Failed Lower RAM Slot on PB 1.25 GHz with no warranty
My PB 15 1.25 GHz (running Tiger) has the same issue in that the lower RAM slot recently failed. Since the PB is now 21 moths old, the warranty period has passed and I was quoted a price of around £620 for repairs including VAT.
The PB has been sitting on a well ventilated iCurve stand and has hardly been moved, the lower RAM slot is not exactly a moving part, nor is it exposed to fair wear and tear.
In a laptop costing more than £2000 you would expect the lifetime of this part to be a little more than 21 months.
A look at the various forums quickly indicated that I am not the only one experiencing this problem, and with the current recall of the iBook line due to faulty logic boards we are quickly developing a theme here.
I therefore gave the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) a call. It seems that they clearly thought this was an issue on which I am entitled to a free repair of my PB.
The law that applies in this case is the Sale of Goods Act (1979) with the March 2003 amendment concerning new remedies. The consumer is entitled to a refund, replacement or free repair (depending on how much time has passed since purchase and how much use the product has seen) for up to 6 years after purchase if the quality of the product is unsatisfactory. The important detail in this law seems to be that it only applies if the defect was present when the product was purchased. Since the lower RAM slots are failing on so many PB and since its not really a moving part or something you fiddle around with constantly, it must clearly be a design or manufacturing fault, which means it must have been present at the time of purchase. In addition it seems you must be the first owner and that the product must have been for personal, not commercial use.
Another law that applies if you purchased your laptop using a credit card is the Consumer Credit law (forgot the year).
In addition there is EU law, which essentially gives a 2-year warranty on consumer goods:
DIRECTIVE 1999/44/EC OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL of 25 May 1999 on certain aspects of the sale of consumer goods and associated guarantees.
In Article 5 states:
1. The seller shall be held liable under Article 3 where the lack of conformity becomes apparent within two years as from delivery of the goods. If, under national legislation, the rights laid down in Article 3(2) are subject to a limitation period, that period shall not expire within a period of two years from the time of delivery.
2. Member States may provide that, in order to benefit from his rights, the consumer must inform the seller of the lack of conformity within a period of two months from the date on which he detected such lack of conformity.
Armed with this information, I called up Apple technical support a second time in hope of a quick and painless solution. Unsurprisingly, I was left to listen to a lot of AC/DC performed on pan flutes (a clear breach of the Geneva Convention on torture, I am considering taking this up with Amnesty International) whilst the tech support guy was discussing a free repair with his superiors. Instead of getting an answer from them, I was then moved onto a customer relations representative (hi Kevin, this is you should you peruse these forums) who simply told me that my warranty had run out and as much as he regretted it, there was absolutely nothing he could do for me.
Since I expect others in a similar position to fare no better, I suggest you call the DTI on 08454 040506 if you live in the UK. They are extremely helpful and will listen to your complaint and then tell you if you have a case (which this time seems to be so) and the various laws that apply. They will also send out a template letter for you to amend and forward to Apple. In addition, if they receive enough complaints, they may take action against Apple directly.
