[Closed] Giant warranty process times

Not recent, about 10 years ago, I had a great experience with a cracked frame on my Anthem. I was away on business in Japan for a couple of months so took the bike with me, when the weld on the top tube cracked, took some pictures, sent them to the Giant Store at Rutland water, after 2 days was told it was all approved and the replacement frame was on its way.
Took the bike up a couple of days after I got back, 2 weeks later, everything all swapped over in a couple of hours at no cost (the labour cost wasn’t included in the warranty).

Was a frame upgrade over what I had originally.

It's going to depend on what is borked and the spares necessary to fix it. We're in the midst of a worldwide bike parts shortage and that is inevitably having an affect.

Be prepared for a long wait if the bike isn't in stock.
I am waiting for a warranty replacement rear wheel for one of my bikes. Replacement was agreed at the end of May but I am still waiting. Excuses so far include nil stock, stock on way from Japan and a warehouse move has disrupted stock holdings.

Bottom bracket went on my Revolt after 6 weeks. Was replaced under warranty and back to me in two weeks. I was lucky though, as Praxxis had mine in stock. All dealt with by my friendly local Giant dealer who supplied my bike.

I am waiting for a warranty replacement rear wheel for one of my bikes.

Ditto. Mine is from Hunt.

I currently have a cracked giant frame on my bike that I use to commute, took it to the shop that I purchased it from and the warranty process has been started. When I asked about time they said between a week and a year!

Not recent, 5 years ago, but 11 hours from walking in to the Giant store in Shoreham on a Sunday to a message to say a new frame set was on it's way to them so they could rebuild the bike for me.

My Giant defy cracked(pre-covid) bought from Rutland cycles. Emailed pics for response the then equivalent frame was contend sl. I said cool Rutland shipped out bike box I packed it up. Week or so later all my bits on new frame delivered back.

Giant are fantastic when dealing with warranty issues, but as others have pointed out, it will all come down to whether what is needed to fix your bike is available due to the global parts shortage.

I'm hoping it's just some iffy connectors or a sensor issue - it cuts out during a ride, then won't come back on. The Ride Control will briefly light up, but immediately goes off again, so I can't even do a system check with the app.

The first time it happened was on holiday in Scotland earlier this month, but it managed to come back on again after about 5 minutes. It was fine after that, but it conked out again today and never managed to come back on. I think it's pining for the fjords.

Have you tried turning it off and on again at the wall

Sounds like a connector, maybe some corrosion on one through water ingress at some point that now requires replacement/cleaning, Giant Shops are usually good as they can run the first stage checks, so strip it and try and find the fault, run a diagnostic and then swap out main parts or bench test, if caught then it could be a quick turnaround, if it's a failed battery or motor it might be a bit longer to fix (but keep pushing them!), as stock of the motors/battery are a bit lower these days.

I have a Reign E+1 which is basically like yours, bar a little more travel, i had a shut off earlier this year in the real flood like conditions, checked it over and there was a little moisture around the connectors, so dried it up, then protected the area and no issues since, but if left i could see that moisture would have started some corrosion in there at the connectors.

Hopefully it's just a simple one, the shop should be able to sort it out ASAP, is it local or an online buy, i bought my giant from the giant shop 5 miles away after a nightmare trying to get a Cube Stereo warrantied, giant shops are dotted around and can do quick diagnostics if you try them sometimes?

I have a Reign E+1 which is basically like yours, bar a little more travel, i had a shut off earlier this year in the real flood like conditions, checked it over and there was a little moisture around the connectors, so dried it up, then protected the area and no issues since, but if left i could see that moisture would have started some corrosion in there at the connectors.

Hopefully it’s just a simple one, the shop should be able to sort it out ASAP, is it local or an online buy, i bought my giant from the giant shop 5 miles away after a nightmare trying to get a Cube Stereo warrantied, giant shops are dotted around and can do quick diagnostics if you try them sometimes?

I bought it from Rutland, they said to take it to a local dealer for the warranty claim.

Water ingress sounds plausible, it's been out in some torrential rain, plus my regular route involves a couple of water crossings (that never bothered my Overvolt, mind, might just be that the Giant sealing isn't quite as solid...)

