charge
Avalue will charge a moderate repair fee for the following conditions:
- The warranty period has expired.
- Product has been altered or its label of the serial number has been torn off.
- Product functionality issues resulting from improper use by the user, unauthorized dismantle or alteration, unfit operation environment, improper maintenance, accident or other causes. Avalue reserves the right for the ruling of the aforementioned situations.
- Product damage resulting from lightning, flood, earthquake or other calamities.
- The warranty rules for non-Avalue products and accessories shall be in accordance with standards set up by the original supplier. These products and accessories include RAM, HDD, FDD, CD-ROM, CPU, FAN, etc.
- Product upgrade request or test request submitted by the customer after expiry of the warranty.
- PCBA with conformal coating.
- Avalue semi-product and outsourced products without Avalue serial number.
- Products before the mass production stage, i.e. engineering samples
- In case the products received are examined as NPF (No Problem Found) within the warranty period, the customer shall be responsible for the freight of both trips.
- Please contact your local distributor to examine in advance to prevent unnecessary freight cost.
For system failure of out-of-warranty products, Avalue will provide a quotation prior to repair service. When the customer applies for the cost, please refer to the Quotation number. In case the customer does not return the DOA product that has already been replaced by a new one, or the customer does not sign back the quotation of the out-of-warranty maintenance, Avalue reserves the right of whether or not to provide the repair service. In case the customer does not reply in 3 months, Avalue shall directly scrap or return the product back to customer at customer’s cost without further notice to the customer.
3.4 Maintenance service of phased-out products
For servicing phased-out products, Avalue provides an extended period, starting the date of phase-out, as a guaranteed maintenance period of such products, for continuance of the maintenance service to meet customer’s requirements. In case of unexpected factors causing Avalue to be unable to repair/replace a warranted but phased-out product, Avalue will, depending on the availability, upgrade the product (free of charge with continued warranty period as of the original product), or, give partial refund (based on the length of the remaining warranty period) to solve this kind of problem.
3.5 Maintenance Report
On completion of repair of a defective product, a Maintenance Report indicating the maintenance result and part(s) replaced (if any) will be sent to the customer together with the product. If the customer demands an additional maintenance analysis report, a service fee of various level will be charged depending on the warranty status. In case the analysis result shows that the defect attributes to Avalue’s faulty design or process, the analysis fee will be exempted.
4. Service Products
Avalue provides service products to manage with different customer needs. Should you have any need, please consult to Avalue Sales Department.
Defect Analysis Report (DAR)
Avalue provides DAR (Defect Analysis Report) services aiming to elevating customer satisfaction. A DAR includes defect cause identification/verification/suggestion and improvement precautions, with instructions on correct usage for the avoidance of any reoccurrence.
Upgrade Service
Avalue is capable to provide system upgrade service for customization requirements. This upgrade service is applicable for main parts, such as CPU, memory, HDD, SSD, storage devices; also replacements motherboards of systems. Please contact Avalue sales for details to evaluate the possibility of system upgrade service and obtain information of lead time and price.