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No class action lawsuits regarding HP notebook hinge crack!
By admin | January 13, 2008
A few people have found a positive resolution to their notebook hinge cracks on the HP dv9000 and HP dv6000 series notebooks. Many have also been told that the damage is not warranty-repairable, and were quoted $298 to fix it. Some have asked about forming a class action lawsuit against HP, and I wanted to post this to recommend NOT forming one.
Class action lawsuits are not consumer friendly. In fact, every class actionlawsuit I have investigated has ended up giving the lawyers HUGE compensation, and the consumers close to nothing. In the hinge cracking case, HP would settle the lawsuit to the tune of many millions, paying the lawyers 30-50% of that amount, and giving each consumer around $25-$50. HP would not admit to any responsibility, and future problems would be covered under the lawsuit settlement terms, which means no money for future problems.
Thankfully, filing a lawsuit locally in your county courthouse is an EASY process, and in most districts doesn’t cost much. I will investigate writing a step-by-step process in how to do it, and how to handle the case yourself (called Pro Se). I have done so myself in the past against spammers and fraudulent credit collection companies, and have often-times settled those cases out with a nice compensation (as much as $1000 for about 2 hours of my time!).
If there are thousands of us out there who have had the problem with the manufacturer-defective hinge on these notebooks, filing yourself in your district’s court would be the best way to get resolution. I do not recommend EVER threatening a lawsuit in order to get a free repair. Instead, the proper process is to WRITE DOWN EVERYTHING in terms of who you talk to (name, badge number, phone number and extension), what they said specifically, and what the results were. Only if you do not get resolution do you file a lawsuit. You don’t tell HP you’re going to do it, you just do it. Because the total cost of the laptop replacement or repair is so small, a small-claims suit in your local court is cheap, quick and not very scary. The cost to you would be little, but HP would have to send a lawyer (or hire a local one), and spend literally hundreds or thousands for each case submitted.
At this point, HP has NEVER contacted me regarding this issue. I am open to handling discussions with HP and forming a reasonable response standard for users with this problem — in or out of warranty. I personally do NOT want a lawsuit to happen, I just want a working laptop. Since my hinge cracked last year, my laptop is now close to worthless. I use the laptop for a not-for-profit company I manage, and having it out of commission has cost me close to $2000 to replace that model with a similar model from another manufacturer. Because some of the software I purchased for that laptop is not licensable to a new machine, I had to repurchase software. I also had to spend dozens of hours reinstalling software and finding drivers to work with my hardware.
HP has a simple solution to this problem: negotiate a repair process, set up a single case manager with email and phone contact for any user who has this problem, and give me the details to post here. If HP wishes to do this, this website would turn into a simple “Here is what you need to do to get fixed.” Instead, HP is costing themselves tens of thousands of dollars of tech support pay, frustrating thousands of users, and setting this site up with traffic forever. I guarantee this website will still be on the web in 10 years, and HP is making a huge mistake trying to deny a manufacturing flaw.
For every comment you visitors leave, I get 10+ emails from others with the same problem. We have literally HUNDREDS of comments now, and I’ve received thousands of emails. I spend as much as 2 hours per day (with no financial compensation!), 7 days a week, communicating with people who have this problem. Why am I doing HP’s job, for no compensation, when they could fix the problem overnight. It is irresponsible, and I will go through every end to make sure that users know that HP is not there for them in the long run.
For now, please refrain from starting a class-action lawsuit. If I don’t hear anything from HP by the end of January, I will post a detailed step-by-step process to file a Pro Se lawsuit in your county court, and tell you exactly what you need to know to get results. I believe that HP would settle individual lawsuits with a new laptop or a free repair, rather than settling one big class action lawsuit where you’ll get a few dollars, and get no results.
For those who are finding some positive gain from this site and wish to send a gift to me personally, I do appreciate the few paypal’s I’ve received over the months. I’ve put in over 250 hours on this site already just communicating with all the various people, and have received in total about $30 of compensation from gifts and sponsors of this site. If you wish to send a paypal of $1 or $5, please send it to this email address:proofs@vipministry.com.
Thanks for your support!
January 16th, 2008 at 1:14 pm
Hi all and especially our blogger/administrator. DV9033CA purchased from Costco in Oct/Nov of 2006 and now the left hand side of the LCD frame is cracking up the seam. Little bits of plastic residue here and there, as well. Thanks for creating this blog - I’m sure we all would agree that it has been very helpful. I was considering a repair on my own with crazy glue but have been hesitant since this may create a permanent disassembly problem in the future should LCD repairs be required. This blog is a great way to find a solution - thanks!
January 18th, 2008 at 6:59 am
I work for a local IT company. A client just brought in an HP DV9000 with a broken hinge. In my research in trying to find a fix, I found this website and it looks like this is a huge problem.
Anyway, I was able to find hinges for the notebook for about $100 on google checkout. Replacing the hinges took a little less than an hour. So if you absolutely can’t be without a fully functional laptop and don’t want to pay HP to fix it, you could easily do it yourself. I know this is HP’s problem and they should fix it free of charge, but if don’t want to wait until they resolve this issue, you might consider fixing it yourself.
January 20th, 2008 at 7:29 pm
I purchased an HP Pavilion laptop last year and my laptop hinge just popped open on the left side. I’m trying to look around for a cheap repair job before the seam opens up even further….for now I’m just keeping my lid open all the time to prevent further damage….
January 20th, 2008 at 7:32 pm
Oh, and mine was a DV9000z laptop, very nice, aside from the frustrating hinge flaw…
January 20th, 2008 at 11:04 pm
I just found that my HP DV9035nr, purchased in October 2007 and used almost daily since then, had cracked at the lock on the left hinge. Must to my surprise, I found this site after Googling “hp pavilion 9000 broken hinge”! I am simultaneously saddened and relieved to learn that I am not alone in this problem. I will be visiting Best Buy (where I purchased the laptop) to see what they say tomorrow. I am, naturally, just past my HP Manufacturer’s warranty, and I can’t for the life of me remember if I bought an additional warranty via Best Buy.
I hope to report back with positive news on my particular case (no pun intended), and would like to be included in any mailing list/etc that the admin of this site sets up.
Best of luck to all!
January 23rd, 2008 at 11:48 pm
Self Repair on dv9000 - Success
I finally gave up with HP and CompUSA were I bought an extended warranty, and attempted some self-repair on my dv9000. It actually wasn’t hard, and worked out better than I thought it would. I took a few screws out from under the battery (five I think), carefully popped off the plastic screen (dv9000)with the touch volume controls and power (very carefully, these are very delicately attached), and was able to unscrew and pop out the hinge. On my laptop, I discovered the hinge was stuck in one position and as a result the plastic around it cracked and split (up the left side of the screen and the bottom left). From there I improvised.
After the hinge was out, I cut it (having a hacksaw in the garage was very helpful), so the part that actually attaches to the screen and that was stuck and caused the plastic around the screen to crack would no longer be blocking it from opening and closing. In other words, I was left with just the part that I unscrewed from the laptop and a small metal bar (for lack of the proper terminology) that sticks out of it. I wrapped the “bar” part of it with some tape to make it a little thicker, and put it all back together. Replaced the plastic hinge cover that popped off when it cracked, put a little invisible tape on the back underside of the frame and it’s almost as good as new. You could never tell by looking at it .. just have to be gentle when opening and closing. I can deal with that. Still unhappy with HP and CompUSA on this but at least I have a laptop I can travel with again.
January 24th, 2008 at 11:41 am
I also have a cracked hinge on my dv9000 which is about 7 months old. I have talked to hp they wont do anything infact they informed me that i broke it and they have not heard of this issue. Which is strange sinice pretty much everyone on this site has called them. has anyone taken hp to small claims court over this issue. if you have or know about how to go about will you please reply with some advice or how to do it.
Thanks for the help and good luck everyone
January 24th, 2008 at 4:34 pm
Purchased a DV9000 from Costco for my son to take to college. Just over a year old and the LCD panel began to fail intermittently; jiggling the hinge would usually bring it back. Costco doubles the manufacturers warranty (good to know!) so I sent it off for repair. Their repair vendor, Micro Medics, is claiming it was abused and sent back pictures of the broken left hinge. Your site was the first hit on Google.
January 25th, 2008 at 10:29 am
I have very important info regarding heat-related failures of the dv9000 series. Although mine is out of the warranty period, I’m getting it repaired for free. I also got HP to acknowledge the widespread problem and have proof of it. I’d be happy to share with the admin, but can’t figure out how to contact him….
January 27th, 2008 at 2:03 pm
The hinge on my dv9000ca gave up yesterday, just three days after the warranty expired!
I just called HP Support in Canada, and they were extremely helpful from the moment I said “left hinge”! Like with some other cases, I will be getting a prepaid shipping box and they quoted 7-9 business days for turnaround. Most importantly, there will be no charge for this service order.
Thanks to everyone else who softened up the support reps on this issue!!!
January 27th, 2008 at 4:13 pm
Any more details or hints on the repair? I’m thinking this is the way to go. I downloaded the HP DV9000 Maintenance & Service Guide and think I’ll give it a shot. Besides the hinge I think need a new bezel too, mine is cracked now.
Please post hints or picture links if you got them.
January 29th, 2008 at 2:52 pm
If you are having trouble getting HP to repair, here is the direct number to the case manager line: 1-877-917-4380 then you need to enter extension 94.
Also, remove your hard drives before you send in your computers. This is a hardware problem, no reason to risk loosing your data for this.
January 29th, 2008 at 5:54 pm
Hiya,
just wanted to say that I have exactly the same problem with my notebook. My boyfriend, who has the same model, has the problem too! We have always been very careful with our notebooks, so it’s definitely out fault… I am now sending my notebook for repair… Wish me luck
January 30th, 2008 at 6:38 pm
I called the number Joe (thanks for it!) gave yesterday - after Microcenter said my extended warranty didn’t cover it - and talked to case manager Nick today for 90 minutes.
He had not heard about hinge-failures before or this website, which I gave him.
Also, he checked on the following website to see if there was a settlement on this hinge problem:
http://www.hpnotebooksettlement.com/
Since there was nothing, I was asked to pay $100, a reduction from $298, to have it repaired. So I did.
I will get a prepaid shipping box, and turnaround of about a week.
No way I could get it for free. Very nice guy, but he wasn’t budging. He said the others who got free repair probably had contacted HP before expiration of warranty, on some similar matter.
Is this really correct? Where is the loophole that allows some case managers to enable a price of zero?
My laptop: The hinge itself is not broken, it seems, but the parts surrounding/connecting the left hinge have broken - so the plastic to the front has moved forward, kind of. I don’t dare close the lid, haven’t for two weeks - but I suppose I have to, if I am going to ship it.
February 1st, 2008 at 7:11 am
My wife’s computer (dv9207) was just less than a year old when the left hinge cracked. I checked the web, saw this site and suggested she contact HP. In the live chat the service tech was saying “send it in with $300…” I then picked up the chat and quoted this site, mentioned possible future law suits, and suggested he check with his supervisor.
When the chat continued it was a different story. I thought others might benefit from the conversation. The computer was gone less than a week and seems fine now. Also, we will likely buy the $150 extended warranty. Thank you for hosting this site.
Mark: You will be receiving a box from HP within Two Business days and you have to pack the Notebook in that box and return it to the FedEx person or can drop it at the nearest FedEx center.
Linda If you can send a 9500 chassis i will arange to have the files transferred and return the defective 9207
Linda: This computer is less than a year old and has been used carefully in a home enviroment
Mark: Unfortunately it is not possible.
Mark: The process will take 7-9 business days to complete, depends on the issue.
Linda: this will be at no charge, correct?
Mark: Yes, you are right. All expenses will be paid by HP.
Linda: Clearly there is a manufactuing defect in the 9000 series. How will this be corected?
Mark: You will be receiving a CSO number please save it for further use.
Mark: Be assured our onsite Technician will fix the issue.
Linda So if this happens again it will be repaired under warrenty?
Mark: Yes, you are right.
Mark: Your Notebook warranty will expire on 03/19/2008.
Linda: so if the repaired hinge breaks again on 03/20/08 I am out of luck?
Mark: Yes, you are right.
Mark: But I recommend you to purchase Post warranty plan.
Mark: Just to confirm are we still connected?
Linda: that does not seem like product support. An implied warranty is that the product is manufactured to work. When the design is faulty, Support soul be repacement or continous care
Mark: I understand your concern.
Linda: how much for post warrant plan
Linda: What does it cover?
Mark: Sure, I will let you know the details.
Mark: • Covers damage caused by spills, drops, falls, collisions, electrical surges or any other accident
• Repairs made within three business days
• Assistance with virus and spyware issues
• One years of award-winning service coverage
• 24 x 7 real-time chat and toll-free phone assistance
Linda: Cost?