Got the Tee shirt . . .

I don't know when you bought yours, but they all suffer from water ingress into the connectors. My local Giant store now add some 'goo' in an attempt to properly seal the connectors as part of the PDI. I don't know if this is an official policy though.

A quick fix is to drop out the battery and 'tickle' the wiring loom and the big bunch of connectors above the motor with gently heat from a hair drier. Note that the connectors can drop down and become trapped by the battery, so push them up above the motor if needs be.

Hth

Ooof, mine's a 2021 model - I bought it back in May. Quite surprised that the sealing is such an issue, and that my usual riding has taken out a latest model in three months, when my 2017 ebike has never had a problem. :/

It's a fantastic bike when it works though!

It's in the shop. Diagnostic codes suggest that water ingress is indeed the issue. The local shop are going to do additional waterproofing for £45 (as that's not covered by warranty...)

Probably worth asking them what this is, was it an issue with the connectors that a simple addition of some dielectric grease on the pins would reduce it happening again, or something else?

They do like using the statement that water ingress was the issue, but what issue did it cause in the system (connectors/controller/terminal surface corrosion?), and has this part been modified in later Giants, as i'd be pushing for that fix, rather than the temporary one they're offering.

£45! Taking the urine.

It is covered under the warranty and any additional waterproofing should have been done at the PDI stage. Tell them to fix or ask for a refund.

Or just DIY it. The ingress is from the back of the connectors (not the male/female pins), so fill them with a silicon sealant and them smear dielectric over the male and female pins. All the connectors are accessible (with difficulty) with the battery removed.

£45! Taking the urine.

It is covered under the warranty and any additional waterproofing should have been done at the PDI stage. Tell them to fix or ask for a refund.

Its not in the shop it was bought from, it was bought from Rutland and has been taken to a local Giant dealer according to the OP.

@bigyan

Good point. I'd be expecting Rutland to pay or speak to the local shop on OP's behalf. I'd also assumed at one point that (just like a car) you could take it in to any authorised retailer, but I don't think this is true with Giant?

I wouldn't expect Rutlands to be liable for any of it, they're the dealer, if it's occurred through a warranty issue then Giant would be the one paying via their dealer network.

I do always wonder why on ebikes worth 5k plus why they persist in crap connectors, you can get decent ones that have some protection (some up to IP67), with the raft of failures they've had why they don't fix this issue is beyond me.

So, the warranty work was done for £40 labour cost, including the seat post (which is now super solid, great stuff!) and water proofing.

I got the bike back, took it for a short 6 mile test ride on the local roads (on a warm, dry day), just to check it was working for my weekend jolly to FoD.

Charged it up yesterday morning, then as I was preparing to pop it on the bike rack last night, I switched it on to check how much it had charged, in case I needed to take the charger with me.

Aaaand it kept dying again. Lights come on, then immediately go off. Occasionally one of the leds was red.

Literally had a bit of a cry, I'd been really looking forward to this trip. Got the faithful Overvolt with me instead, but I was hoping to be all gnar and rad on my full susser. I don't have the skills to be gnar and rad on a hard tail.

*tiny violin*

Yeah.. Mate has a reign e and has no end of issues with it. Replacement motor, wiring loom, battery and about 6 sets of buttons.
He's currently waiting for the new battery to be fitted and has been waiting since March. It only arrived last week

Aaaand it's... not going well.

I thought it'd be relatively simple, as the fault came up well within six months of purchase and it's already had one attempted repair at an authorised Giant dealer (which was what Rutland recommended to save posting it back and forth). But Rutland are refusing to refund me, because they say that they can't find the record of the local dealer's warranty work (although I've given them the receipt), so they still get a chance to repair it.

I called Giant's customer services, and they said I'm entitled to a refund, but they can't get involved as the retailer has to process it.

/deskflip

Nightmare 😬

Make sure the local dealer has logged it in the correct system. I'd copy Giant UK in with any emails exchanged with the shops. Sounds like Rutland are being asses about it, which seems to be the norm for most shops at the moment, in the process of dealing with Scott/StartFitness with my Scott, as it has quite a few issues (wheels, build quality, creaks, leaking shock)

Sounds like its no fit for purpose, water will get inside the frame, if they've used poor connectors (seems like a lot of molex stuff in use, which is neither waterproof or vibration proof) then it will fail.

