Repair Strategy

You must have a repair strategy in place in the event your child's device is faulty, damaged or lost. This can be a warranty that covers repairs, or an insurance policy that covers accidental damage or perhaps just an additional spare device. It ist important to consider whether or not a device can be repaired or replaced in a timely fashion so as not to interrupt their studies. It is important to note that warranty and insurance are not the same thing.

Warranty

In Australia, any laptop or device you buy comes with a two year manufacturers' warranty to ensure it is free from defects and poor workmanship. This applies only to devices purchased whilst you are in Australia and includes online retailers that sell to the Australian public even if their business is located overseas. If you buy a device whilst travelling abroad it is not subject to Australian Consumer Law and will likely not be covered for two years.

Issues typically covered by warranty:

  • Faulty hard drives
  • Noisy fans
  • Device not powering on
  • Dark dots on the screen (dead pixels)


Insurance

Purchasing insurance is a personal choice – but is highly recommended. Whilst there's lots of policies out there that covered every situation, the most typical one in a School environment is accidental damage. Often if you're buying a new device you will have the option of getting some sort of insurance policy, however this may provide too many or too few options.

There are several other companies that specialise in education device cover, iBroker is an example.

Issues typically covered by a policy;

  • Cracked screen
  • Liquid damage
  • Theft

It might be plausible to add the device to your home and contents insurance, but be sure to read the fine print to ensure it is covered within the context it will be used, eg, on the College campus. If you elect to get more things covered, such as fire and theft, the policy will cost more.

Spare College Laptops

In the event that a laptop is required immediately, a college laptop may be borrowed from the library on a daily basis. Students and parents must sign a laptop loan agreement prior to this occurring. It is important to note that this facility is strictly subject to the availability of laptops at any given time and with the understanding that the college provided laptop is a temporary solution to the issue.