Mark: It costs $149.99.
February 1st, 2008 at 11:54 am
Well, I just got off the phone with a rep who, after going on and on about the fact that I am 77 days out of warranty, eventually agreed to take care of the repairs for free. What he told me was that there hadn’t been any sort of “alert” issued for the DV9000 series (and DV6000?) laptops splitting at the hinge. As soon as such an alert is issued, this whole experience of getting these things fixed should be much easier.
I strongly encourage you all to call HP at the number listed above and tell them about this. Be kind and respectful and you will probably be happy with the result of your call.
The more people who call HP about this problem, especially if you let them know about this website, the sooner there will be an ‘alert’ issued allowing reps to immediately approve a free, post-warranty repair on broken hinges. This will help all of the less industrious folks out there who won’t necessarily find this site when their laptop hinge breaks.
February 5th, 2008 at 1:16 pm
I purchased my HP Pavillion DV9000 series notebook Feb 8, 2007. Just a week ago I realized it wasn’t closing and opening properly due to the very same hinge/splitting problems listed above on the left side of the casing.
I called HP yesterday and being from Canada it took some time and a couple of transfers to get my phone call to the right area, but once I finally was in the correct queue they were very helpful.
Bottom line is that right away they agreed to cover the repairs and shipping for free. I am waiting for the shipping box and prepaid sticker to arrive so that I can send it to HP. Estimated time for repair was 7-10 days once recieved at HP.
I agree with the previous post about being kind and respectful. So far I am satisfied… hopefully all goes well from here.
February 6th, 2008 at 8:10 pm
I had the same problem as everyone else. My computer was purchased in March 2007. I first contacted HP on 1/27/07 using the online chat through their website. The rep got the model # and serial # from me and informed me that they would ship a box for me to send the unit to HP. He told me that a technician would contact me to discuss costs for repairs if it was determined that the problem was from abuse. I received my empty shipping box from them on 1/30 and sent it out on 1/31. I received my computer back today (2/6). I had no problems at all. The rep claimed not to know about a problem with the hinges, but thee process went smoothly and I never actually spoke to anyone. I spent about 30 minutes on the initial chat to set everything up.
February 8th, 2008 at 6:08 am
I just talked to the hp service rep at the above number and she was great. They are sending a box today and will fix the hinge free of charge. They stated it is a known defect in manufacturing.
February 10th, 2008 at 6:16 pm
Great site. Thanks for a clear explanation.
I purchased my HP Pavilion DV9013CL notebook in Nov 2006 from Costco. I heard the infamous crack about 10 days ago. After a very frustrating chat session with HP, I took it into Best Buy and got a quote for $300+ and 3 weeks, if it was still under warranty–receipt required. So I went back to Costco (was told they will give you a receipt for anything you have ever purchased from them) and just on a lark checked in with their computer repair desk.
Great news–the tech said he’d repair it for free if I got him the parts. So now I’m googling/ebaying to try to find a back bezel, a display bezel and a left side LCD frame. Any suggestions?
February 11th, 2008 at 6:31 pm
Sorry to tell you all, but if they say there is no “alert” or official notice of the problem then you are being lied to!
There was infact an internal document circulated in late January identifying MANY heat-related issues w/ the dv9000 line. To quote my Case Manager “just about every problem a computer can have is on the list”.
I got my dv9233 which was 5 months out of warranty replaced with a 9700 configured to the same specs for FREE! Don’t settle for purchasing a warranty or paying $100 or anything less than FREE!
February 12th, 2008 at 10:11 am
thank you for the number, i will give them a call tonight.
have the same problem as all of us on here, on my dv9000.
February 12th, 2008 at 12:12 pm
Just had my dv9000 repaired for no wifi. HP replaced motherboard, lcd bezel, lcd cover, heatsink fan and hinge. All on warranty and turnaround in 4 days. My question is this: Have there been improvements in the heatsink fan NOT overheating the hinge and causing it to break or did they merely replace with new pieces that will last less than a year and require a $298.00 repair when warranty has expired?
February 12th, 2008 at 10:49 pm
Just contacted hp tech chat and asked if the fix for my hinge, bezel, etc. would last. Was it a repair with factory parts that would last less than a year or was it a true fix. The tech was evasive assuring me it would last and the problem was not a design snafu as has been identified on this forum. He would not commit to an hp fix so I have to assume my laptop is back to factory spec and as such will last less than a year before I experience the same problems. Not a reassuring thought.
February 13th, 2008 at 9:00 am
SUCCESS!!!
DV9005CA - left hinge malfunction, LCD frame broke, bezel broken. Lid doesn’t close anymore.
Laptop 15 months old, out of warranty (no extended warranty).
Called 1888HPINVENT - rude woman who insisted my laptop was 4 years old very reluctantly escalated my case. (The series was released Aug. 30, 2006… how can my laptop be 4 years old?!?!? Heck, the processor wasn’t even available before May 17, 2006) Received ticket number. *REMEMBER TO ASK FOR AND WRITE THIS DOWN*
Called the 1-877-917-4380 x94 above and gave the case manager my ticket number. THIS EXTENSION IS FOR U.S. CASE MANAGER. He gave me the extension for Canadian case managers x81.
Called 877 number again, used the right extension this time. Gave the woman my ticket number and explained the problem. She initially gave me the “you’re out of warranty” line. Once I further explained that I believe it is a design flaw due to the information I received on this website, and the number of other people who apparently have the same problem, she decided to have the repair done for free.
I’m going to be sending some $$ via PayPal to the site owner. If you get positive results and use this website, I encourage you all to do the same. Without this site, I would’ve had to buy a new laptop (it’s just not worth it to have the repair done on my own dime).
Thanks!
February 13th, 2008 at 11:16 am
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
I am convinced it was your website that not only gave me the calm resolution to work with the HP customer service people, but convinced his supervisor’s supervisor (I got India) to fix it free of charge. Had I not been armed with this information it would have been nearly impossible to accomplish. I did have to give them your website address and I think THAT made the difference.
I was still under warranty (for another 3 weeks), so I don’t know if that was a factor. But they did deny my request twice before agreeing to the free fix, originally claiming it was hardware damage and that is not covered under the warranty.
Because of this and other problems I am considering purchasing the extended warranty. Does anyone have an opinion on that? They claim it covers “accidental damage,” although we all know that is NOT what this is.
I am planning to purchase a chill pad because I am convinced it is the heat from the fan that dries out the plastic hinge. For $30 or so this sounds like something to try.
I will be sending you something thru Pay Pal for your efforts on all our behalf. Had it not been for you, I would be out PLENTY.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
I’ll post again when I get it back fixed. They quoted me 2 or 3 days to get the box and 6 to 7 working days once they receive it until I get it back.
February 13th, 2008 at 11:18 am
Just got off the phone with Case Manager. I called the number above (1-877-917-4380 extension 94). He was very helpful. My year was up last Nov. His words were, “oh that’s just out of warranty so no problem”. When I described the problem and mentioned that it is a known defect due to heat issues, he sounded like he was looking it up and then said, “ah there it is, hinge”. So it is a known problem.
He took all my information said they are shipping out the box and said there would be no charge.
He talked about what not to include, such as the battery and asked for any OS passwords. I told him I would be removing the HD because of proprietary information, he said that would be better yet. So you do not have to include the HD.
Told I should get the box in two days and it is scheduled for a 7-9 business day return from date they receive it.
Here’s hoping.
February 14th, 2008 at 12:34 pm
http://www.pchub.com/uph/model/0–6015-1/Pavilion-dv9000-Series-parts.html
found this site for parts, but Josh, how did you get urs repaired for free? e-mail me please at oo7blue@aol.com
February 14th, 2008 at 12:40 pm
Man, I am having the same f#%$ problem, I am so happy I found this website, I will call hp today and post the outcome tomorrow!!!
February 18th, 2008 at 8:58 pm
About three weeks out of warranty, my Pavilion dv9000 broke at the left hand hinge. Actually, what breaks is where the screws that pass through the hinge are anchored to the plastic cover. It wouldn’t have taken an engineer to see that this design wasn’t going to work and it’s obvious that no testing was done.
You have to be tough with customer support. Their response was that it was too bad that I hadn’t purchased their extended warranty. When I said “OK, just send me the parts and I will fix it myself”, they wanted $300 (just for a plastic cover???), and that was before I realized that opening and closing with this break flexes a flimsy piece of metal that anchors the LCD screen to the lid, so that it also breaks (and then every time you open and close, it twists and bends the screen). You have to demand to talk to each persons boss until you get some help. Eventually though, I was passed to a case worker and everything was fixed for free. The only problem is, that it was designed by a complete moron. Now I know that if I open and close it too much, it’s just going to break again. Other than that, I really like this computer, but for $1,800 I don’t think it’s too much to expect the lid to work for more than a year. I use it mostly at home and it doesn’t get opened and closed much anyway. Real bad. I will warn everyone not to buy an HP. Too bad I didn’t know before I bought mine!!!
February 20th, 2008 at 8:37 am
UPDATE Re: Cracked Hinge
Called HP in Canada: Mon Feb 4, 2008
Rec’d Empty/Prepaid Shipping Box: Wed Feb 6, 2008
Shipped defective HP Pavillion Notebook: Wed Feb 13, 2008
Rec’d fixed HP Pavillion Notebook: Tues Feb 19, 2008
I am completely impressed with the service I have recieved from HP. I find it incredible that I was only without my notebook for 4 business days and it did not cost me a cent!
February 20th, 2008 at 2:05 pm
I just wanted to say thank you for setting up this website. Here is my story;
I purchased a DV9000 in December 2006, and like many others here have the same problem with my left hinge cracking. Yesterday (2/19) I contacted HP through their website and chatted with a nice Indian woman who offered to fix my computer for, you guessed it, $298. I said that was unacceptable, and she forwarded my info to a case manager. He called me this morning, less than 24 hours later, and after telling him what happened, they are shipping me the empty box today and will repair for free!
Like some of the other recent comments, I’m very impressed that HP responded quickly to my request and clearly has acknowledged that there is a problem. If you’re having issues, I suggest you follow the same procedure I did, I even kept this site open and used one of the chats someone typed in the comments as a reference.
February 20th, 2008 at 6:22 pm
I have a dv9005us purchsed 12/06, out of warrenty.
I also have the same problems as described on this forum. Left hinge crack near security hole.
I have talked to hp and they said they could not repair it since it was out of warranty. want to charge me $298.
They have fowarded this case to the case manager who says they will call…
Anyone else having a problem with laptops that are out of warranty?
Has the casemanager been able to waive the service charge? I don’t think it’s fair especially if it’s a design flaw.
February 21st, 2008 at 7:39 pm
Well, just wanted to report in. Thanks to this website and the wonderful people who left informational comments on it, my dv9000 notebook is scheduled to be fixed **FREE** of charge. It was purchased in early Feb 2007, and the left hinge cracked at the end of January 2008.
However, I didn’t call into support until just a few days ago. I was initially told that since I didn’t call in until after the warranty had expired (by 11 days), it wouldn’t be covered. After coming to this website, I found the 877-917-4380 ext 94 case managers’ phone number in the comments, and after speaking to one of them, I’ve gotten the notebook scheduled to be fixed free of charge.
Persistence pays off, especially when websites like this one provide you with the knowledge of how to get results!
February 27th, 2008 at 2:10 pm
Following up to an earlier post. I ended up contacting HP and had to pay $321 because Best Buy did not want to cover under the warranty. In talking with HP, they did not want to go lower than the $321 even when mentioning the website. I filed a Better Business Bureau complaint and mentioned this website on the issue and the fact that I brought my warranty at Best Buy in 2006 and they could not find it. As a settlement, Best Buy is reimbursing me for the $321 that I paid to HP and they are also mailing me a $75 gift card.
February 29th, 2008 at 7:26 am
Just got off the phone with Dave Hodges at HP (1-877-917-4380 extension 94) who was VERY helpful. We were 5 days out of warranty, but we gave him the ticket number of the live chat, explained the problem, and he’s sending a box fed ex for free repair. I did mention this site and the problem that others seem to also be experiencing, and he said that while he doesn’t see a lot of hinge problems being reported, that he acknowleges that this does sound like a manufacturing problem and that HP will cover it. He did not know if this will be a replacement of like parts and thus we should expect another failure at 1 year or not, or if they have new parts which should not suffer the same defect again. In any event, it’s going to be repaired and Dave was very nice, understood the problem, realized this was not abuse on my wifes part, and we should be getting it repaired over her spring break. Thanks for the info on the website!
February 29th, 2008 at 8:43 am
SUCESS!!
I too had the infamous hinge crack shortly after out of warrenty. Did nothing about about it, until I happened on this website.
Started process on 2/25 with email. Returned email on 2/26 informed me that it was being sent to case manager who would contact me with in 2 days. Missed the call back on 2/28, called the case manager line that Joe (#12 above gave 1-877-917-4380 x94).