Mrs Toast - thats time for a "letter before action" then as rutland are not fulfilling their legal duties - that will shake some action I bet.

Yeah, Rutland are really digging their heels in.

I called the local Giant dealer (who did the original repair), and it wasn't actually logged as a warranty claim as it didn't involve warrantable parts:

1) The dropper post just needed the internals rejigging, so didn't need parts.

2) The diagnostic codes said the switching off issue was a problem with water ingress, so that's what they fixed with cleaning up the contacts and waterproofing (which wasn't covered by warranty).

Rutland are insisting that as the repair for the fault didn't involve parts and go through warranty, it isn't classed as a repair as it's 'not traceable', and therefore they still have the right to do a second repair, which they class as the first repair, because the first repair wasn't actually a repair in their eyes, even though:

* They told me to go to the local Giant dealer to get it repaired
* I have the receipt for the repair, which I've given them
* Giant's Warranty and Aftercare team have said that not having it go through warranty shouldn't affect my rights
* The guy from the local dealer has spoken to them and confirmed the work (and can't believe they're not giving the refund)

I've submitted a Trading Standards complaint, and I'm currently on hold on the Citizens Advice consumer line. :/

TJAGAIN is sending you in the right direction. Letter before action, small claims, thats where citizens advice will point you anyway. Sounds like Rutland being arses. Warning fro the rest of us.
FYI my sister bought a Giant E-Bike from Partridge cycles in Devon on her way to holiday last year and they fixed it under warranty remotely a few months ago. Her husband facetimed them and they went through the issues, then ordered parts from giant and sent them to him, it was a new handlebar switch controller thing. Seems like giant are pretty good if you have a good dealer.

I wouldn’t expect Rutlands to be liable for any of it, they’re the dealer,

Actually in law they are liable - your contract is with the retailer.

take the bike back to rutland, tell them you are rejecting it under consumer law as unfit for purpose and leave it with them telling them they have 7 days to get the refund to your or face court action ( all in writing)

Retailers hate consumer law as it gives buyers rights that are expensive for retailers

Actually in law they are liable – your contract is with the retailer.

take the bike back to rutland, tell them you are rejecting it under consumer law as unfit for purpose and leave it with them telling them they have 7 days to get the refund to your or face court action ( all in writing)

Retailers hate consumer law as it gives buyers rights that are expensive for retailers

I did attempt to go full Battle Karen and repeatedly mentioned the Consumer Rights Act (fault happened within 4 months, repair to sort it failed), but they're insisting that they have the right to repair it.

The issue is that although they told me to go to the local Giant dealer for any warranty issues, the repair wasn't logged with the warranty system (as it didn't require parts, so wasn't 'Giant certified' (despite being done at an official Giant dealer, as recommended). So, as far as they're concerned, they still have the right to attempt a repair as the retailer, as specified in the Consumer Rights Act.

Citizens Advice said that it can be argued that the bike is not fit for purpose if there's numerous cases of similar issues, and that they used up their repair attempt by telling me I could have any work done at a local Giant dealer.

I've got an open case - they recommended asking for ADR (Rutland don't belong to any ADR scheme though), sending a letter via recorded delivery requesting the refund and highlighting the relevant parts of the Consumer Rights Acts.

Not sure that will do any good though, as I've already done a lot of that via email, and they keep reiterating that they have the right to repair, and they'll send my back when it's done (they've had it for two weeks). , Not sure if they have a time limit to do the repair. :/

CTRL F5 .....
Any news?

Nay! Basically, Rutland just keep repeating the same thing (first repair didn't count as it wasn't done by them, so they still have the right to repair). They've had my bike for over two weeks already, apparently there's some parts coming in next week, so they'll repair it then. Then I guess I'll get the bike back, and just have to pray it doesn't crap out on me again, unless I somehow get a refund.

