Brother Laser Printer with Less than 1 Year Refused Warranty Due to Aftermarket Toner

edforums on 16/01/2023 - 19:02

Hi all,
I have a Brother laser printer that started to make an unusual noise when printing (less than 1 year old).
I stopped using it worried some gears inside could be starting to fail. Just to be clear, the printer is printing with no issues, I removed the toner and there is no damage at all. The pages are printed without issue, marks neither spots, it's just the noise.

I talked to Brother and they pointed me to a service company that, after many days, told me the warranty is voided because I used compatible toners, not genuine. They also said they tried with 1 genuine toner and the noise was gone (I don't have any genuine to test). I have no idea if I'll need to pay for the check they did, but I might.

My question is, is this legal? Have any of you guys had any similar experience? The printer has 1 year warranty.

I was trying to find information about non-genuine or compatible parts vs genuine, and seems like there was a big debate a few years ago about car parts and if the warranty in those cases is voided or not. For car parts, the warranty is not voided (example: https://www.choiceofrepairer.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2016/… )
I also found this regarding inks/toners https://newspower.com.au/genuine-vs-compatible-ink-cartirdge… but I was wondering if someone can give me more information about this

Thanks guys, hope someone can help

Computing Brother Laser Printer Printer

Comments

  • AustriaBargain on 16/01/2023 - 19:06
    +15

    Bit silly to bring it in for warranty with a generic toner cartridge in it. You should have kept the starter toner for warranty and popped it back in. Generic toner is an issue and I have had generic carts leak and stuff. If Brother didn't make or fill the cartridge how can you expect them to do warranty on it or the printer?

    • edforums on 16/01/2023 - 19:24
      -4

      I already used the genuine toner thinking the warranty would be covered. If you take a printer for warranty, they request you to have the toner or ink otherwise they won't check it

    • sjj89 on 16/01/2023 - 20:38
      +6

      The printers can tell if a non-genuine toner is used

      • whatwasherproblem on 17/01/2023 - 20:23

        And at least the Brother printers will still let you print. Most Canons and HPs would just lock up and not let you do anything.

  • SF3 on 16/01/2023 - 19:08
    +17

    they tried with 1 genuine toner and the noise was gone

    /thread

  • spackbace on 16/01/2023 - 19:10
    +3

    Lol of course they can dictate that

    Be like using dodgy oils and parts when servicing your car

    • edforums on 16/01/2023 - 19:25
      -3

      Actually, if you check the link I posted about car parts, that's not the case as long as what you are using is compatible

      • spackbace on 16/01/2023 - 19:29
        +2

        Yeah, thanks for that link, might want to read it…

        The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has previously issued guidelines that explain that the issue here is not who manufactured the parts, it is whether the parts are fit or appropriate for the purpose intended.

        Shit ink = dead printer

        An initiative of the Australian Automotive Aftermarket Association

        I mean, that pdf isn't biased at all, is it…

      • Quantumcat on 16/01/2023 - 20:41
        +1

        It mustn't be compatible if it is causing problems for the printer

      • Krankite on 17/01/2023 - 08:12

        They can't void a warranty just because you used third party parts or services but they can void the warranty if the damage was done by the third party parts or services.

        Sometimes it can get into a messy finger-pointing exercise and sometimes it's obvious. If the problem with your printer is resolved by replacing the toner with a genuine cartridge it's pretty clear that the issue was caused by the third party part.

        • edforums on 25/01/2023 - 14:19
          +1

          Actually that's exactly what happened and you are right @Krankite. They ended up confirming one of the toners was causing the issue

  • Tech5 on 16/01/2023 - 19:39
    +5

    Well they put a genuine cartridge in and the noise stopped (according to them).

    What did they do that was illegal? Your two options are
    1. They are telling the truth and the printer is fine- your cartridge is dodgy
    2. They are lying to you? Seems like an easy thing to determine with a genuine cartridge. I would assume that they wouldn't risk that.

    • edforums on 25/01/2023 - 14:21
      +1

      What happened is they told me originally that because I had non genuine toners, the warranty was voided but, actually they were not accurate.
      If the failure is produced by a compatible toner, then the warranty is voided, but if the problem with the printer is caused by something else, no matter if you have used compatible toners, the warranty is still valid.

      When I was asking if it was legal or not I should have clarified that I was asking if it was legal to void a warranty just because you used compatible toners, which was not the case

  • Jimothy Wongingtons on 16/01/2023 - 19:41
    +5

    Have had nothing but issues with generic toners, one time a toner leaked and leaked out toner all into the guts of my brother printer. Our stationary supplier was happy to issue a credit but my brother printer was stuffed. All just to save $30 on a toner…

    From brothers website

    Brother Genuine Supplies - Worth It Every Time
    Brother recommends the use of Brother Genuine Supplies. They’re proven to be great quality, long lasting and safe. While not all non-genuine supplies cause problems, using third-party consumables may damage your Brother device. Any damage caused by using non-genuine supplies may void the warranty.