Gave case manager (Jean Mourre) my Ticket#. Telling me that they will send box and repair (joking asked if I wanted to pay $895 to fix it) for free. She was very personable and gave great service. She did say the Hp is NOT admitting to a design flaw but is telling all to bring them back in to fix. Also asked how long the “fix” would be guaranteed? - said 90 days. As far as any longer she said “Who knows”
If some one tells me how to send the admin of this site, a paypal donation for setting this web site up I wll do so as soon as I get my laptop back.
March 5th, 2008 at 9:34 pm
Here is my update to post #32.
HP overnighted me an empty box on 2/21, I mailed it out to them on the 27th, the received it on the 28th and mailed it back to my on the 29th! As an added bonus the did not reformat my hard drive either! Thanks again for setting up this site, if you are having any issues I suggest you call the case manager number posted on this site, my laptop was a month out of warranty but they covered the repairs as if it were under warranty!
March 6th, 2008 at 1:26 pm
I Just got of the phone with Mikhail from the Case Manager Line (877 917 4380 ext 94) and luckily for me he was a pleasure to deal with. I think these folks are aware of the problem over there with the dv 9000’s. When i called i explained that my machine was outsided the manufactures warrenty, but still had a third party issued by Comp USA but they would not cover the problem. I then mentioned that i found this website and that it documents hundreds upon hundreds of other cases involving the same exact problem with the same exact model notebook. I gave him this web address, and he looked into it, and then immediatly saw the validity of my claim.
So, long story short, call the number, kindly explain the issue and mention this website.
Good luck to all, hopefully HP turns out to be a good company and not screw the “little guy” and absorb this defect that is clearly a flaw on they’re part.
p.s
Many thanks to the individual that started this site, and post, without it i would still be sitting here with a broken machine. I have made a small donation via paypal, and encourage everybody else who benifits from the information on this site to do the same.
Regards,
Alexander
March 6th, 2008 at 9:02 pm
Ah…so nice to find this website. Bought Pavillion dv9000 9/2007 for student PC and the left hinge popped tonight and split open the side of the display case. Bad Spring Break timing. Called HP tech support and they said not under warranty and if I sent in the machine all the data on the drive would be lost. That just won’t be happening.
Will follow up with them on the call back in “2 days.”
I’m with Marge…paypal donation not a bad idea.
Thanks!
March 7th, 2008 at 6:07 am
update on #37 from above
called HP on 2/29 - sent out shipping box that day, received shipping box on 3/3 (week end no FedEx delivery) Packed up computer (no hard drive) and shipped same day. Received REPAIRED FREE computer on 3/6.
Hinge seems a little stiff, but it’s been so long since I opened and closed it. When closed and latched, seems to be a slight opening between top and bottom, but it is secured.
I have sent a donation to this site because without them I would have a very angry husband blaming me for dropping (I of course did not) have a broken computer.
Thanks again
March 10th, 2008 at 10:44 am
Update: Had dv9000 repaired for no wifi on warranty. Hp also did bezel, hinge, heatsink fan and motherboard. Customer service called as follow-up (trying to sell extended warranty) but my question was how long will the “fix” last? She assured me that with the new motherboard and heatsink fan, there would be no overheating problems of the left hinge now. Apparently the motherboard and new fan have design changes that eliminate the overheating problem. Not a tech so am accepting what she told me. Gullible….maybe, but happy for now nonetheless.
PS Did not buy her extended warranty offer.
March 10th, 2008 at 11:04 am
Contacted HP over the weekend… Spoke with 3 Online Chat Technicians and 2 Technicians over the phone. Not surprisingly, the phone technicians were very helpful and seemingly empathetic to my frustrations. They were both very apologetic that they could not personally arrange for a free mail-in repair of my hinge crack. One lady that I spoke with told me to e-mail the CEO and I did. Additionally, I e-mailed the Board of Directors and I’m still waiting to hear back from them.
The e-mails were sent out on Saturday night.
I’ll keep everyone posted as to what feedback (if any) I receive regarding my correspondence with HP.
-Abby
March 10th, 2008 at 11:10 am
P.S. If you’re looking to submit your own correspondence to HP, the links that I used are listed below:
To e-mail HP CEO Mark Hurd, http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/execteam/email/hurd/index.html
To e-mail the HP Board of Directors, send your message to bod@hp.com
March 10th, 2008 at 11:12 am
P.S. If you’re looking to submit your own correspondence to HP, the links that I used are listed below:
To e-mail HP CEO Mark Hurd, go to
http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/execteam/email/hurd/index.html
To e-mail the HP Board of Directors, send your message to bod@hp.com
March 11th, 2008 at 11:56 am
HP dv6000 lcd screen broke without any reason. I saw my daughter using it and she closed it up. The following day wen to use it and the screen was broken. The break goes directly to the left hinge. It is obvious it is either a design problem or a installation problem. Hp refuses to fix it and wants to charge more than I paid for the computer. Walmart refuses to accept it as a return as it was bought as a Christmas present at Thanksgiving. That is 15 days past their return policy. I guess my only option is to sue them.
March 15th, 2008 at 8:18 pm
I reported my broken LCD frame to HP and after explaining that this appeared to be a widespread problem after researching on the internet they turned me over to supervisor and then a case manager. He decided that even tho’ my Laptop was 100 days out of warranty they would fix it anyway. HP overnighted me a carton and I had my computer back in 1 week
Thanks to this site for your help.
March 16th, 2008 at 2:28 pm
I returned my HP 9207us for the hinge repair. Received it back in 8 days…I had carefully removed the Hard Drive (okay by the HP Chat rep) so I would not have it reimaged. I now find I cannot connect via wireless or ethernet port. I get a message “Cannot start HP Connections: sockets init failed” I’m thinking they may have done a new bios flash which isn’t compatible? Back to HP Service to hopefully get a solution…If anyone has an idea on what the problem might be, it would be very much appreciated! Thought I was back in business :0(
March 19th, 2008 at 2:57 pm
Hi,
sort of going against the grain with this post, but doing it to say that there is hope!
I am very suprised to see all of these outcomes, listen to my HP experiance.
I bought a refurb older style dv8000 from eritech hmm I guess it was April 2006. One day I awoke to it sitting in a puddle of water. Sherlock himself would have been stumped, as to how this happened, to this day I swear someone broke in a murdered my lappy. As an assumed exerciese in futility I RMAd it. When contacted by repair department about the moisture all I said was “I don’t know how this could have happened” and the rep assumed I meant damaged in shipping (or at least I guess, was too happy to inquire) and said it would be repaired and sent out. A little shadey on my part I know, but I did not lie, just didn’t stop him from ripping off HP for me. Now 30 days went by, and I’m a fairly huge nerd so I called every 4 or 5 days to check on the status of the repair. Apparently they couldn’t get a keyboard in to fix my old model, so around 20 days a lowbie no power rep said “I’m not suppose to say this, but after 30 days something special will happen and you will be happy” Sure enough I phoned 31 days after they recieved the book and sounding only 1/8th of my anger range, I complained about the time and mentioned what the other rep had told me. The next day a CM called and told me a dv9060us was on its way (from 900$ refurb to at the time I believe $2300 (canadian) ) …. I was exstatic. A+++++++ HP for making the customer happy (even if he doesn’t deserve it lol)
Now, the relevance. My left hinge did break, and i babied it for as long as possible until the screen would no long stand up for to use the computer and had it RMAed with a month to go on warrenty. This is my only unhappieness with HP… — > I told them my phone is VOIP (no laptop no calling me) and I would rarely even get to check my email, so i was VERY VERY VERY clear that they note that this is a common issue, and that it was NOT dropped or smacked (no scratches just hinge defect to prove) don’t think the indian fella (sorry to generalize but I can’t tell accents) understood because one month later after I enquired I was told they had been phoning and phoning and sure enough i check my email and they want 750$ to replace LCD.. I went berserk when the next day ironically the thing came back more damaged than it left as the LCD was indeed cracked (couldn’t see one but thats what the repair order later said, it didn’t work anyways)… So I called back, knowing the procedure I more or less gave the old case manager NOW!!! and I got to contact through email so I could plan my verbal strategic attack.
After a little non personalized dissappointment, followed by empathy conjuring followed by flattery in a lenghtly email I was told it would be fixed as fast as humanly possible, and I would be sent 300$ hp bucks to use as a rebate (i haven’t used them yet but i expect to see the money 2 years after when I do, better than nothing however).
I guess my point is that their system with the low people kind of sucks, but it has to so they don’t lose massive amounts of money fixing peoples stuff for free that they damaged themselves (lol, muahaha) But if you’re professionally angered and dissappointed, but still very nice and polite to the CM they have the power to do whatever they want so keep that in mind.
I will be an HP customer for life based on my experiance here, because I bet the one frustration I had would have equated to about 9 of the same with dell or whatever the equiv.
Any questions u have or if i can help you get your baby fixed with advice i have an old email that I sometimes skim through, it takes spam for me so I may miss your mail sorry but o nly way I can put it out here 20past4 ayte gmail complex
March 19th, 2008 at 3:00 pm
ADMIN, THANK YOU FOR DOING THIS SITE
PLEASE i forgot could you delete this post and add to my last huge one that if poeple have a LOUD buzzing noise coming from CPU due to throttling for the intel 9000s I know at least there is bios update to add an option that allows you to disable “CPU C4″ this takes care of that buzzing.
Thanks again, good luck being laptopless sucks, I feel you pain
March 22nd, 2008 at 6:45 am
SUCCESS!!!!
another success story here. i just rec’d my notebook back. i wouldn’t have pursued HP to fix my cracked hinges for free if it weren’t for this website, so thank you to the admin and everyone else who posted their success stories.
my laptop was 8 months out of warranty but i was still able to get it fixed free of charge. i contacted HP on 3/11 and rec’d my notebook back fixed yesterday 3/21. here is how:
1st - contact hp through the online chat service. in the first exchange between me and the online rep i explained the whole problem with the hinges, that i was out of warranty, and that i wanted the notebook fixed free of charge.
the rep will of course say they can’t do this but they will escalate the situation and someone will call you back in 48 hours. if the rep does not offer this solution to you just close the window and try again. they will take your contact information.
the important part is to ASK for a ticket number. i had a couple of reps not give me a ticket number and during the next step i was unsuccessful. once you get your ticket number from the online chat continue to next step.
2nd - do NOT wait for a call back. as soon as you get the ticket number call 877 917 4380 ext 94. you will get a case manager on the phone. give them your ticket number and a brief explanation of what the problem is. at this point i was offered a chance to buy the extended 2 year warranty and then they would fix my problem free of charge. i refused this option. i was then placed on hold. the case manager came back and told me because of my type of situation (read: hinge crack) they would fix it for free. they take your information and thats it. you will get email updates for package tracking and all that. i was without my computer for a total of 7 days.
remove your battery and hard drive before sending the notebook out to HP. the case manager actually told me that the technicians have the tendency to delete data of of hard drives.
if you would like to contact me, kennedy.james.m@gmail.com
thanks again to this site and everyone who commented.
March 22nd, 2008 at 8:03 pm
The point of a class-action suit isn’t so much to fully compensate each individual plaintiff as it is to punish the defendant. Not all of the people with HP problems is going to file an individual lawsuit … the vast majority, in fact, will not. And because most people won’t, HP’s litigation costs and penalties will be very low.
But a class-action suit has the potential for forcing HP to cough up millions of dollars–maybe not enough to make it up to every individual plaintiff, but enough to force HP to stop designing such obviously flawed computers.
Also, in every class-action suit, the individuals affected have the choice to opt-out of any settlement and retain the right to sue individually. I’m not saying this to suggest that I think a class-action is a good idea but just to counter the distinct “Lawyers suck! And are greedy!” vibe I got from the class-action post.
Do lawyers take a huge chunk of money in a settlement? Yep, they sure do. But they take it because they’re generally working on a contigent fee basis - they get paid a lot because, in class-action suits, they take a very big risk of not getting paid anything.
March 28th, 2008 at 3:26 am
I’m in UK.
Any luck for me with this? I’ve been awaiting a callback since last week!!
thanks guys!
April 2nd, 2008 at 2:28 pm
Yea……. Thanks for this site - probably one of the most useful out there for actually getting something repaired!
I followed the recommendations to get a ticket # from tech support and then immediately called the case manager line (877 917 4380 ext 94) and got approved for the free repair - the most worthwhile and painless (no yelling or raising of the voice) 30 minute telephone wait I’ve had to endure. Otherwise, it would’ve cost $300 through the tech support guy to repair if I hadn’t found this site. I’ll report back on how well hp fixed the hinge.