Tbh I'm too knackered to fight it. My life has been an absolute ****show for the last two years - I had to watch my remaining parent die painfully from cancer, move house, sort her estate (which took over a year, getting the grant of probate took 9 months because they screwed up at the probate office). Also, pandemic.

In the last two weeks we've had a new bathroom fitted (which involved a comedy of errors of no sink and broken bath being sent, then two sinks being sent, etc), a maggot infestation on our street, blocked sewers, etc.

The worst was that our dog Benny had a lump tested and it was cancer. He's had emergency surgery to have the entire mass removed, but he's been bleeding for the last two weeks (first from his drain site, then literally the day he finally stopped draining, he popped a stitch), and me and t'husband have been taking it in turns sleeping on the living room floor with the dog, because the dog is an idiot with virtually no sense of self-preservation.

On the plus side, his cancer has come back as being the best possible cancer (it doesn't spread to other body parts, so he doesn't need chemo, we just need to keep an eye on the region), and with my mom's estate finally being sorted, we've paid off the mortgage. All it took was me losing both parents by the age of 39. Yay.

Having Rutland's absolute BS on top of all of the above... the camel had its back broken a while back, but people still keep shoving stuff on it.

At least I know to avoid Rutland Cycling in the future - honestly, the prospect of further sewerage overflows and maggot infestations sound positively delightful compared to having to deal with them again.

Not that it helps but a friend also had poor warranty experience with Rutland and a Giant E-Bike, eventually they credited the 2020 bike value against a 2021, so far it seems to be a bit more reliable but he definetly wouldn't buy mail order from them again..

Not sure if they have a time limit to do the repair

IIRC its a "reasonable" time that they have

Sounds like a crap time MrsToast, hope things improve for you soon.

Not that it helps but a friend also had poor warranty experience with Rutland and a Giant E-Bike, eventually they credited the 2020 bike value against a 2021, so far it seems to be a bit more reliable but he definetly wouldn’t buy mail order from them again.

It does help, actually - makes me feel marginally less persecuted as an individual! 😛

IIRC its a “reasonable” time that they have

Why do I have the feeling that their idea of a 'reasonable' timeframe is probably six months, or something...

I’m always surprised by posts like these. MrsToast has been struggling with this for a month, I might be being a bit naive but I would have thought Rutland and Giant would keep an eye on the bigger forums as this comes across as very bad publicity for them. It’s also their opportunity to look good by coming into the forum to help rectify the problem quickly and efficiently and, more importantly for them, it’s good PR. Really sorry for you, MrsToast

An update!

...

There is no update. I still have no bike. There is no word of Rutland. They still have the bike. I've written today asking for a refund again, this time pointing out that even if I accept that they have a right to (a second) repair, they have to do it in a reasonable time and without significant inconvenience.

They've had my bike for over a month - not reasonable, imo (plus they said they'd have parts for it over two weeks ago), and I'm currently on holiday in Dalby, where I'm studiously having to avoid the red route because I don't have a full-susser (don't judge me, I need my skills compensator), so I'm inconvenienced.

One last attempt to play nice, then I guess it's legal action. :/

I think it is time for a notice before action letter delivered registered post. Give them a reasonable time to reply with a timeline of when they will make the repair. If that doesn't get you anywhere, I'd be making a claim via money claim online - https://www.gov.uk/make-money-claim

Any chance your credit card company can help with a charge back? I know initial purchase date comes into it but there are also some clauses about when you should have been given a refund. Might be worth a check.

I like the idea of an eBike but the potential for the whole thing to pan out like this puts me off. At the very least I won't entertain Rutland as the retailer, for normal or eBike!

Alas, I paid on my debit card (I used a bit of inheritance from my late mother - I'll definitely be doing credit card for any big purchases in the future though!).

I'd still get in touch with the bank and ask the question, from memory there is a 120 day period where you can do a charge back on a debit card.

I’d still get in touch with the bank and ask the question, from memory there is a 120 day period where you can do a charge back on a debit card.

Unfortunately it's been over 120 days now.

