What Is (And Isn’t) Covered by a Standard Laptop Warranty

If you’re looking to buy a laptop, your laptop warranty will only cover you for so much. We take a look at what is and isn’t covered by the main manufacturers.

Keyword(s): laptop warranty

Roughly 70% of American adults own a laptop or desktop computer. Looking at laptop owners, most will replace their system every 3-5 years. This varies based on each system’s life expectancy and ability to keep up with the changing technology environment.

When you purchase a laptop brand new, it will come with a manufacturer warranty. When most people hear that they’re under warranty, they assume that they’re protected from anything bad happening to their system.

That assumption is a bad one.

As it turns out, a laptop warranty is very limited in its scope of protection. That reality has led customers to feel burned when they’ve attempted to seek fixes for their issues only to be told by manufacturers that they’re going to have to foot the bill.

To demystify what exactly a standard laptop warranty does and doesn’t do, our team has written up this guide below.

The Variability of Warranties

Before we jump into what you can expect from your laptop warranty, it’s important to note that warranties are uniquely crafted by each device manufacturer. That means there’s room for variability. That variability could contradict the information we give you in this guide.

To form this article, our team used information from warranties provided by Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Microsoft, Samsung, Apple, and Toshiba. Based on those company’s offerings, our information is a good average what to expect.

How Long Do Warranties Last?

The industry standard for warranties on new laptops is one year. Manufacturer refurbished devices are more variable but typically provide warranty periods of anywhere from three months to one year.

When a warranty claim is made during a valid warranty window, devices are usually sent into a manufacture’s closest warehouse where the validity of a warranty claim is determined and then, upon acceptance, repairs are made free of charge to consumers.

What Is And Isn’t Covered by a Standard Laptop Warranty?

Below are some of the most common issues laptop owners face during their ownership period and whether or not those issues are covered by a standard laptop warranty.

Hardware Failure – Covered

If your computer has a component inside of it that is not performing adequately, your laptop warranty entitles you to send your system in and have the part repaired or replaced.

Common hardware issues might include the following:

• Keyboard problems
• Monitor problems
• Hard drive failure
• Ram failure
• Faulty display/USB ports
• Faulty fans

The above is just an example of any number of hardware faults your manufacturer would be liable to help you with.

Operating System Issues – Covered

Interface crashes. Inconsistent boot-ups… If you’re experiencing operating system issues like those with your Windows or Mac OS, your manufacturer can help you fix your system.

OS issues can typically be remedied over the phone with your manufacturer’s technical support team. Occasionally they’ll require sending your system in for repair.

Broken Screens – Not Covered

If your laptop gets a crack, either minor or severe, your laptop warranty will not cover your screen repairs. Screen damage is the fault of the laptop owner and not the manufacturer. Because of that, manufacturer’s won’t give you free support and will instead ask that you pay for them to repair damages.

Water Damage – Not Covered

If your laptop was exposed to water that results in the failure of certain pieces of hardware or wholesale system failure, your machine will not be covered.

Since water damage isn’t always apparent from the outside, many water damage claims get filed by consumers as standard hardware failure claims. Because of that, the first thing manufacturers will look for when assessing your claim’s validity will be signs of exposure to water.

Suspected water exposure is one of the top reasons why warranty claims are denied.

Theft – Not Covered

Again, since theft did not occur as a fault of your laptop’s manufacturer, even with adequate proof of theft like a police report, your manufacturer will not replace your system.

While strides are being made by operating system manufacturers to help deter laptop theft, unfortunately, laptop anti-theft measures pace well behind those being implemented in smartphones. That makes laptops a frequent theft target.

Natural Disaster Damage – Not Covered

Even in the event where damage caused to your system was through no fault of your own, your standard laptop warranty still won’t cover you.

Examples of natural disaster damage that effect laptops include floods, earthquakes, and fires.

Summarizing Laptop Warranties and Understanding How You Can Fill Your Coverage Gaps

In summary, most laptop warranties on new devices will last you one year from your purchase date. Once your warranty is in effect, issues caused by manufacturer errors such as faulty hardware or operating system malfunctions will be eligible for free repairs.

Any issues not caused by the manufacturer, even if these issues were not caused by you, are not covered. These issues encompass accidental damage, natural disaster damage, and theft.

Furthermore, things like failure to register your laptop post-purchase or opening up your laptop’s shell could also void your warranty coverage.

Are you looking for a more thorough laptop warranty that you can count on to protect your expensive system? If so, our recommendation is to not put your machine’s safety in the hands of your manufacturer. Instead, allow our team at CPS central to help out.

At CPS central, we’ve been providing extended, comprehensive laptop warranties at low rates to consumers for years. Our plans can protect you against drops, spills, hardware problems and more!

Learn more about our laptop protection plan and start protecting your laptop today!