Besides this problem, know of any other good tips…
April 7th, 2008 at 2:13 pm
I’m not sure if this is related to the hinge crack problem, but HP sent me an e-mail admitting there is problems with most of their DV series notebooks. Check out the link for more info: http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/genericDocument?lc=en&cc=ca&dlc=en&docname=c01087277
April 13th, 2008 at 10:08 pm
I purchased my dv9260nr about this time last year at best buy. I have the same Problem, defective hinge. This computer has sat on a desk, and has been opened and close roughly 1 time a day. Hardly been on road trips. There have been times when i did notice it starting to heat up a fair amount a couple of months ago, then I read about this problem then so I purchased some canned air and sprayed out the fan. Haven’t notice the heat issues since, but now I am left with a broken hinge. So I will be off to trying to get this issue resolved.
1. Has HP come up with a pernament resolution for this issue?
2. Has HP redesinged the hinge or heat sink to resolve this issue, so that I and other consumers don’t have a hibitual problem every year of having a broken hinge and sending in there notebook?
April 18th, 2008 at 4:52 pm
well i called the phone number with the xt94 like everyone has been calling for the case manager and the case manager kenneth w. told me no, no, no, no, no so many freaking times it was ridiculos. he basically told me my serial number was not one of the ones that was when the problem was apparent and mine is one of the ones that was supposedly build with the so called “fix”. if anyone cann help me i would be appreciate it very much. aespeedy47 at yahoo dot com.
April 22nd, 2008 at 6:00 am
Adam, what model do you have?
Don’t give up on getting your lemon computer fixed for free. It has taken HP this long to get this far in fixing their lemon computers. As we all come together sharing information, HP is forced to admit that they have a problem.
Also HP is guilty of editing and erasing posts on their forums, to cover up information.
Wayne Sallee
Wayne@WayneSallee.com
April 29th, 2008 at 9:20 pm
I bought a HP Pavilion dv9008nr in January of 2007. I have the same hinge issue, however, mine has not broke yet. I have emailed HP, I have put this issue HP support forum as well. I have also called HP regarding this issue, but they told me that I would have to pay $298 to get it fixed. I think HP needs to own up to it’s responsibility!
May 6th, 2008 at 4:05 pm
I bought HP Pavilion Notebook dv2000t in SEPT-2007 and also bought 1 year Accidental Damage Repair Plan with it and paid $109.00 extra on it. Figure seems very low there but think when thousands of consumers pay for it. They advertised their warranty plan as “Target day for repairs 3-5 bussiness days”. My laptop stopped working on 22-April-2007. I called HP total care and shipped it to them. HP repair center received it on 25-April-2008. And they give me expected delivery date 5-May-2008 which was ok. on 5th may when i did not receive my laptop i called customer service no one tells me when i will get my laptop back. i called HP complaint numbers they assigned me Case Manager. i talked to her and she said Target day is not the actual day and i will get my laptop on 19th may. Thats almost a month. i went online and saw some similar cases where they repair and return laptop almost 1 month-2 month to most of the consumers. There are many complaints against it but no one has taken actions against it so we can have some better business services. i know its not been 2 months for me but can someone stop it and get me my laptop in time or at least HP stays on their words as they advertise. if i knew they take 2 months for almost 60% consumers i will always go for Dell laptops. This is just cheating to US consumers. No wonder HP cheats all around the world.
May 10th, 2008 at 2:16 pm
I contacted HP regarding my 9207 broken left hinge. They responded right away, sent a shipping box. They returned the repaired and cleaned notebook within a short period of time. I am very pleased with HP response to this problem.
Not only did they resolved the issue promptly, but they ere very professional about it as well.
I still am loath to use Vista and I resent the fact that the manufactures refuse to support their [ no so ] old products on a Vista platform; esp. scanners and etc.
May 12th, 2008 at 11:50 am
So I was shocked to see that there was an epidemic regarding the same hinge problem I have been facing since buying my Pavillion dv9000 in October 2006. At that time HP was attentive, and fixed the problem. Two weeks ago the same thing happened to the point of parts of the hinge breaking off (just by opening the laptop) and I went to Circuit City where I bought it and they washed their hands of it. Keep in mind I specifically paid $390 for an extended warranty (the laptop was $1300) and they told me that all I did was extend the LIMITED WARRANTY for 4 years even though on the day I purchased it in October 2006 they assured me it would cover EVERYTHING. So Circuity City labeled this damage as accidental claiming I must have dropped it and said they wouldnt cover it. I called their corporate headquarters and they said they had heard of a problem with these laptops and HP would surely fix it again.
After being routed to India a very rude customer service professional refused to do anything for me, told me that he was tired of getting calls putting blame on HP products and if I wanted it fixed it would cost $298 and take 3-4 weeks. When I asked to speak with a supervisor he told me no one would be able to help me further. When I told him that was unacceptable he actually hung up on me ( I called from my office with the speaker phone on and a colleague was witness to this).
I AM SO OUTRAGED. Now that I know this has affected thousands of Americans, and presumably international consumers I am going to go after them. I am based out of San Diego and we have a local news guy that goes after companies for things like this. If any of you would like to contact me with similar issues please email me at acsfromsd@hotmail.com
May 25th, 2008 at 8:30 pm
please download ” CoreTemp ” from the link below to measure your pc’s core temperature.
http://alcpu.com/CoreTemp/
the normal temp should be under 60-65 which is normal.
abnormal core temperature will hurt your system and short computer’s longevity.
the DV9000 series not follow the industrial standard, therefore, HP should be responsible on dv9000 issues lifetime.
I also have heat problem, but fortunately, it is not cracked untill now. I am pretty sure, sooner or later, this machine will die due to the heat issue because the hinge area and touch pad extremely hot with temperature up to 80.
call HP for compensations.
May 27th, 2008 at 7:56 pm
I bought my dv9000 laptop from Comp USA with an extended platinum warranty of 2 years in Oct 2006 which cost me an extra 300-400 dollars. They told me in so many words that I could basically kick in the screen and if they couldn’t fix the problem no matter what they would replace it for free with this warranty. Well within 4 months of buying it 2 major operating problems occurred where I couldn’t even start my computer and they did fix it after I had brought it in even though it took them 3 times longer than quoted. It’s now end of May of 2008 and I am having the same hinge problem where the left side has completely came apart and i can see the complete inside parts of the screen. My worry is that there will be further damage if I continue to use it not to mention it looks horrible and I can’t close it so it’s impossible for me to travel with it. So comp USA closed down all its stores and the company who bought them out cant find my warranty information. Also HP when I called them says there is a recall on my laptop but only for hard drive and wireless malfunctions. They say any cosmetic problems will not be honored by the recall and that it would cost me 300$-400$ to fix! So I’m really pissed about this. What should I do please help.
June 2nd, 2008 at 4:23 am
This website is awesome, and absolutely some hillarious and helpful info on my exact problem. My biggest mistake was going to hp.com first, and not doing a search on the web first. I am having the hinge problem and here is a copy of my text verbatim with the online chat idiot below. This exchange, although seemingly inefectual and stupid took about 1 hour. I then found your website dude, and think you ROCK!!! I am going to record my conversation with whatever goof ball manager calls me withing the next 48 hours, and I’ll comeback and post reults… Thanks for the time, and I’ll get you to help me file the suit after I give them a chance to call me…… Here’s the text from tech support - 06-01-08 starting at around 4:45am until around 6am….:::
incenzo: How are you doing today?
Chuck Gautier: fine, thanks. Laptop hinge on side where lock is (left) is causing problems.
Vincenzo: I will assist you in this issue.
Vincenzo: To better assist you, Could you please provide me the Serial Number (eg: CNS34915MC) and Product Number (eg:DS542U) of your Notebook? You may find that on a sticker attached to the underside of the Notebook.
Chuck Gautier: dv9005 Pavillion
Chuck Gautier: standby for serial…
Chuck Gautier: cnf6381qkf
Vincenzo: Thank you for confirming the information.
Vincenzo: May I have few minitues of your time while I get the information for you?
Chuck Gautier: oops…cnf638QYK
Vincenzo: Okay.
Chuck Gautier: CNF6381QY.. sorry again…
Vincenzo: No need to worry.
Chuck Gautier: Aaah! CNF6381QYK….okay…
Chuck Gautier: get that last one?
Vincenzo: I am with you.
Vincenzo: Chuck, I have checked the warranty details of the Notebook, I am afaraid to say that the Notebook is out of warranty.
Vincenzo: So to isolate the issue you need to send the Notebook for paid mail in repair service
Chuck Gautier: Yes, I know…I am looking online for info on what is wrong.
Vincenzo: It will cost for you:$298.
Vincenzo: I can understand the situation.
Chuck Gautier: Is there not anything online I can find that explains why the lock/hinge is malfunctioning?
Vincenzo: Chuck, in this issue there are two options with us.
Vincenzo: The first thing is sending the Notebook for paid mail in repair service.
Vincenzo: The second thing is case is escalated to the case managter.
Vincenzo: Manager*.
Vincenzo: Sorry for the typo.
Vincenzo: Let me know that id you want to tald with the case manager regarding the issue I am glad to arrange the call.
Vincenzo: Shal I?
Vincenzo: Are we connected?
Chuck Gautier: The problem is not serious enough to send in.. I just can’t find any info- I suppose yes, please allow me to speak with manager.
Vincenzo: Okay.
Chuck Gautier: Thanks, Vincenzo…
Vincenzo: I am glad to arrange the call
Chuck Gautier: Will this be a chat online, or a phone conversation?
Vincenzo: As this is the chat suopport.
Vincenzo: We cannot arrange instant calls.
Chuck Gautier: yes, thanks, standing by…
Vincenzo: Please provide me the information mentioned above./’
Chuck Gautier: Which info above?
Vincenzo: Please provide the following shipping information:
* Name:
* Organization:
* Mailing Address (No P.O. Boxes):
* Apartment/Building/Mailstop:
* City:
* State/Province:
* Zip/Postal Code:
* Country:
* Phone Number (including area code):
Chuck Gautier: Vincenzo, I am not shipping this laptop. I thought you were going to let me chat with manager?
Chuck Gautier: * Name: Chuck Gautier
* Organization:
* Mailing Address (No P.O. Boxes): xxx Pinewood Lane
* Apartment/Building/Mailstop:
* City: Ridgeland
* State/Province:MS
* Zip/Postal Code: 39157
* Country: USA
* Phone Number (including area code):601-xxx-xxx
Vincenzo: .
Vincenzo: Sorry for the delay in response.
Vincenzo: Are we connected?
Chuck Gautier: I am here.
Vincenzo: You will recive the call with in 48 hours.
Chuck Gautier: thanks.
Chuck Gautier: signing off.
June 2nd, 2008 at 7:01 am
I just contacted HP through the online chat service and was prepared to have a long ugly ordeal but was pleasantly surprised with a wonderful customer service rep “Vaughn” who told me HP is doing something called a “One Time Enhancement Service” which covers my problem (horrible left hinge crack going through the screen casing) free of charge. He immediately said they are aware of this issue, and there are a few select models covered under this service (mine, dv9310us, is one of them.) He told me turn around time is 7-9 days so hopefully it won’t take too long either! They’re sending a shipping box to me so this repair will be completely free of charge. I was going to have my husband do the hingefix.com repair but I’m so glad I tried HP first. Hopefully the remainder of this process will go smoothly as well. I wish everyone luck, I know many people are struggling with this but it’s a good sign that HP now has a “program” to deal with it!
June 3rd, 2008 at 9:17 am
Calling the 8779174380-94 number with out going through the hp invent number for out of warenty repairs hit a brick wall for me they refered me to the front line folks.
doc
June 7th, 2008 at 10:13 pm
Hi
Im just wondering if anyone has tried publicising this through computer magazines that sometimes take up issues like this?
I though some humorous sarcastic letters to hundreds of magazines might provoke more response than legal action as bad publicity is sometimes worth more than a few $.
I note the ‘program’ that Amy above says they now have and I will report back if they confirm or deny its existance to me.
I have 2 dv9000 machines that both watied till the 13th month to show the fault
Thanks for the website.
Dan V
June 19th, 2008 at 10:53 am
Unfortunately my zv6000 was denied free out-of-warrany repair.
I guess I opened the lid too many times… Next laptop will NOT be an HP!
