Experience with the EU Support for 11gen Framework Laptop

Community Support
1

Hi, I have a 11gen Framework since Oktober 2022. I have had a very bad experience with the Framework Support during the last weeks and would like to get to know if others in the community have had similar experiences.

I had already shipped my laptop in for a repair once, because the fingerprint reader not responding, the laptop overheating, thermo-throttling, etc.
The repair center simply shipped it back claiming that the faults could not be replicated and thus did not exist.

A few weeks later the laptop stopped working out of the blue and has not switched on ever since. I thought that would be the CMOS issue, but as it is my daily driver, it cannot be that the CMOS Battery died.

I then asked the framework support to adhere to EU Consumer law and to offer me a replacement or a cancellation of the contract as the laptop fails the conformity requirement and repairs had failed. However, they just kept repeating on all levels that they first want to try another repair and referred to the limited guarantee of framework, which is not what I was talking about when referring to the EU guarantee.

Initially they even wanted me to perform all the repairs myself. I totally can understand that frameworks upholds the right to repair, but it seems the support uses that to just put all the reliability on the consumer, even though in the first two years they are responsible to ensure the conformity according to EU consumer rights.

After the issue even went up to the core team of Framwork and they still refused to replace or refund, I agreed on another repair try as I was already without a daily driver for over a week. So I shipped it to the repair center and nothing happened. Only after I followed up again on the status of the repair they told me that the motherboard was faulty, the repair center has run out of motherboards, because there is a high demand and that shipment of those has been delayed.

Sorry, but that is really unfair. To insist on a repair that framework knows the repair center currently cannot handle and leave me without a daily driver for over two weeks by now!

As it is apparently not only my issue, if the repair center is out of motherboards, I wanted to ask the community who else had a similar support experience completely disrespectful of EU consumer rights?

2

Hi,

First sorry for you bad experience I guess :neutral_face:

You cannot expect Framework to do miracles with availability of parts, even more so with “older parts”.

I have run in mostly the same experience with multiples vendors of different goods : the most they can do is give a timeframe of the replacement…

And I think the EU zone should change nothing except the period of garantee (2 years instead of 1 if i am correct)

3

Thanks for your answer.
Actually Framework writes in the terms and conditions that they do not limit the legal rights that one has as a EU consumer.
Part of that is actually that I can at any time decide whether I want a replacement or a repair, which they denied.
Part of that is also that I can also request a cancellation and full refund, if the seller fails to repair or if the products fault causes great inconvenience, which they denied as well.

4

That I never experienced, so might be normal as they it should be some sort of last resort move ?

Imagine you bought a car, broke the engine after 6 months, even if you have to wait 1 month constructor will change you the engine. I don’t think you can as easily ask for a refund, am I wrong?

5

“4. The consumer shall be entitled to either a proportionate reduction of the price in accordance with Article 15 or
the termination of the sales contract in accordance with Article 16 in any of the following cases:
(a) the seller has not completed repair or replacement or, where applicable, has not completed repair or replacement in
accordance with Article 14(2) and (3), or the seller has refused to bring the goods into conformity in accordance
with paragraph 3 of this Article;
(b) a lack of conformity appears despite the seller having attempted to bring the goods into conformity;
(c) the lack of conformity is of such a serious nature as to justify an immediate price reduction or termination of the
sales contract; or
(d) the seller has declared, or it is clear from the circumstances, that the seller will not bring the goods into conformity
within a reasonable time, or without significant inconvenience for the consumer.” https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32019L0771

I would say that both b) and d) is true, as the laptop is malfunctioning since November 2022, framework has failed to repair the item once already and knew that the repair center is out of parts when they coerced me in another repair attempt by denying all my other rights.

6

Why are we even discussing legal things here?

If you feel like Framework is doing something illegal/not holding by the laws in the country of your residence, go ahead and either involve a lawyer or talk directly to them.

I think it’s not fair saying it’s frameworks fault to have shortages of repair parts.

What I do however say is fair that you write a short two-liner to Framework telling them explicit that you want to return the laptop and get the money refunded as you need a working laptop and cannot wait for longer.

In my own experience Framework will follow through with refunds.

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7

Well I tried that already to which they replied that I can only ship it in for repair without telling me that they actually do not have the capacity to repair it.

8

Dear All,
relating to the topic, I don’t see any other possibility left than posting on social media, especially regarding the acceptance of EU consumer protection rules by framework. My laptop is not not properly functioning since November 2022. I totally agree with @Chironjit_Das that the support is overly enthusiastic of the consumer repairing the product on their own. Only after I clearly stated that I am not willing to repair my laptop on my own during the EU warranty period the issue got escalated. So I shipped my laptop in, the repair shop did nothing, found nothing and claimed that everything is fine. Few weeks later the laptop just stops working. Out of the blue. I want to use my EU warranty rights and the support continues to referr only to the limited framework guarantee on all levels, even though that is not what I based my argument on. Thus, they continued to deny my rights of replacement or to get a full refund. Instead they coerced me in sending in the laptop in yet again. And no updates on the repair process were provided. Only when I followed up again with them, they admitted that at the moment they are not able to repair the device because the repair store ran out of parts. This is totally unacceptable. Then why this insisting on a repair if you cannot repair it? Why is the repair shop not equipped with the supplies? I am now more than 20 days without a functioning laptop and I am completely disappointed!

9

@Paul_Emanuel_Kalle I get that you are upset but can you please not keep posting the same things all over the forum?

You’ve already opened a topic here, why not keep it there?

10

@Anachron because I feel that it is a general issue of how the support is currently structured and that deserves the attention of the framework core team

11

Well, they do have made the right move to me… (I assume you have since retrieve the laptop)

If I recap your “journey” here is what I see :

  1. Discover issue 1, multiple exchange with support, laptop goes to repair center.

  2. Repair center doesn’t find issue, send it back. (Append a lot. Trust me, I send my Pixel 6 5 times in a row after setting it up everytime losing hours in process before I obtain a exchange… I know the pain).

  3. Laptop refuse to boot anymore, motherboard seems to be dead according to support. You’ve to got to change it but no stock…

I am not the support, and not in your shoes…

But at this point, I would have tried to negotiate an upgrade to 12th or 13th gen and paying the difference between 11th gen and the replacement board before using nuclear “refund me” option…

It might be a good compromise for both Framework and you :thinking:

13

Hello folks,

I’m going to close this thread but provide some context as to what’s happening. The laptop is in with our repair center and we’ve made the decision to replace the board but we do not have current stock of the same model mainboard at this time. We were expecting a replacement board to arrive, but it has been slightly delayed so we’re looking into alternatives. The warranty is valid and will be honored, but it is important to call out that EU Consumer Rights Laws do not trump our existing Terms of Sale or Limited Warranty. We are not an EU company nor do we have an entity there. We are a US company operating internationally.

Our Customer Operations Lead is working with our Reverse Logistics and Repair Manager to determine the next course of action and we will continue to be in contact with this customer throughout the process. We honor our warranties and in no way, shape, or form were we ever trying to skirt our responsibilities here as the laptop is still with our repair center.

Thank you.

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