Rutland replied, saying "currently we expect standard warranties to take between 4 to 6 weeks however this does depend on the supplier and the issues experienced. Sometimes warranties can be quicker than this or take longer" and "Unfortunately 4 weeks for a warranty claim to be processed isn't unusual or considered as an unreasonable timeframe".

Which would arguably be fine, if it was outside of six months, but warranties have literally nothing to do with the Consumer Rights Act...

“Unfortunately 4 weeks for a warranty claim to be processed isn’t unusual or considered as an unreasonable timeframe”.

If I told one of my customers that it was 4 to 6 weeks, they wouldn't be a customer any more. 4 to 6 weeks is completely unreasonable, we are turning round issues in hours and days, rarely does anything not get resolved inside a couple of weeks.

https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2015/15/section/9/enacted

Unfortunately it’s been over 120 days now

It may be over 120 days now but that's not what counts, it's when it developed the fault. Like I say, it is worth a call as I was pleasantly surprised when I had to make a charge back a few years back.

It may be over 120 days now but that’s not what counts, it’s when it developed the fault. Like I say, it is worth a call as I was pleasantly surprised when I had to make a charge back a few years back.

Oh, cheers for that - I've submitted a form, so fingers crossed!

I had this a few months ago with a phone-

https://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/i-know-my-consumer-rights-or-do-i/

Rutland are in the wrong and I think you've given them enough time. If your debit card company won't do anything then the time for writing letters to Rutland has passed - send a letter before action the moment the debit card company says no (hopefully they won't) and then start the money claim online process when you head the same tripe back from Rutland.

So, a proper update!

This morning Rutland decided to refund me. I don't know what triggered it - whether it was the bank chargeback request, the ranty Twitter thread I posted yesterday (they replied with an apology on Twitter this morning... ), or the dawning realisation that I was going to keep on at them (apparently the part that was supposed to arrive "imminently" hasn't arrived and they don't know when it will).

So yay! Refund! Really not impressed with how much I had to fight for it though.

A good outcome, but one they should have really done without so much prodding.

Well done. Got a result in the end

Glad to hear that, but what a battle. Lessons learnt for the next bike purchase! 🤣

So, another thanks to @hooli! It turns out that it wasn't Rutland who directly refunded me - it was Barclays as a result of the charge back (presumably as Rutland have decided not to oppose it, as they mentioned me being refunded).

I did think that it was a bit odd that the refund last week didn't have Rutland by name, but I got a letter this morning from Barclays saying that they were investigating and had put the money in my account in the meantime, with the reference number of the refund.

No problem MrsToast, pleased it is all sorted.

The big question is, what are you going to buy now?

No idea! It's a bit hard finding a full suss ebike that a) fits my hobbity body, b) has a decent spec for the price, c) has a decent range, and d) doesn't look hideous.

Not sure whether to try holding out for demo days.

Couldn't you just buy another Giant, but from a decent dealer? Or direct? It seems you are happy with the Giant response, just not Rutland?

It’s a shame there isn’t an alloy Levo yet - I got the base model in the previous version and with a fork swap and brake swap, plus a dropper post (all done by my LBS) it worked out a great eMTB for the money. The new one has even shorter seat tubes and adjustable geometry so should fit and it’s better sealed (Albright mine’s been fine thus far). But it is rather expensive…

Amazingly poor service from Rutland - glad it’s sorted. eMTBs should be able to handle getting pretty wet though - even overseas brands should know that Britain is rather damp and many of us ride all year whatever the weather!

Couldn’t you just buy another Giant, but from a decent dealer? Or direct? It seems you are happy with the Giant response, just not Rutland?

I was actually tempted to get the same bike from the local dealer - there was a lot I liked about the bike, spec was good, and it was the first bike I've ever managed to lift the front wheel or jump on! I was just planning on getting a longer stem and maybe chopping the bars down a little, as I found the front end a bit twitchy. I also still have an unused Invisiframe kit for it - the bike crapped out before I had the chance to apply it! Also, it was a nice glittery purple. /priorities

I'm just worried that if I get another one, I'll run into the same issues (albeit with it being easier to sort if it's with the local dealer) - there do seem to be a fair few Intrigues/Trances/Emboldens, etc with similar issues.

t’s a shame there isn’t an alloy Levo yet – I got the base model in the previous version and with a fork swap and brake swap, plus a dropper post (all done by my LBS) it worked out a great eMTB for the money. The new one has even shorter seat tubes and adjustable geometry so should fit and it’s better sealed (Albright mine’s been fine thus far). But it is rather expensive…

Amazingly poor service from Rutland – glad it’s sorted. eMTBs should be able to handle getting pretty wet though – even overseas brands should know that Britain is rather damp and many of us ride all year whatever the weather!