-chris
June 24th, 2008 at 9:37 pm
Here we go…
Well, this is my first post here. A few months ago my Wireless card took a crap. I suprised to see that this common problem was not mentioned more here. I did my research and found that after trying the BIOS upgrade, my machine needs the “send it in and we’ll fix it at no charge” repair. Fast forward to a few days ago, and I come home to the computer (that was sitting on my desk, running all day downloading a Torrent, and the dreaded left hinge crack appeared. I first blamed my room mate untill I realized that the plastic falling from inside was extremely brittle, then I found this page. (Big props on the info here guys, I’ll be sending some $$ too when this is all over). I called the 877 number from above and spoke to a gentleman with a strong Indian accent who is sending me packaging via FedEx to send it in for the Wireless repair. I expressed my concern for the hinge and he told me that it would not be able to be given to me for free at this point, but the Technician repairing the Wireless would call me and that my conversation was noted for them to call. So, the box sould be here tomorrow, and I’ll be awaiting a call which I expect to either 1: go smoothly and they’ll say it’s common and free or 2: I’ll have to work my way through case managers untill it is free just as everyone else is getting. My only concern is that I’m about 3 months outside warranty. I’ll keep you posted…
Thank you,
Snowman
June 25th, 2008 at 9:11 am
Thank you for this site! My laptop was about 1 1/2 years old when the hinge cracked. I had purchased it from Costco, which gave me an “extended warranty” of an extra year. Since it was not malfunctioning, I waited a few weeks to send it in. In the meantime, one day it shut down on it’s own and would not turn back on no matter what I tried. Sent it in to Costco - through MicroMedics - and just received it back. Hinge it repaired and it turns on, but still has lots of issues. I am sending it back to Micro Medics today. In addition to my disappointment with the HP hinge issue, I was also extremely disappointed to learn that Costco’s “extended warranty” did not extend the warranty with HP as it implies, but meant that my repairs would be done through Micro Medics instead. I will complain formally to Costco as I feel that this is very deceptive. Has anyone else dealt with this “extended warranty” issue with Costco? If you have please email me at volpe6561@embarqmail.com. Thanks
June 25th, 2008 at 10:39 am
Hey Chuck, did you ever get your phone call?
My problems besides the obvious hinge issue are:
HP techs don’t listen.
HP techs (most of them) do not have fluent English speaking skills.
HP techs are not enabled to solve these problems.
Here is my chat text as well:
Adonis: Hello Jay.
Adonis: Welcome to HP Total Care. My name is Adonis. How may I assist you today?
Jay Noggle: I need to find where I can get a set of replacement hinges for my laptop?
Jay Noggle: they no longer hold up the screen properly
Adonis: I will be glad to assist you with this.
Jay Noggle: great
Adonis: I understand that the Notebook hinges are broken,am I right?
Jay Noggle: correct
Adonis: Thank you for confirming.
Adonis: I will help you with this.
Jay Noggle: the laptop functions fine but the screen no longer has any support to stay up
Jay Noggle: I checked with a local repair shop today that said they could replace them if i order them
Adonis: May I have the Serial Number(eg: CNS34915MC) and Product Number (eg:DS542U) of the Notebook? You can find the Serial Number and Product Number of the Notebook by locating on a sticker attached to the top or back of the Notebook.
Jay Noggle: ZV6130us
Jay Noggle: one moment on the serial
Jay Noggle: CND5330G7H
Adonis: Please provide the product number of the Notebook.
Adonis: This will be of seven digits.
Adonis: like xxxxxxx#xxx
Jay Noggle: EC356UA#ABA
Adonis: Thank you for the information provided.
Adonis: Jay, I regret to inform that the Notebook is not covered under warranty and so I cannot arrange a free mailin repair for your Notebook.
Adonis: However, I can arrange a paid mailin repair for your Notebook.
Jay Noggle: correct.
Adonis: Shall I provide the details?
Jay Noggle: no!
Jay Noggle: not mail in
Jay Noggle: I need the part only!!!!
Jay Noggle: can you provide that info?
Adonis: Jay, I recommended the mailin service as the hinges are not avaialable to replace, you need to send the Notebook for mailin so that we will replace them.
Jay Noggle: no way, not an option, I need to speek to a supervisor
Jay Noggle: are you there?
Adonis: Yes, I am with you.
Jay Noggle: I need to speak to a supervisor
Adonis: Please give me two minutes, I am checking the part number for HInges.
Jay Noggle: much better
Adonis: Yes, I am with you.
Adonis: I was checking the information for you.
Adonis: Jay, I have contacted my supervisor and as there is no known issue of hinges with your notebook model, and notebook is out of warranty, notebook repair will be charged.
Jay Noggle: I NEED A PART NUMBER PLEASE!!!!
Adonis: Let me check that for you.
Adonis: Please stay with me for 2 minutes.
Adonis: Thank you for your time and patience.
Adonis: Jay, I have checked and I regret to inform that for your notebook, hinges do not have specific part # assigned by HP. However, I can provide a link from where you can purchase notebook hinges and also I will provide manual that should be helpful for your reference in replacing hinges.
Adonis: Here is the link to download your notebook manual:
Adonis: http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c00364919.pdf
Adonis: Please copy the entire URL and paste it in a new window of Internet Explorer. Then open the link from there.
Adonis: Please refer to page # 123 of 221
Adonis: And here is the link from where you can purchase hinges:
Adonis: http://cgi.ebay.com/HP-Pavilion-ZV5000-ZV6000-laptop-LCD-widescreen-hinges_W0QQitemZ200232630139QQihZ010QQcategoryZ31569QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
Adonis: NOTE: The weblink(s) above will take you to a non-HP Website(s). HP does not control and is not responsible for information outside of the HP Website.
Jay Noggle: I have that already
Jay Noggle: thank you
Adonis: You are welcome.
Jay Noggle: good by
Adonis: In case you are uncomfortable replacing hinges, I suggest you send notebook to HP or contact local service center.
Adonis: Is there anything else I can assist you with today?
Jay Noggle: no
Agents are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Please dial 800-474-6836 (800-HPINVENT).
June 25th, 2008 at 4:39 pm
I have a dv9013 HP laptop I purchased at Costco in 01/2007. I did use it frequently for about 5 months as I was moving and my desktop was in storage. In June of 2007 I attempted to use it and there was no current supplied via the ac adapter so it was useless. It was within warranty so HP sent me a FedEx box and promptly fixed it. Thereafter, I used it from time to time, but most of the time it was unused on a desk in an upstairs room. In June 2008 I retrieved it to get some info from a file and there was nothing appearing on the LCD monitor when the unit was turned on. All the lights relating to the DVD option were lit, but nothing on the screen- it was totally black. I called HP and the lady rep advised me it was out of warranty and to fix it would be $350 for the hard drive–$400 if they fixed it at HP. I told her that it had been fixed once before and they obviously did not not do a thorough job as it was still defective. She responded with a “too bad but not within warranty.” She offered me alternatives: a new computer at $600 saying that it would be custom built and better than those sold at Costco as they (Costco HP’s) were not on a par with the made-to-order types. I have a 17″ screen on my broken one and advised her I liked the big screen. The second option she was offering was a bigger version having a 17″ screen which would be about $900. I said I would have to think and she said she would have someone call the following Monday. (They never did.) I asked her if she received a commission on the computer(s) she offered me if I were to buy she and said she did not. In the overall scheme of things, I have not used the computer a lot. That may be the reason my left hinge hasn’t split. I was not happy with HP but didn’t know where to turn. I decided to look on the web to see if there were some sites that might explain why I did not have a lit screen. I thus came upon “Notebook hinge crack” website. Most of the comments did not apply to me as I did not have the defect in question, i.e. the hinge and cracks in the chassis. However one recent e-mail on this web site (par. 55. thanks Mike) had the address: http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/genericDocument?lc=en&cc=ca&dlc=en&docname=c01087277 which I decided to look up. What a site it proved to be and I am grateful for the information. If you are having a problem of any kind with an HP or Compaq it is worth a look. It relates to a Limited Warranty Enhancement program where they acknowledge that many of the notebook series have problems and if you meet the criteria, HP will provide a free repair. On the repaired item, HP gives a warranty of 24 months from the date the initial warranty commenced or 90 days from the receipt of the repaired laptop-whichever is longer. On the site HP lists the criteria to determine eligibility in steps. First you identify the notebook series. Under dv90xx I found my product number which meant that it was elegible if the symptoms were present in the unit. Step 2 you identify the symptoms based upon a list of symptoms they present. It was interesting as I found listed exactly what my problem is: (does not detect wireless network and no video on the LCD panel or external monitor). The other symptoms set forth are ones I had experienced before when I sent off the computer to HP the first time; they are - no power or active LEDs; notebook does not start; the battery charge indicator light does not turn on when battery is charging when the AC adapter is connected. I printed this out and called the U.S. number given in the printout 1- 866-671-7362 (from 6 am to 11 pm MST). The rep was obviously in India and despite a bad connection and attempting to explain who I was (he could not find a record of me) I explained the reason for my call and specifically stated I was calling pursuant to HP’s Limited Warranty Service Enhancement program. There was really no problem thereafter. I received a case number and service ticket number. I am waiting my box from Fedex to ship out the laptop. Your web site has been terrific. A disturbing fact is that when I called HP initially for help with the dead screen in June of 2008 I gave the rep the product and serial numbers and she could have told me right there that I was eligible for the limited warranty program. Instead I got a sales pitch to spend anywhere from $350 to $900 + . Hope this helps others.
June 27th, 2008 at 1:19 pm
Yep Chris, I too opened my zv5000 too many times! I have chatted online, and talked to some other dope and the line is “out of warranty” so pay $298.00. This isn’t just a dv series problem. My computer goes nowhere, but it is used and I do close the lid when I turn it off. Oops, maybe I should have left it open??? Or better yet, attached another monitor and left it closed all of the time! It is patently absurd that HP would not stand behind this key part of the notebook casing regardless of warranty expiration. I know this, I won’t buy HP again.
June 30th, 2008 at 4:59 pm
As an update to my March 6, 2008 entry: Never heard back from HP on my open ticket number.
Decided to go with www.pcservice.com
Needed to replace the hinges and unfortunately the display case for about $300 in parts and $150 in labor.
Out and back in an airmail shipper box, insured, and did not have to worry about removing the drives etc….
They have so many hinge replacements they have the parts in stock, fixed pricing, and you work with people, not automated phone systems.
We’ll see how the job holds up. So far this summer, works great.
July 3rd, 2008 at 4:16 pm
I love my DV6000 I use it for tons of design, the only problem that i have had with it is the stupid charger tip but that was easily taken care of with a new one & the hinges, the only place i have found them was ebay for ~$20 shipped for non oem.
July 8th, 2008 at 7:02 am
BEWARE WHEN SENDING YOUR COMPUTER IN TO HP!!!! I left a sunny optimistic post on this site back when I thought things were going to be taken care of properly. Boy was I wrong.
I was told I would have a free hinge fix because my computer was still in warranty. Once the computer got there, HP changed their story and sent it back with the lcd panel cracked completely off! I spoke with my case manager who told me to send it back for a free fix… 3 weeks later I called to see what was going on and he said they took it apart and found some internal damage so they cannot touch it legally because the computer may someday “spark and start on fire, and HP would be liable” I am going to file a claim against HP when I get my box of computer parts back. My computer was less than a year old, and was working just fine when I sent it in, except for the hinge problem which was obviously not my fault.
July 11th, 2008 at 7:41 am
Stephany: In this regards you can contact the nearest service center or you can send the notebook for mail in service.
John: Please check the link I provided above. This is clearly a design flaw, as it seams like thousands of other people have experienced the same problem…
Stephany: I can understand your concern.
Stephany: Johnny, the information you have provided is right, but its not for all model in this series.
Stephany: I don’t mean to rush you, Are we still connected online?
John: Are you suggesting that this design flaw not applicable to my computer? Does HP recognize that it is in fact a design flaw..?
John: It shouldn’t be a warranty issue in my opinion…
Stephany: I can really understand your concern.
Stephany: Let me explain you in this regards.
John: Ok, so HP recognizes that it is a design flaw, but still wants me to go and pay for the repair…?
Stephany: As I have mentioned earlier, whenever there is an issue from our end, we always recall and setup the free mail in service for the Notebook
John: Ok, will the cost of repair be covered by HP then…?
Stephany: I am sorry to inform you that the issue is not with your notebook.
Stephany: So we cannot arrange a free mail in service.
John: http://www.notebookhingecrack.com/
John: This website is specifically set up for the dv6000 and dv9000 notebooks. What models are you referring to..?
Stephany: I do understand your concern, but as the notebook is out of warranty we cannot arrange a free mail in service.
Stephany: I am sorry that you will be charged for this issue.
John: when the issue is in fact a design flaw, it should be covered under a company recall. From a customer standpoint it isn’t a warranty issue…
Stephany: I can understand your concern.
Stephany: Johnny, in this case I will escalate the case to my case manager.
John: Thanks, I appreciate it..!!!
Stephany: Please complete the information below so we can process your request.
Stephany: May I know the good time to call you.
John: Anytime today.
Stephany: John, you will be receiving a call from our case manager, so it takes 24 to 48 business days.
Stephany: So please let me know the time to call you.
John: I will be out of town from this coming Sunday. I won’t be back until the last week of August. Please use the email if you’re unable to call today.
