[General Topics] mike1986.:
Flashing custom ROMs & warranty

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Some assumptions:​

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1. Law in each country is different (mostly based on common law (US & UK) nad civil law (continental Europe), but "warranty" term means more or less the same everywhere. In simple words it's a legal contract that is very often a part of legal transactions. Purchase agreement is not a warranty contract itself. Warranty always must be stated on the separate document. If you were not given warranty document then most probably you were not given warranty at all. Very often different sellers are misunderstanding warranty with consumer law that gives some separate claims for consumers, but it does not gives warranty.

2. So if warranty is kind of legal contract, it is based on freedom of contract. It means that a party that is the guarantor can write any terms he wants as long as they are valid with imperative law (lex imperativus).

3. Keep in mind that the same company can have different warranty terms in different countries. So the fact that your friend in the U.S. got brand new device after 3 unsuccessful repairs doesn't mean it's valid for you, a customer leaving in f.g. France.

4. Everyone who wants to know their warranty terms should read their warranty. Don't relay on what you read on the internet or even in this thread. I don't know your warranty. That's why my post have just a general context.

Now the main part. I'll try to make it as clear as possible.​

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1. Read your warranty. Do it like 3 or 4 times.

2. Is there directly written that

flashing custom operating system voids your warranty

? I'm quite sure it's not. Do you believe that installing Ubuntu over machine with Windows 7 sticker voids notebooks warranty as well?

3. My experience is based on reading my warranty terms. In every warranty I saw there was a term about installing any software that comes from 3rd party company. That means it doesn't refer only to custom ROMs. That refers to Angry Birds as well. And Facebook, and Twitter, and SuperUser, and Instagram etc.. So... another question:

do you believe that installing Angry Birds voids your warranty

?

Well... it might have.

4. The most important thing here is the cause and the effect

relationship

. That means that the guarantor can reject your claim to repair broken device only when the fault is a direct effect of installing software that comes from 3rd party company.

Example: you flashed custom ROM over your Android device. All went fine. Then you installed Angry Birds and one of the birds broke your screen. Guarantor can reject your claim to repair broken screen. But not because of custom ROM you flashed and you sent your device back to service with custom ROM on board. But because of Angry Birds (of course he needs to proof that the fault is a direct cause of one stoned Angry Bird).

Digression: yes, the side that is rejecting your warranty claims needs to proof their affirmations on why they rejected it.

In short words: if the fault is not a direct cause of installing any software that comes from 3rd party company then your warranty claims are valid. Of course we speak just about the situation that refers to installing software. Once you throw your device from the 10th floor it's obvious that you can't say: "There is no direct cause of installing any software that comes from 3rd party company and the fault so you need to repair my device."

5. Now another interesting part - rejecting some warranty claim doesn't mean that warranty is no longer valid at all. Again - it depends on your warranty statements, but based on mine it works like this: let's say I broke my internal speaker by flashing some sounds boosters. Let's even say that guarantor proofed it (which is not really possible that he even would try to waste his time). So I have no warranty now? More likely - I still have. But I have no legal claims about the speaker anymore. Now let's say that one week later my CPU burned out with no reason. There was surely no direct cause between CPU and 3rd party software because I don't installed any CPU controlling/overclocking apps. Based on warranty terms written in my warranty I still have valid warranty for that and guarantor needs to repair my CPU.

Disclaimer:

This text is just for education purpose. It's not a law itself so you can't base your claims versus some company on this. I may be wrong in many parts - feel free to PM me and I will make corrections. I don't know law in every country so there might be some differences.​

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