PLUS FAQ GENERAL QUESTIONS

Transcription

1 Protection PLUS FAQ GENERAL QUESTIONS How can customers buy a Sony Protection PLUS Plan? The Sony Protection PLUS plan can be purchased in-store, online at or by calling What s the difference between Sony Protection PLUS plans and extended service plans available from competitors? Protection PLUS plans, unlike most competitors, have no cap on repairs because of component failure Protection PLUS offers battery coverage for VAIO computers Protection PLUS offers protection against power surges All aspects of Protection PLUS are managed by Sony. The customer will never have to deal with a third party. What is covered under the Sony Protection PLUS plan? Protection PLUS extends the customers limited warranty past its original time period. Additionally, Protection PLUS offers VAIO battery coverage (1 time during the life of the contract), and power surge protection. Customers may add Accidental Damage from Handling coverage to most products When does my coverage begin? Coverage begins on the date the item was purchased, or the date the product shipped if purchased online. Coverage runs concurrently with the manufacturer s limited warranty What is the Accidental Damage from Handling Plan? Otherwise known as ADH, Accidental Damage from Handling covers repairs caused by drops and spills which arise from normal handling of the product. Repairs on any plan because of accidental damage are capped at the purchase price of the unit Accidental Damage and component failure are two separate buckets of coverage. Any repair because of component failure, does not detract from the customer s accidental damage coverage. Once a customer exhausts their ADH coverage, the entire contract is considered fulfilled What is NOT covered with the Accidental Damage from Handling Plan? ADH coverage does not protect you in the cases of (a) theft, loss, misplacement, war, terrorism, fire, abuse, a willful or intentional act, (b) alteration or modification of the Product in any way, (c) damage caused by failure to perform manufacturer s recommended operating instructions/standards or recommended maintenance, (d) cosmetic damage (e.g., scratches or dents) that does not prevent the proper functionality or use of the Product.

2 How does the customer know what type of Coverage they have? The coverage and type of service purchased is indicated on the Proof of Purchase. Also, if purchased in the store, associates should fill out the inner sleeve of the Protection PLUS package (see below): When the customer purchases a plan, do we mail the customer a contract number or additional information? No. When the customer purchases at the store, associates should hand the customer a Protection PLUS box which has the customer s Terms and Conditions. The customer s receipt has an ID# number, which Premium Service Experts can use to locate a customer s contract (shown below). NOTE: Currently, the customer s sales order number is listed below the date and time area of the receipt, as shown below on the left. Add an S to the beginning of the sales order number, and that will complete the ID# needed for Premium Services to locate the customer s record. (Ex. S ) When we transition to the Micros POS system, the receipt will show the customer s full ID# for Protection PLUS, as shown by the red box.

3 Who is eligible to purchase Sony Protection PLUS? Customers can purchase Protection PLUS if they are within 11 months of product purchase date. Accidental Damage plans are available for 30 days after product purchase date. The product must be in perfect working condition have no physical damage. If a customer receives a B-stock item with a 90 day limited warranty, how long does the customer have to add a Protection PLUS plan? 60 Days for Standard, Onsite, and Replacement 30 Days for ADH Are we able to add Protection PLUS coverage to products not purchased in a Sony location? Yes. As long as the customer is within the proper time frame and it s a Sony product with no defects or damage, sell away! Who is responsible for the cost of shipping during the repair process? For all Protection PLUS plans, Sony will pay for the shipping. How do customers cancel Protection PLUS? Customers may cancel their contract at the location of product purchase. If cancelled within the first 60 days of purchase, they will be refunded the full contract price (less the cost of any repairs performed). If they cancel the contract after 60 days from the date of purchase they will receive a pro-rated refund. What about accessories such as TV remote controls? The following is a complete list of accessories covered by Protection PLUS Batteries: 1 time only for VAIO AC Adapters: VAIO Notebooks and All-in-Ones, and Tablets No other accessories are covered at this time. Will a customer be allowed to purchase an ESP when they are nearing the end of their contract? Yes, this will be done thru the aftermarket campaign program, but not something store agents will be able to sell (at least not at this time). Is there a process or guide in place for ensuring that an item is in full working condition when adding Protection PLUS to products post-purchase? No, we re on the honors system with customers. Now, if there s obvious physical damage to the unit, or if the customer has stated that the unit has a hardware issue, then no, do not sell them a plan. But the impetus is on the customer to tell us the truth about the condition of the unit.