Stephany: Okay.
Stephany: May I know the operating system of your notebook?
John: windows XP
Stephany: Thank you for the information.
John: Seems like I will need a new notebook for the trip. Do you know if the hinge problem has been rectified on the newer models…?
Stephany: Yes it was rectified.
Stephany: Is there anything else I can assist you with today?
John: I guess I’ll have to wait for the case manager to contact me then…?
Stephany: Ya sure.
Stephany: Thank you for contacting HP Total Care Real-Time chat support. If you need further assistance, please contact us again at: http://www.hp.com/support/chat. Chat support is available 24 hrs a day, 7 days a week.
John: OK, thanks…
July 13th, 2008 at 10:16 pm
I have been fighting with HP over this issue. I have DV9535 NR. Every other person I talked to kept saying it was my fault it was broke. They kept saying it was the screen and I kept trying to tell them no it was the housing that holds the screen. Told me it would be 698 to fix. I dont know about yall but with the price of gas and already paying 1700 for this stupid thing I am not about to pay more money. A friend was going to fix it if I could ever find out what the thing was called. Yeah I know I dont know much about this thing just how to run it. Spoke with Norris who was wonderful. Didn’t keep saying sorry. So below is what he and I talked about. My concern is I cant close this without cracking the lip case anymore. I will figure out how to do that. I will get back on here when I get this back and let you know how it all goes. I think something should be done with HP and this issue. Also I will call the number above to let them know. I use this for school and I cant even take it to school so I have had to write it all down….LOL check back when I get it back…
Norris: Do you mean the screen ?
patricia smith: the screen is fine it is what holds the screen and allows you to close the laptop
Norris: Are you refferring the metal hinges of the Notebook where the Notebook hold the screen?
patricia smith: yes\
Norris: Thank you for the information.
Norris: To further assist you, may I have the Serial (eg: CNS34915MC), Product (eg:DS542U) and Model Number (eg:Pavilion zt3000) of the Notebook?
Norris: You can find them on the white service tag located at the bottom of the Notebook.
patricia smith: cnf7271qgk ga339ua#aba
Norris: Thank you for the information.
Norris: Could I have a few minutes of your time while I search the information for you?
patricia smith: yes
Norris: Thank you for your time.
Norris: Let me explain.
Norris: As your Notebook is in warranty, I can arrange the mail in repair for free of cost for Hinges issue only.
Norris: Can I proceed?
patricia smith: yes
Norris: Sure.
Norris: The crack screen isuse will not cover in the free mail in repair
Norris: Let me explain about the process.
patricia smith: but i have been told several times it was physical damage and was not covered. i talked to several people as this was the second hp computer to do this. no my screen is not cracked
Norris: Please let me know are talking about the metal hinges which has attached on the Notebook.
patricia smith: yes in which holds the screen in
patricia smith: and allows you to close the laptop
Norris: Thank you for the information.
Norris: Yes Patricia.
Norris: Could I have a few minutes of your time while I go through the previous correspondence?
patricia smith: yes
Norris: Thank you for your time.
Norris: I will arrage the mail in reoair with free of cost.
Norris: Let me explain about the process.
patricia smith: can you tell me how long that would take
Norris: A box with the required packaging material, packaging instructions, carrier contact information and a pre-paid shipping label will be delivered to you in 1 to 2 business days.
Once you have received these materials and have packaged your product, you will need to contact the carrier to schedule a pick-up.
Your repair service has an estimated turn around time of 3 to 5 business days from when we receive your product at our repair center.
Norris: It will take 7 to 9 buiness days.
patricia smith: ok next question
patricia smith: i can not shut the laptop
patricia smith: without damaging the case
Norris: I will update the repair with above isuses
Norris: Please provide me the US shipping information and the phone numbers to call you.
* Name:
* Organization:
* Mailing Address (No P.O. Boxes):
* Apartment/Building/Mailstop:
* City:
* State:
* Zip/Postal Code:
* Phone Number (including area code and Time Zone):
* Alternative phone number:(if any)
Norris: Thank you for the information.
Norris: I will arrange the mail in repair, you will receive the mail in box within 2 business days.
Norris: Is there anything else I can assist you with today?
patricia smith: no but i want to thank you sooooooo much for alll your help. you have done more than anyone i talked too
Norris: Thank you.
patricia smith: thats all i needed
Norris: It is my responsiblity Patricia.
Norris: Thank you for contacting HP Total Care Real-Time chat support. If you need further assistance, please contact us again at: http://www.hp.com/support/chat. Chat support is available 24 hrs a day, 7 days a week.
Norris: You may receive an e-mail survey regarding your chat support experience. We would appreciate your feedback.
Norris: Bye.
Norris: Have a nice day.
July 14th, 2008 at 2:36 pm
June 25th update!
After loosing several ebay auctions in trying to locate replacement hinges for my ZV6130us, I happened to see another post on this site that said he had purchased hinges on ebay and his repair lasted 30 DAYS!!!!!!
I decided to keep my money and not encourage the ebay “profiteers”! These hinges are selling for 2 to 3 times what my local repair shop says they SHOULD be available for!
I REFUSED to send my laptop in to HP for replacement even though they offered to do it for “free”, as this is a work machine and I cannot be without it for the timeframe.
I will replace this machine most likely with an Acer and never buy HP products again.
All we can do is vote with our consumer dollars.
I also sent this site to www.stumbleupon.com. I hope it helps.
This process has taken three weeks of many hours of my time. I will NOT quickly forget this HP experience.
July 15th, 2008 at 10:58 pm
i have purchased a hp pavilion dv9207us at compUsa in march of 07 and my left hinge has cracked. The plastic frame around the monitor is all cracked and screwed up. i really wish hp will issue a recall so that i can get the problem fixed. if your warranty is out, their customer support is crap that will bring you in circles. its rediculous that you cannot extend your warranty while it is out of factory warranty-WHAT DIFFERENCE DOES IT MAKE???!!
Now i cannot even shut the notebook at all- cant even bend it a bit without distorting the pixels on the screen. i am very dissapointed with HP and their cheap notebooks. never again will i buy an hp notebook.
July 18th, 2008 at 7:02 am
I called and they said it was normal wear and tear and refused to do anything. I have another Hp that is under a lawsuit for a faulty motherboard/video card issue….great two broke HP17″ laptops. NEVER again will I buy anything made by HP…what a bunch of crap. a less than 2 year old computer with broke hinges and that’s “normal”.
July 18th, 2008 at 7:45 am
Ok….followup on the previous post!!!
I forgot to get the ladies name who said no, so I called back and got “Joe”. Told him I called before and I needed a reference number or name from my last call since I forgot to ask. He “looked into it” and got my info, then put me on hold. He came back and confirmed my address and said they would be shipping me a box for the laptop to be shipped back to them.
He was very nice and professional. Just as I asked the first lady it seems some get and some don’t on my second call the guy was great and they are going to fix my laptop.
Also, my model is a DV8000….same problems as the 9000. I’ll post a follow-up.
July 22nd, 2008 at 9:46 pm
To Ray Says,
What did they charge for hinge repair and how long to get it fixd
\Thanks
July 24th, 2008 at 12:24 pm
zv 6000
Hinges popped x2 …. Just got off phone with HP rep in live chat. Claims she spoke to supervisor, same story, HP claims it is not a defect and is a hardware issue. I suppose a hardware issue must nt be able to be related to a defect…. Two options provided, send in to HP and will cost just under $300, no mention of shipping or, go to local service repair center. I chose case management, as rep referred to, escalate the situation…. I am a student and not able to afford repair. I commented somewht that, my fellow students will be asking many questions when the screen of my shiny ~$1400 computer screen soes not hold itself up. I did not call it a defect, however, but an unexpected issue that has occurred with a very expensive unit from a company I had considered to make quality products.
July 31st, 2008 at 12:48 am
Follow-up…on my follow-up.
I got my box on Monday and shipped my computer back on Tuesday…received it back on Friday! Basically everything casing wise has been replaced…the computer looks like a brand new one. I moved the spare hard drive to the primary spot and left them a note to format as needed, hard drive came back newly formatted and I have been copying stuff over. (which is exactly why I bought htis laptop that has 2 hard drives).
I am very impressed with HP on this…while again if you read my other post I was denied, I simply called back, asked for the name of the previous rep and case number the next rep sent me the box no questions asked.
My suggestion is do the online chat…get the case numbers and then call. If the 1st case worker fails to help you then say thanks and hang up…I dealt with Mrs. “no” the first time…remember.
Then call back and ask for the previous case number and case worker information for you recored…that did the trick for me.
Bottom line is they tried to say this is normal wear…not true at all.
August 7th, 2008 at 9:24 am
Ok I got my laptop back. The hinge was fixed they even replaced the the lcd screen and my system board. Well now the battery won’t charge. I have been dealing with a case worker she extended my warranty and once again i have to send my computer back in to be repaired. will let you know when i know more.
August 11th, 2008 at 1:13 pm
I just called and spent 55minutes on hold with 3 different phillipeano supervistors before i had any help. Luckily i read this site and refused to give up. I got transfered to a case worker in the mid west, and he was down to fix it from the getgo. He even offered to fix my other hardware issues, as well as loose mouse button. The best part about it, was my laptop is 42 days out of warraty, and its refurbished!!!! this site owns. All and all when the call was completed i had spent hour and 44 minutes, on the phone. I did get good service when i finally spoke to the case manager.
August 13th, 2008 at 11:26 pm
Hey Guys! Thanks soooooo freaking much for this site!!! I’m calling the Case manager tomorrow!!! I’ll let you know what happens!!
August 14th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
Well, I called in and spoke to Melissa who was very helpful and right away set up the prepaid box to have my laptop fixed FREE OF CHARGE!!! I’ll
August 14th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
***post again when It arrives
August 15th, 2008 at 4:51 pm
well i called up and got the exact same bit. 298 to fix, i said well look this isnt my fault its poor design. she kept telling me how it is my fault and they will only consider this customer damage. she said they cannot repair this for free because of the fact that an unauthorized website people post that they have the same problem and got theirs repaired for free out of warranty.
so i then said but it is a design flaw and not customer damage, since the exact same thing has happened over and over to others, enough that hundreds of people have made a website about it. and she wouldnt budge. when i asked to speak to someone higher she said that she was the senior case manager, which i do not believe at all.
after about 20 mins i asked her for her name and number. she told me her name was Janine Gabriel at 1 877 917 4380 ext 94. i will be calling back for at least the next week. i will be contacting the better business bureau as well as sending the Connecticut attorney general this information.
if anyone has a number they used that actually posted positive results please post it here
August 18th, 2008 at 7:06 am
My son received an HP dv9205 for graduation in June 2007. The computer, as a rule, has not been “traveling” with him to classes, etc. May be closed once a week if that. Last week when he tilted the screen to change the lighting, it cracked. Now we can’t open or close the screen and the casing is split all up the left side. I called HP and was quoted the price of $298+. I have always liked my HP…I have desktops, printers, etc. But won’t be buying HP anymore. They wouldn’t budge on a “cosmetic” repair.
I’m sorry, but this aggravates me very much. The manager I talked to, Paul…said that if they found that it was a defect, they would issue a recall and refund the $298, but this is the FIRST time he’d heard of this problem. Yeah, right!
So, I hope you are all logging your complaints with HP even though you’re not paying the $298. Maybe they’ll get around to ordering a recall!
August 22nd, 2008 at 11:58 am
Spoke to three (3) different chat technicians who all admitted the hinge problem and said HP would fix for free. I was also told a case manager would call me within 48 hours. Well, never got a call from a case manager, but finally a chat technician gave me a number to call. It was their regualar HP support number. I called and got the run-around, they said it would cost me $298 to repair. Asked for a supervisor who amazingly sounded just like the person I was originally talking to. When I asked for her name and badge number she provided me a phone number for headquarters: 877 917 4380 ext 94.
I called it, gave them my “801″ number from the initial chat. She said they were aware of the problem and that some case managers would fix it, others would blame it on the customer (stating the customer opened/closed the laptop from the side thereby weakening the hinge themselves). So, if they ask, you always open/close from the middle. Anyway, she took all my information said a box would be sent and it would take 7-10 days for the repair. FREE. She also advised to remove the battery, hard drive, and Quickplay remote prior to sending the computer in for repair. She said it is policy that they run a diagnostics on the laptop when it comes in and if something shows up they automatically format your hard drive, plus they can lose your battery or remotes. VERY HELPFUL!
We’ll see what happens from this point forward. I am not holding my breathe. I will probably get back a broken laptop that belonged to someone else or mine will be damaged beyond repair. I took photographs of the interior and exterior prior to shipping just in case…..