Yeah - both the 'acoustic' full sussers I've owned have been Stumpjumpers, so I was quite open to another Specialized. That said, I tried an early Levo a fair few years back and wasn't a fan (it felt very heavy, and a bit on the big size even in small), although I'm sure they'll have changed since then.

But GOOD GOD THE PRICE! I felt a bit awkward spending nearly £6k of my inheritance on the Intrigue. If I go to Specialized prices, my mother would probably come back to haunt me, with the ghostly sounds of, "You could buy a car for that!".

As for the weather, I was a bit gobsmacked that the Giants have that much problem with it. My Lapierre Overvolt has now officially clocked over 2000 miles in all weathers with frequent water crossings (both blues at Cannock Chase have water crossings!). It's been a bit of a champ, so I've also been looking at the Lapierre full suss offerings. Not the eZesty (as the frame sizes start at medium), but the Overvolt TRs - they have 650b wheels and lower travel forks compared to the Overvolt AM, which is a mullet with a lot of travel up front (so is more likely to have the top tube coming up fairly sharp to accommodate a bigger fork and wheel).

I just had a quick look and you can get a Levo for under £6k, either the Levo SL or the last gen Levo (that’s the one I have - the new 2022 one is a mullet, carbon only and very adjustable). Mine was about £5k upgraded with Hope brakes and a Lyrik - it’s the S-Works ones that are silly money!

But there should be something out there for that budget and seat tubes are generally getting shorter (although reach isn’t…)

there do seem to be a fair few Intrigues/Trances/Emboldens, etc with similar issues.

I think this is due to Giant selling a huge number of bikes, I doubt the failure rate is any higher than specialized.~
According to google Giant revenue is 1.9billion a year with 27% from Ebikes
Spec is 600million a year, but their bikes are twice as expensive so.....

Ebikes can be a pain, just buy as local and from somewhere that can do in-house warranty if possible, the reality is that there's a chance you get something that fails at some point in the first year, i had the Cube Stereo, lovely bike, but complete DOA on day and never to be fixed, 4 months later i got a refund and bought the giant ereign, through worry i put it through a lot of water/mud/etc to see if it would fail, but it's done well so far, but again, the connectors on the wiring looms are not well protected, it's a running theme with ebikes i see, god knows how manufacturers are still giving us this rubbish on bikes over 5k, it doesn't cost a fortune to put on some IP67/68 waterproof connectors.

Specialized have far more failures from what i've seen with guys i know who have levos and kenevos, but have good support within the UK, so when a motor goes, or a frame breaks they tend to turnaround the warranty in days and use their entire network to do this, the likes of Giant and others just aren't on the same level in the UK, and can barely cope with new build demands, let alone warranties, and their networks tend to avoid warrantying bikes bought elsewhere.

If you do end up with another Liv, it might be worth asking them if they can waterproof the connectors, a few shops do this as an aftermarket fix, basically just adding compound to the exposed areas to create a barrier, so not a permanent modification that would effect warranty.

Sooo, I ended up ordering another Intrigue, this time from my local Giant dealer (which is literally less than a 5 minute walk from my office, and a 15 minute drive from my house). The local shop felt so bad about what I went through that they've given me a decent discount, and they're also waterproofing it and sticking a longer stem on for me, which I was planning to do on the previous bike. I've also still got my unused Invisiframe kit for it, so we're all set! 😛

Apparently Giant have been doing ongoing tweaks even on the same year model, so fingers crossed with that and the waterproofing it'll survive my soggy adventures (not a euphemism).If anything does go wrong, I'll be in safe hands (and not having to box up and courier my bike, and be able to talk to an actual human...).