Lavatube Warranty or L-Rider VV from China vs. US

[tonyorion]

Volcano has the exclusive US distribution rights for the L-Rider VV from China (Lavatube), and it refuses to warranty the it if you use an atty/carto from another supplier.

I was wondering if the European distributors have the same restriction.


Thanks

 

[CaminoDiablo]

Volcano has the exclusive US distribution rights for the L-Rider VV from China (Lavatube), and it refuses to warranty the it if you use an atty/carto from another supplier.

I was wondering if the European distributors have the same restriction.


Thanks

How they gonna know? It's a very weird restriction I think

 

[tonyorion]

It is indeed! Volcano could, I suppose, monitor the purchases of attys/cartos, but that would lead to an argument every time there was a warranty claim.

So far the US distributor has come up with lame technical reasons which are nothing other than a veiled justification for screwing his customers on the consumables like attys/cartos-the razor/razor blade marketing concept. From the prices that are on AliBaba (Chinese website for products made in China), he is also taking a hefty mark-up of 300% on the kits as well. In all fairness, though, the posted price on AliBaba needs to be confirmed.

Correct me if I am wrong, but I know of no other PV retailer who imposes such a ludicrous restriction.

 

[Eddie.Willers]

This leads me to conclude that there could be a very profitable gray market arrangement, perhaps via Canadian suppliers, to be made by a canny American businessman who wants to cash in on the hype around this mod.

 

[CaminoDiablo]

I have never hear if it before. It's like Maglite saying if you don't use Duracell your flashlight is void. Think of the headaches coming to the consumer trying to prove that he/she only used them? This is insane, it's gonna be a consumer service nightmare IMO. Even if they monitor the attys/cartos who's to say that out of the other 1000 distributors a atty/catro wasn't bought and used? I'm sorry but this idea of theirs is just stupid.

 

[John Phoenix]

Ya know.. Volcanoecigs has since changed it's warranty but I doubt it would have held up in court anyway because there is nothing special about the atty's or batteries that make the unit depend on a said brand to function correctly /keep the unit from being damaged.

I think the law looks at it like you have to have a good reason. You cannot just claim a void of warranty because you are trying to sell more products and someone doesn't use your patented product with a generic device which the LavaTube certainly is.

I believe it was just a bad decision on Volcanoecigs part and lucky for them they changed it before they lost a big court case.