August 25th, 2008 at 8:02 am
I called in to the lower level tech support and explained the situation with my hinge. The first technician was sympathetic; however she said that she could not help. Then I asked to speak to her supervisor who said “I know for a fact that HP has never fixed a laptop with this problem for free out of warrantee.” After refering to this website he said that he understood the problem, but was not authorized to fix it for free. He then offered to escalate it to the 3rd tier (American) tech support, who would call me the next day. Surprisingly, they called first thing in the morning and immidiately knew the issue. The case manager said that hp had acknowledged the issue, knew which models were affected, and would fix the problem free of charge. I am now waiting to get my laptop fixed, and will post the results when I get it back!
I fully agree with the admin about the whole lawsuit thing, there is NO need for it and it will not help anyone.
August 28th, 2008 at 12:32 am
For those who have been told they have not fixed any for free they are LYING. I got mine fixed and I’m using it right now. I suggest calling back, getting another manager and do as I done…tell them you need the information to followup. They are fixing them and they are aware of the problem, I just don’t understand how 1 company can have people giving out so many different stories…
September 8th, 2008 at 7:35 am
Hi, I just went through the same ordeal as most of you all have;
Chat: No recourse; asked for $298 and irritatingly repeating that “HP would not fix it for free”…
Called the 877… x94 number, got a pitbull on the phone, said that they cannot respond for what is written on “outside” websites. She kept interrupting to get her message accross that there would be no repair without charge.
I am through talking with HP; There is no sense in asking as it appears they have made up their mind about it: IT’S ALL OUR FAULT (for buying HP, i guess)….
So I took matters in my own hands; went on E_BAY and BOUGHT a set of HINGES for $50. Will fix it myself, and WILL SUE HP at a local court. I Suggest that EVERYONE does the same; maybe HP will learn to respect their consumers and their legitimate complaints. I am really irritated by it, as if you couldn’t tell.
Good luck everyone,
M
September 8th, 2008 at 5:05 pm
I just NEVER again buy HP laptop, and I told the story about my problem to all people who considers buying a laptop.
September 9th, 2008 at 12:12 am
Ok I have my laptop back. The hindge was fixed FREE and I got a new motherboard. Of course it had to go back to them 2 times before it was back to the way it was. Sent it in for the hindge got a new motherboard. Then it wouldn’t charge and the keys were using number lock so if I typed IOP i got numbers. Well after it being gone almost 2 months total it is fixed and I got a FREE year warranty so if it breaks again I am cover. But I have to say I will never buy another HP laptop
October 5th, 2008 at 6:44 pm
I had this same problem with a DV8000 Laptop I took the screen apart and took two extra screws holding the cover on where the hinge latch is out. For some reason there were two threaded places for screws but there was only one screw on each side attaching the hinges to the back of the laptop. The hinges cracked between these threaded holes so I put both screws in and it reattached the hinges on both sides. Luckily I could fix it myself and didn’t have to spend money for someone else to repair it.
The hinges should be redesigned on these laptops because the metal on them is just too flimsy. It makes me worry about my DV9000 breaking.
October 16th, 2008 at 11:03 am
Hi,
My hinge began cracking 1 year after buying my HP Pavilion DV9035nr laptop and at first, I would just push it back together and it was fine. Well, the problem got worse throughout the year until my LCD screen was split apart half way up the side.
I decided to call HP at the number shown above and got a very nice gentlemen named Bhargav (Bar-Gav) and he did in fact start by telling me that my computer was out of warranty but after telling him that this is a design flaw and I feel HP should do the right thing and fix this at no charge, he talked to his supervisor and came back to tell me it would be free.
Now, normally, I would leave it at that but as I too am a manufacturer, I understood that they do not have to fix this out of warranty and they were being very generous to do so, so I told him I would purchase the extended warranty for $149.99.
He told me the box should arrive in 2 days and it would take 5 days to fix. He also told me to remove the hard drive and battery. Good idea.
I am hoping that this problem will not return but if it does, at least I have an extended warranty now, and should be simpler to go through this process next time.
He did mention that the only ones capable of authorizing an out of warranty repair are the supervisors, so there is no use arguing with the person you contact. Ask them to ask their supervisor if your computer is out of warranty.
October 23rd, 2008 at 5:34 pm
Hmm, just sent mine in and they said $158 dollars. I think I am going to call my case manager. Thanks for this site.
DV9000 Left hinge broke, rarely closed.
Awesome laptop, plays newest games and much more.
October 27th, 2008 at 11:52 am
my dv9000 hinge was cracked and out of warranty… i stayed on the phone with hp for a LONG time complaining and letting them know that i knew that it was an inherent problem… they finally caved and sent me a box to fix it for free. but now i’m having a problem with power cycling (or resetting). they just need to recall these computers!
November 7th, 2008 at 9:43 am
My dv9000 hinge was a little wonky from the getgo (case separating in the corner) but it was never truly a problem until just now, a little over a year from when I bought it. Last night the case and the hinge separated so now the screen will still shut, but the hinge bits inside are still in the open position. I’m afraid to shut this thing now because I’m afraid I’ll break the screen (and that would be even worse)
I’m planning on calling hp today/tomorrow, I guess I’ll see how things go.
As a poor college student who spent a fair chunk of change on this thing I better not have to spend 200-300 bucks to repair this, especially when it cost so much in the first place.
November 10th, 2008 at 7:20 pm
Same issue same unit.
HP dv9000. cracked left side hinge.
HP Tech said $300 and shipping.
Out of warranty 60 days.
Sounds like a over all concern with unit.
Will stay tuned for updates.
November 15th, 2008 at 8:52 pm
Hmm. DV9267EA (RY686EA#ABU). Cost new ~equivalent of almost USD 2000.
Just closed the lid and there was a horrible cracking noise and the casing around the left side hinge is splayed out. One very small piece of plastic (1-2 mm) also fell out from inside. Hinge has always worked perfectly, and laptop is kept in a locked drawer when not in use - and hasn’t been out of the building since it was bought.
Very disappointed. Of course it is just over one year old. Wish I had typed “HP laptop broken hinge” into Google before buying it, but then hindsight is a wonderful thing. My immediate assumption what that the grease in the rotating part of the hinge had dried up.
Just transferring the 80+ GB of data to another backup drive - just in case.
November 17th, 2008 at 3:55 pm
Add my name to the list. We have had the unit about 18 months and it started this problem about 5 months ago.
I am guessing I am screwed.
November 19th, 2008 at 1:07 pm
Same issue, but different circumstances.
I’m a soldier and I’ve deployed several times. My most recent deployment was to a non-hostile zone. Bought my dv9000 about 3 years ago for entertainment purposes. Essentially used as a small desktop replacement for movies and video games.
I did NOT take the computer with me. About 4 months after returning home, I closed the laptop and heard a snap. You guessed it.
Now, when that happened, the LCD screen broke as well, with a crack going straight up the left side. Not sure how or why? Had to take off the screen using small hand tools, which further voided my warranty. My warranty expired while I was deployed, so no options for renewing there.
I bought a VGA cable, connected it to my TV and the system seemed to be working fine. However, I could NOT connect to the interent. Apparently my wireless card’s antenna was removed with the removal of my Camera/Microphone attached to said broken LCD screen.
I have recieved NO help from Best Buy or HP as they believe I am responsible for the damage. So now, I have a great, yet useless wireless laptop that cannot connect to a wireless source and has no monitor, camera, or Mic? How sad. I was so fond of this computer before I left =*(
November 19th, 2008 at 1:09 pm
More depressing was that When I bought it, it was brand new- cost almost $2000 with the extended warranty and installations. What a waste.
November 24th, 2008 at 9:58 am
******************************************************************
URGENT SUPPORT NOTIFICATION FROM HP
******************************************************************
HP Pavilion dv9000 Notebook PC Limited Service Enhancement Program
HP is offering a Limited Service Enhancement Program through May 31, 2009 for the left display hinge on the HP Pavilion dv9000 notebook PC serial number that you registered. If you experience a broken left display hinge before May 31, 2009 or previously paid for a left display hinge repair, please refer to the HP website
at: http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/document?lc=en&dlc=en&cc=ca&docname=c01611512
If you have not experienced a broken left display hinge, no action is required on your part.
Sincerely,
Hewlett-Packard Company
November 27th, 2008 at 3:58 pm
Looks like they overlooked including the zv6000 in the service enhancement program.
December 18th, 2008 at 11:47 am
It’s mid December, and the HP bait, and switch is still going strong. In other words i sent my notebook expecting a free repair only to be asked for 300 dollars to fix my fan. The fan wasn’t even broken when i sent it in! I am outraged.
January 15th, 2009 at 12:24 pm
Right now im so frustrated at HP that im almost on the verge of filing a lawsuit.I sent them my dv9000 pavilion laptop to have them fix the broken hinge.I would not do it if they didnt send me an email for its recall.Now i received a call that my hard drive was corrupted and all my files were deleted and I need to pay them $350 for the said repair.The nerves of these people!My laptop was working alright albeit for the broken hinge.I was fuming mad!!
January 17th, 2009 at 1:30 pm
So what ever happened to resolve this issue?
January 29th, 2009 at 10:03 pm
Well, we have the HP DV6000, and have the same exact problem everyone else is reporting. We purchased it in December 2005 and it seemed to be a very good laptop. That is up until January of 2007, just 13 months after we bought it, we noticed the screen stayed up, but it wasn’t as secure as it used to be and the right hinge seemed to be popping at the seam. We continued to use it gingerly and it got us through another year and a half. Around June 2008, the left side cracked and did the same thing, and now the screen does not stay up. We looked on the HP website and noted the $298 for replacement, which we thought was rediculous, considering the problem began 13 months into owning the laptop. I wish we would have addressed it then, instead of waiting for the entire screen to flop down. However, we can close it even though both sides are popping at the seams, it just does not remain upright without support. So now that we could use the additional computer in the house, we have been looking for a way to repair it, without spending another $300 to do so, and it seems we can’t find a solution. I just stumbled upon this site, and I plan to call HP tomorrow and see what they offer/recommend. I do know that after all the money we spent on this laptop, as well as a Compaq laptop from them for my daughter, which has it’s own issues…we will no longer be buying ANY of their products. We have never had such poor quality in any of our computers…desktops or laptops, right down to the cheapest of ones purchased. HP is a big company, and they should be standing behind their products and just recalled customers once so many complaints came rolling in. In today’s economy, they should be fearful of how they treat the consumer…it is very easy to find somewhere else to make a computer purchase.
February 2nd, 2009 at 2:12 pm
My laptop developed the hinge problem well after (2 years beyond) the warranty had expired.
I called HP. They sent a prepaid FedEx box, a shipping label, and even the Scotch tape to seal the box!
I sealed it up, dropped it with a FedEx driver, and two weeks later I am typing on what looks to be a new laptop. They replaced the whole LCD assembly on top, including the top case and the webcam, cleaned up the rest of it, and shipped it overnight to me. All of this was done with no charge to me.
I am very impressed with HP’s extending the warranty to cover this problem. It was the right thing to do to be sure, but it’s great to see a company actually DOING the right thing.
Thanks, HP!
February 12th, 2009 at 9:53 am
My DV9205 laptop left hinge recently failed out of warranty. I was aware of the HP Limited Service Enhancement Program for this issue and arranged a free repair with HP.
One week after sending my computer to HP for service I received a call notifying me that there will be a $317 charge to replace the mother board due to a Resume Function failure. I pressed HP on what that means since I had not seen any functional problems with the computer prior to shipping. I was told that they run computer diagnostics and are obligated to tell me about any issues found. I was also told that this problem was an indication of a future failure and had the option to take care of the issue now. If I return the computer for mother board replacement in the future it will cost “significantly more” $398 plus tax to repair.
I declined the repair and told them that if the computer did not work when it is returned I will contact them.
I am wondering if many others are seeing similar additional non-warranty repair charges under the HP Limited Service Enhancement Program.
February 12th, 2009 at 4:25 pm
My laptop developed the hinge problem. I called HP, got the return box, sent the laptop back for repair.
I JUST GOT A CALL FROM HP: “Our technicians have found a problem with the motherboard. We will fix it for $320. “.
The laptop was working just fine (except for the hinge) when I sent it to HP. Only 1 of two possible things could be happening: 1) they broke something else, or 2) they are trying to make some money .
Either way… when the laptop comes back to me..WHAT DO I DO IF IT DOESN’T WORK.
February 13th, 2009 at 1:15 pm
Update to my last post concerning left hinge replacement and subsequent motherboard diagnostic failure: after searching a bit more online, I was able to find that the symptoms described to me concerning a Resume Function failure were covered by an additional HP Limited Service Enhancement Program. I called HP and was able to confirm that my laptop is also eligible for a motherboard replacement.
I have received my laptop and it appears to be working order. Items replaced without charge: motherboard, LCD Bezel, LCD Cover. Although I had to do my own research to gain Service Enhancement coverage for the motherboard, HP stood by their product and adjusted for known manufacturing defects. I am pleased by the outcome. It pays to do your homework and be polite to the service representatives.