4 We ve been told that Sony handles the warranty from start to finish. However, the terms and conditions for Protection PLUS states that other companies are the provider for the contract, and Sony is the administrator. Who is actually providing the service for Protection PLUS? Sony is handling the service for our Protection Plus program from start to finish for our customers. However, we do still protect our program and customers with an insurance underwriter (as required by law & state regulations.) This underwriter is named Assurant, the insurance company backing our program. The customer will never have to deal with the insurance provider or any other 3rd party to receive service under the coverage provided by the Protection PLUS Plans. Sony handles the call, the diagnosis and the repair or exchange of their product and all customer care. As the administrator, Sony is the company and the only company that handles the customer. Occasionally, we get asked if we can sell only ADH coverage to cover the manufacturer s warranty period without the added benefit of the additional years of available coverage. Can we do this? No, we do not offer ADH as a stand-alone coverage solution. When a customer purchases an ADH Plan, they get the full array of protection including component failure coverage, power surge protection, phone support, and Battery Replacement (VAIO Only) Will customers have to purchase standard service plans and then add ADH to be covered for any type of accidental damage? Are we ringing customers up for two separate SKUs to deliver the complete coverage solution? TELEVISIONS No. As with our former ESP program, our ADH plans are inclusive of all of the benefits of our standard plans, with the added coverage of protection against drops, spills, etc. You only need to sell one plan; the Protection PLUS Plan with ADH covers all component failure issues as well as ADH. What s the deal with Protection PLUS for Bravia? Here s the deal, we only sell Standard Extended Service Plans for Bravia TVs. No onsite or replacement plans are offered. As per the customer s terms and conditions, Sony can elect to facilitate repair of TVs in a way that provides the best customer experience and is cost effective. Currently, that strategy is an exchange of the defective unit (for Protection PLUS). No repair, no consultation. The customer s experience for a defective TV is as follows: If the customer has a defective TV, we will ship the customer a B-stock TV in exchange for their defective unit. The customer s experience will depend on the size of the TV: a. 42 and smaller: Sony will ship a replacement unit to the customer. When the customer receives the unit, they are to box the defective unit, and use the included shipping label to ship the unit to Sony. The customer should expect their replacement unit within 5-7 business days after the claim is filed. b. 46 and larger: A delivery driver will deliver the customer a replacement unit, and then remove the defective unit from the customer s house. The driver will package and ship the unit back to Sony. The customer should expect their replacement unit in 5-7 business days. Advise the customer to have the unit removed from the wall, with all cables removed. (Customer is responsible for removing a wall mounted unit) Note that we will not send a repair technician out to the customer s house in any of the above scenarios.

5 When the customer has a TV Exchanged when covered by a Protection PLUS plan, does this fulfill their contract? No, this does not end the contract. When we repair a TV for Protection PLUS customers, we currently do so by offering a B-stock TV for their defective TV. Think of it as an advanced repair! For televisions, if a customer has a repair during the Limited Warranty period, customers may receive a B-stock replacement unit with a 2-year limited warranty, what does this mean for their Protection PLUS plan? Protection PLUS plans always run concurrently with the limited warranty. In this situation, nothing changes with the Protection PLUS plan. The value of the plan remains because Protection PLUS provides power surge protection which the limited warranty does not cover. HOME AUDIO VIDEO Are we selling ESP plans for ES receivers since it already comes with 5 years? We are not selling Protection PLUS plans for ES receivers VAIO Is a VAIO Battery replaceable under the first year of coverage? Battery coverage is provided by the limited warranty during the first year of coverage. After the limited warranty, battery coverage is provided by Protection PLUS. All ADH repairs must be performed at a Sony Service center, yet there are Onsite (in-home) ADH plans for VAIO. How will we facilitate repairs for customers who have Onsite with ADH? As with our old program, we direct customers with ADH claims to mail in their notebook to the Sony Service Center to repair their damaged notebook. Due to the potentially severe nature of ADH claims, the notebook can be more quickly diagnosed and parts secured for repair in our service center than to do everything onsite. A customer who purchases onsite with ADH will receive onsite service for all normal defects or component failures, but will be directed to send an ADH repair to our Sony Service Center. This is consistent with our old program and provides the best overall service experience for the customer. MOBILE PHONES When manually entering a Protection PLUS SKU for a phone, should I enter the contract price of the phone, or the no-contract price of the phone? Always enter the non-contract price of the phone If a customer buys a Protection PLUS plan for a Mobile Phone, would the customer void the plan if they flash a custom ROM or unlock the bootloader on the phone? No, this would not invalidate the plan. Protection PLUS covers the customer against hardware issues, not software. If the customer has a modded phone and it experiences component failure or accidental damage, Protection PLUS would cover the hardware issue. However, if the customer s operating system is rendered useless as a result of the modification, Protection PLUS would not cover this particular issue.

6