We have lots of conversations with customers about warranties in store and they generally fall into one of three categories:
- Providing reassurance when someone is making a purchase
- Providing reassurance when something goes wrong
- Providing huge frustration when something isn’t covered by a warranty!
The aim of this article is to shed a bit of light on what can and can’t be expected from a warranty.
What You Should Do to Avoid a Problem:
- Keep your receipt in a safe place. Most shops can e-mail you a copy. We keep records on our system, so if you purchased the bike from us then we can happily resend you a copy if you need it.
- Shop locally if you can and be nice to the workshop. You never know when it will help to have the mechanic on your side.
- Join the We Cycle Club – club members get free, unlimited gear adjustments and firmware updates. This is a great way to get your bike regularly checked to make sure all is well even when it doesn’t require a service.
- Get your bike serviced regularly. A well serviced bike is a happy one, and your mechanic will know your bike far better than you. They are more likely to spot potential issues before they become a problem if they see your bike a few times a year.
When I Have a problem With my BMW They Fix it for Free!
If you have thought this and wondered why your bike isn’t treated the same way, then you aren’t alone. Some frustrated customers have even been known to shout this at my staff in a bid to prove (unsuccessfully) their point.
The key difference is that BMW dealerships are franchises, and so have far closer financial ties with BMW directly. This relationship means new car warranties usually cover parts AND labour (supported by the manufacturer). It is this inclusion of labour in the warranty that is a key difference.
Bike shops, in the main, are independent businesses, not franchises. Most bike manufactures warranties cover ONLY parts. By purchasing your bike from your LOCAL, independent store you are not only getting the warranty which covers the parts, but you are also getting (usually) the promise of that store that they will carry out any warranty work on that bike, free of charge. The cost of this labour is absorbed by the retailer.
Buying a bike from further afield or online, a practice accelerated during covid times, doesn’t mean you can simply take that bike to your local store and expect them to carry out warranty work for free. They didn’t sell the bike so made no profit on it and can’t be expected to then work on it for free without reimbursement of some sort.
The GOOD NEWS is that the industry is slowly adapting to the new marketplace, and manufacturers are starting to reimburse workshops on warranty work, meaning you, the customer are not having to foot the bill. This is by no means standard practice yet with brands still finding their feet with it, but GIANT and ORBEA have fairly well-established systems in place so you can rely on them to cover the labour costs on warranty work if carried out at a recognised GIANT or ORBEA retailer.
Not All Warranties are The Same, but the General Standard is:
- E-bike specific components (battery, motor, switches etc) = 2 years. (some are longer but don’t take this as an indication of improved reliability)
- Normal wearable parts (brakes, chains, cassettes etc) = 1 year
- Frames = 1 – 100 years. Some manufacturers will give a lifetime, others a few years and anything in between. Often you can extend a warranty by registering your bike with the manufacturer, so look out for this option.
I Didn’t Get Anything with My Bike, I Don’t Have a Warranty
In another article I talk about the lack of documentation that comes with a bike these days. Regardless of your thoughts on this, the fact is that for most brands (I can’t think of one this doesn’t apply to), proof of purchase is all you need. For a manufacturer to consider a warranty claim they will almost always want to see your proof of purchase. This does a few things. It proves it isn’t stolen, it proves you are the original owner, and it shows the date you purchased it. Bicycle warranties are not usually transferable to second owners. This can hit hard when someone has taken the risk and purchased a second-hand bike, only to discover a problem with it. The exception to this, and this is a great step in the right direction, are GIANT, who are now allowing their warranties to pass to second owners. We think this make good sense and applaud Giant for making this move. It certainly should raise the value of second-hand Giant bikes in the future!
I’ve Only Ridden it a Couple of Times, That Shouldn’t Have Happened
Another problem when comparing with the car industry is that these days, most car bits are hidden away, so you will have had to do some serious tinkering to have made it stop working via anything other than normal wear and tear. On a bike that isn’t the case – everything is on show waiting to be knocked, pulled, caught, bashed, scratched or donked. Very often we find that if a part such as a brake leaver, or rear derailleur has a problem, it is because of an unfortunate mishap or a lack of care, not because of a problem with manufacturing. The fact that the rear derailleur, one of the most delicate and intricate parts on any bike, is down by the back wheel in prime “hit me with a rock or bash me against a wall” territory means that these things are going to sustain damage over time. This isn’t the manufacturers’ fault. In the same way, Audi aren’t going to replace your alloy wheels if you scratch them by parking too close to the curb.
Gears Don’t Work, But I Don’t Know if I Should Contact SRAM or the Bike Manufacturer?
Take the bike to a mechanic. They will diagnose the problem for you and most will deal with warranty claims for you (if there is one). Just don’t expect them to do it for free! However, the point of confusion is who’s warranty covers which bits. Generally the company that manufactured the part will cover it under warranty, so an Orbea bike with a Shimano motor, SRAM gears, Mavic wheels and Fox suspension will come with separate warranties from each of the manufacturers to cover the parts they are responsible for. There is no point complaining to Orbea if there is a problem with your Mavic wheel – it’s Mavic you need to be speaking to, but let your local shop do it for you; it’s what they do, they probably have a better relationship with the brand than you do, and they are more likely to speak to the right person first time.
We Are Moving in the Right Direction
Some of the more progressive brands are realising the problem with people buying online and feeling short changed by their Warranty when they visit their local dealer, and these brands are doing something about it. Giant, Haibike, and Orbea for example have put, or are putting reimbursement programs in place to cover labour costs for warranties as well. This doesn’t mean that all labour costs are covered – turn up with what you think is a warranty job, but actually your bike just needs a gear service, then expect to be charged for it. The manufacturer isn’t going to pay the shop on your behalf, much as Toyota will charge you to change your tyres if they are bald due to you pulling fat doughnuts in maccers carpark to impress your mates.
