I am interested in buying a fp3 (my first fp!). I live in Switzerland and it is my understanding that there are some differences between Switzerland and EU countries. It is clear that vat is different and that I cannot get the 20 euro reimbursement for my old phone.
However, what is not clear to me is what happens with the warranty. In digitec (a big swiss provider) it is stated that the default is no warrantee and that if I want one, I need to pay extra. This strikes me as strange, as in the fairphone website it is stated that there is a 2 ar warrantee by default.
Does anyone know what is going on here? Have I missunderstood the situation or is the swiss conditions for buying a fp much worse than in EU?
Also you have to differentiate between manufacturer warranty, provider warranty and legal warranty (In Germany there is a “gesetzliche Gewährleistung”, don’t know if or how that applies in other countries).
Manufacturer Warranty is something the manufacturer gives. It is totally up to the manufacturer to set the terms and conditions of this warranty and how you can claim it. Or even if there is any. Although not usual, the manufacturer could also exclude some countries, or set different terms for different countries. Usual it provides certitude, that all parts of the product work as intendet. This is what you can read on the fairphone homepage.
The Provider Warranty is something like an insurance, which the provider additionally and optional offers to make money. This warranty can (but has not to) include some defects from self-imposed damages like letting the phone fall etc.
The Legal Warranty would be dictated by the state to protect its costumers. For example a battery has to work for 2 years, otherwise you have the right for a new battery (in Germany, simplified). Liable for this warranty is the seller of the product.
I guess, that is a bit misleading.
The legal warranty for a battery is 2 years as well, but a battery is a wearing part, that loses capacity by being used. Within the first 6 months a defect is conisdered to have been present at the time of purchase. After that period it has to be decided, if the defect is in fact a defect or the normal wear of a battery. And wearing is more likely, the longer the battery has been used.
Finally there are quite a few examples in this forum, where batteries did not last 2 years, without them being defective.
I myself happened to kill a spare battery for my FP1 under 1 year, by draining it a few times and leaving it in the drawer for some weeks being deep discharged. No one could expect a battery to last 2 years being mistreated like that.
Thanks for pointing that out, I didn’t want to bloat my little summarization that much, since I didn’t even knew if the same would apply in switzerland too. But of course there are so restrictions one has to consider, hence I added the “simplified” in brackets.