    • Ulysses31 on 16/01/2023 - 19:59
      +3

      I believe you, but I've used every variation of aftermarket & DIY inks, toners, chips… only ever had one issue, maybe 15-20 years ago, with a chinese CISS system. The ink appeared to be too thin/watery, or the bulk container was pressurised. No bueno.

      • Jimothy Wongingtons on 16/01/2023 - 20:02

        That’s the thing- many ozbargainers swear by generics (and let’s face it if it was a high chance of issue no one would use it..) … but when you do have an issue oh boy

        • edforums on 25/01/2023 - 14:25

          Just to put it in context, a original toners (cyan, magenta, yellow, black) can cost between $150 - $250. So four toners can cost between $600-$1000

          The cost of 4 compatible (1 of each color + black) is less than $100, so it's not just $30 saving per toner

  • Clickbait on 16/01/2023 - 20:02

    My MFC 7362 is over 10 years old, and never had a problem with drum or toner
    Except, was supplied wrong model once, and it made a terrible noise.
    Check your model, the toner may look the same but not be
    Ebay suppliers are getting a bit hard to pick, but i think it may be the fraudsters at Ebay promoting drop shipping

  • sharkyoz on 16/01/2023 - 20:29

    oils aint oils

  • apple2016 on 16/01/2023 - 21:59

    if the aftermarket toner manufacturer has guranteed it to work with your printer and if it causes issues(asuming your printer manufacturers statement is correct) , you can take it up with the toner manufacturer.

  • jv on 16/01/2023 - 22:13

    My question is, is this legal?

    Yes, they are not under any obligation to fix faulty 3rd party toners.

  • bargaino on 16/01/2023 - 22:44
    +1

    Was this "toner" you used just toner? The Brother I had, the "toner cartridge" actually includes gears and the roller.
    You could hardly expect them to fix faults in that!!

    I always use generic toners. It's worth risking the waranty.
    One time the Brother fuser roller started to come apart, which allegedly is associated with aftermarket toner.
    No problem, I just bought an after-market fuser roller.

    Later, a Fuji-Xerox started to fail with a horrible noise from a broken plastic cog. Fuji would only sell a whole new fuser unit for $200.
    Screw 'em, I got a new cog for $10 from China. Mine was clearly not the first one to fail!

  • saltypete on 17/01/2023 - 08:54
    +1

    Fair cop.

  • Gunnar on 17/01/2023 - 09:03
    +1

    LOL having done return and warranty work for printers when I was at uni - always use original toner when your product is in warranty. Biggest source of rejection under warranty was that a non-genuine ink/toner was used.

    My favourite was with a customer who ignored my advice to buy genuine when it was under warranty. The guy was arrogant as hell and came back in a week or two later saying that the printer had issues. I did what I needed to sending the product in for a repair knowing full well the manufacturer was going to tell him to get f.cked (which is exactly what they told him because it was non-original toner)

    Take your experience as a lesson learnt because you will get no where with what you're trying to push.

    Even out of warranty the only cartridges worth using non engine was refilling Canon ink jet; all others use genuine toner or ink

    • edforums on 25/01/2023 - 14:26

      I'll put a post to clarify what happened

  • shutuptakemymoney101 on 22/01/2023 - 15:33

    I'm happy to take my chances with well reviewed aftermarket toner, I'm not willing to support a business practice which purposely extorts money from it's customers by dangling the threat of no warranty over their heads.

  • edforums on 25/01/2023 - 14:41
    +4

    Hey guys, thanks for your help on this, I'm adding more info in case help others

    So the issue was the compatible toner. I was able to check with a genuine one.
    The cost of each genuine toner is between $150 - $250 (1800 pages or 4000 pages), cost for getting 4 compatible toner (black, cyan, magenta, yellow) is $108 (inkstation) so there are significant savings for me if I choose not genuine toners

    Now, what happened is when I contacted Brother because of the noise the printer was making, they told me to bring the printer and the toners I was using (makes sense, they want to check what's going on). I didn't have any genuines left, and I was not going to spend $600 in case the problem was something else (The printer costs $400).
    Anyways, I took the printer to the service centre, they checked the toners were in there (they are clearly not genuine) and they didn't say anything about that. A few days later they said the warranty was void because I was not using genuine toners, and they were still trying to find out the cause.
    Because of that answer, I created this post.

    They ended up using other genuine toners and they found one of mine was faulty. And also they said that's very very unusual (I have been using the same toners for more than half a year with no issues).

    When I went to pick up the printer, they said that, if the failure is created by a non genuine toner, the warranty is void, which makes perfect sense. But, if the failure was due to another component and not related to the non genuine toner, the warranty was still valid, which again, makes sense. I had to pay the service fee, which I think is reasonable as well.

    TLDR;
    Using non genuine toners in a Brother printer doesn't void the warranty if and only if they are not causing the issue or have affected the printer.

    Hope this helps guys

    • Gunnar on 25/01/2023 - 16:27

      Thanks for the update, glad to hear that it all worked out in the end (and that some of the posts above are not necessarily accurate, mine included)

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