February 16th, 2009 at 5:12 pm
I purchased my laptop and I went to Bestbuy in November 2008 with the understanding that my computer was still under warrenty until Fedurary 7, 2009 because it overheated and cracked some of my parts and cracked my hinges on the computer. I couldnt get repaired under my warrenty. I found this site and my computer product number DV9308NR; model number RU974UA is on your list having the same problems. I really need my computer repaired. Please contact me. My e-mail addresses are: lindar12801@yahoo.com or lindar128041@yahoo.com
February 25th, 2009 at 10:29 pm
Had the crack problem with my laptop. Was about to take it to the shop to see how much a fix would be. Googled hp hinge crack and found this site. Contacted HP. Was given no hassle at all. Got the box to send my computer to them in. Sent it off, and got it back in less that a week fixed, and with a brand new case or whatever you call that covers the entire screen.
Saved me a lot of hassle and possibly $ - especially since I would have bought a new computer before wasting more than a $100 for this problem.
And I sent in the computer with my drive. It was not wiped or anything like that.
March 9th, 2009 at 10:29 pm
I just had the left hinge break on my laptop (hp pavillion dv9000) that I purchased in Nov 2007 - [I did not purchase an extended warranty]. I called the number provided on this website and they have agreed that this is under a recall. Again that number is: case manager line: 1-877-917-4380 then you need to enter extension 94. It took about 30 minutes for this call, but they have agreed to repair this free of cost.
The call did go much smoother after mentioning this website. Thank you very much for your time and effort on this site!
March 11th, 2009 at 11:03 pm
My daughter just experienced the same “Left Hinge” failure today 3/11/09 after just 15 months of service. I have sent a request for service with this web site and http://www.instructables.com/id/Indestructible-repair-for-the-broken-HP-DV-9000-la/?ALLSTEPS#step0 as reference of the ongoing issue. I hope I have the same good repair experience (with out the mother board replacement issues) as the last couple of loggers. I will report back when the issue is resolved.
March 19th, 2009 at 12:33 pm
I would like to add to my post that HP informed me that they would send me a box to package the laptop in. They are also paying FedEx shipping cost.
March 22nd, 2009 at 4:47 pm
My DV9000 returned free as advertised. However, the support service did call me 5 days before and said the mother board needed to be replaced (as was the case with others). I refused replacement and after talking with the extended coverage rep found that the error reported is normal once you have the battery out for a few days (the bios looses its memory). Don’t worry though, once you get the system back you simply update the time and your good to go.
May 7th, 2009 at 10:33 am
Just called. HP case managers are awesome if you are polite. Do exactly what #51 (above) says and you’ll be fine. Remember GET THE TICKET NUMBER at 800-334-5144! No matter how hard they press you to pay for repair say “no”. Get the ticket number, be polite ending the call. Then call 1-877-917-4380 (like #51 says above, which then instructs you to call 1-866-671-7362 for all “Left Hinge Repair”. Remember you must have a ticket number with the words “broken left hinge on my note book”) to get a person who specializes in the “left hinge repair. Once here you’ll get taken care of. Hope this help.
May 22nd, 2009 at 12:51 pm
I have a DV9000.. I guess I’m a lucky guy it hasn’t over heated to the point of melting or breaking hinges. I just have a blown motherboard.. This machine has to be the worst HP box ever. You would think they would service people with issues but they are trying the “I’ll give you a discount to fix it” route. I can’t with a good conscience give them more of my money.
Former HP customer.
June 7th, 2009 at 4:39 pm
My left hinge just broke today on the DV9000 that my wife gave my for Christmas ‘06. It has lead a very sheltered life and I have never abused it. I searched and found that HP had a repair plan but it expired 5/31/09!
I called them and was told it was no longer a valid campaign and sorry. Luckily the machine has a Bestbuy extended warranty and hopefully they will cover the repair. I can’t believe that I missed the cut off by one week and they wouldn’t help. I will definitely not be purchasing another HP product!
June 18th, 2009 at 7:24 am
I had the same response. Just called them and I kept asking why they ended a program when everyone’s manufacturer’s defect hadn’t been fixed yet. They kept saying the program is over. I said, but it just ended last month. They said tough luck, or something to that effect. I tried the agent and then a supervisor, but I was not given a case manager or a number of a case manager.
June 22nd, 2009 at 6:48 am
I have a DV9715 and my left hindge just broke last week. I contacted HP, talked to a case manager, and they have offered to reduce the price to $150 for the repair. I’m very dissapointed in the quality of this laptop and HP’s response to the known issue. I will likely purchas a Dell for my next computer!
June 23rd, 2009 at 3:37 am
My left hinge failed at the beginning of June and I called and was told $398. I work for a company with an EPP that gives me about $80 off a dv6t and I can do their buy back for $168. Talk to the person, their supervisor, the case manager; explain to the case manager that I can buy a new one for just over the $398. I still get told no to them fixing it. So I send an e-mail to their corporate office and now the case manager is saying “we are looking into changing the pricing for this issue because it doesn’t make sense to charge the same thing as a broken motherboard”. I think to myself “no S—!” that’s what I told you last week. So now I impatiently wait for his call on an update. Only issue is I’m afraid to use my laptop because I know it’s about to completely fail. Hope they get back to me soon. If not, I do a second round of e-mails. Doesn’t cost me anything but a few minutes of time. I suggest everyone go to http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/execteam/email/hurd/index.html and flood the corporate office with your info if you are having the issue and it didn’t start till after the cutoff date. Just a suggestion. If you do, BE POLITE!!! State your case and that you want to be contacted due to the issue not being resolved. Put in all the details like who you talked to, how you were treated and how you feel about future purchases of their products and such. Don’t make threats but let them know if you will take additional steps (contacting the BBB or your local consumer protection agency). If we all do it and are polite about it you would be surprised what some companies will do. Let’s hope they are one of those who will listen.
June 28th, 2009 at 4:48 pm
I had the same hinge problem as everyone and I called today and they would not cover it because the campaign expired. I than told them that I was never notified about the campaign and I actually started having problems with hinge 2 months ago so if I was notified of the campaign I would have sent it back to them. That got me a supervisor who told me he does not have authority to fix it for free but someone will be calling me in 48 hours. I will keep you posted.
If they dont cover this can I just buy the hinges on ebay and just replace them or do i have to buy the case also?Can I also replace the HOT fan with another one that does not get so hot or do I have to replace the whole motherboard?
June 29th, 2009 at 12:41 pm
I just got off the phone with HP and they agreed to fix my laptop hinge, replace the motherboard and fan, for $250 flat fee including postage. They said they are discounting thwe repair which would normally costs over $400. I just paid it to get my laptop fixed and hopefully it does not break again.
July 12th, 2009 at 8:54 pm
My hinge went bad about a year ago, just out of the warranty period (bought it in 2007 from defunct Circuit City). I called HP and left a customer complaint. Eventually a lady from Corporate (MD office) called me (I live in Trindad, WI), inquired about my warranty and the problem and said it was no longer under warranty and I would have to pay to get it fixed. The hinge has not been repaired to date because it costs about US$300 where I live. Now the wireless has stopped working and this DV9205, is listed in the Limited Warranty Service Enhancement program. I tell anyone who asks the same thing I told the lady who called me from the Corporate offices, I will buy a DELL next time. HP has been the one of the worst customer service and products I have EVER encountered.
July 15th, 2009 at 5:56 pm
I just got off the phone with an Executive Case Manager at HP. My dv9000’s left hinge has cracked as well - and I am being told it occurred outside of the service enhancement.
I use this laptop as a desktop replacement, and have not opened or closed the lid much. Had I just opened and closed it more frequently, maybe it would have broken within the period!
The Executive Case Manager (Elrick) told me that I could “call the CEO of HP and nothing can be done.” The corporate office is coming down hard on the customer service center not to fix any more notebooks.
I have contacted the local news Problem Solvers and intend to get in touch with the BBB and any other consumer agencies, but any advice on where to go from here would be GREATLY appreciated.
July 19th, 2009 at 2:01 pm
I have a HP dv9000 laptop, while I don’t think the hinge is broken the left side of my computer screen is splitting apart at the seam and when I try to close it the popping and cracking starts. This started on June 4 and I called HP and they said the repair program closed on May 31. I spoke with several different people and was finally told they would fix it for $150.00, which is not a solution for me. Any suggestions?
July 23rd, 2009 at 5:39 pm
Despite the earlier comments by the author discouraging a class-action lawsuit, it seems like now would be the right time to investigate legal remedy seeing as the “recall” or “replacement” period has expired and HP refuses to repair any additional laptops with this manufacturing defect.
Like others, I was never notified of the warranty replacement and expiration date of May 31st 2009 to have this repaired — until of course it was too late.
July 26th, 2009 at 10:21 am
I bought a DV9000 and on its second year in action this started happening. i haven’t shut the screen since and i even purchased the 300$ 5 year warranty that doesn’t cover the said accidental coverage. this is not my accident this is the accidental design flaw of HP.
August 1st, 2009 at 6:26 pm
Hi, I too have purchased a pavilion dv9000 laptop that recently had the left hinge crack problems that is happening with these models. I googled that hp hinge problems and found your website. Unfortunately I see that the recall time is over and was not aware of the issues til it was too late. I followed your link to the HP website and was told by Nelson (hp cs rep) that there was no hinge recall, to which I replied that I was on their website concerning the recall, and then was told that there was but my model was not included in the recall, to which I then informed him that their website included my model and even read him the list to which he then informed me that the recall had ended. I spoke to him at length about the fact that they produced a faulty product and that there shold not be a deadline, but really got no where. I asked to speak to his supervisor but was told that he was too busy to speak to me. he gave ma case number and told me to call back later and that he had done all he could do. I was not offered the $150 fix, but would not have taken it even if it were. Isn’t it bad enough that HP batteries suck, but do they have to lie right to our faces. I will call back on monday and will also e-mail the company and all that good stuff, but am also taking any suggestions as to what further might be done. My cousin is a lawyer so I will also run this past him and see what he thinks. I know from your site that you do not like class action lawsuits, but I am ready to consider any solutions right now. Any ideas?
August 14th, 2009 at 10:07 am
Like The poster above i have the left hinge problem, and was not aware of the recall until now. I was looking up the parts list and found it would cost about $250 to get all the parts and repair the laptop myself. I was just about to order the parts when i found this site. my hinge has been broken for over a year and i really just wanna get it fixed already. I’m probably going to buy the parts myself unless someone posts here with another recommended solution in the next few days. Thanks.
August 14th, 2009 at 4:21 pm
From 01/01/08:
“If I don’t hear anything from HP by the end of January, I will post a detailed step-by-step process to file a Pro Se lawsuit in your county court, and tell you exactly what you need to know to get results.”
I’m ready to do this. Please publish the info.
Thanks for your diligence.
August 17th, 2009 at 11:30 am
My HP9207 had the left hinge failure 2 weeks after the May deadline for free repairs. I called and worked my way up the tech support ladder and finally received a callback from a Case Manager. I got him to lower the $300 repair charge to $100. I provided my credit card number but it was never charged. They repaired the notebook within a few days. To prevent a recurrence, I recommend that everyone purchases a Handstands Cool Lift Portable Notebook Cooling Pad, available from Amazon. It works great to keep the upper left corner of these notebooks from getting scalding hot, resulting in the left hinge failure over time.
September 1st, 2009 at 4:45 pm
My HP dv6700 notebook just experienced the left hinge break in August, shortly after the warranty ended on July 25th. I spoke with a customer service rep on Saturday, August 30th and was told that the recall was not related to my product number, that the recall was over, and that my laptop was out of warranty. I was also told that the repair would cost $398. Then the offer was lowered to $298. Today I called HIP at 650-857-1501 (I had been told that this was the “true” complaint department). I spoke with a senior case manager who told me the same story and said their “final offer” was $298. I have since filed a complaint with the consumer protection department of my state’s attorney general’s office. This is so far beyond ridiculous. Oh, and the HP folks had the nerve to tell me that “the issue has been resolved.” Obviously they haven’t seen my laptop - or yours.
September 4th, 2009 at 2:38 pm
mines been poping for mths, not thinking anything but normal as it was all working fine, then started haveing problems opening it in aug-09, aug 31 amd getting ready to close and go to work, i have been assiting the left corner for about 1 week at this point, then that am a ping and a small brass thing jumps out on my table,HMMMM. its the threaded nut-set that is in the lid/cover. well not knowing i brought it in with me and started opening to look, then could not believe what i saw. hit the net to find they admitted to poor chinamanship or products on the left side and yes my #’s all matched up on the recall fix that ended in may, just my luck. i called the rep and get we will give you a discount blaaaaaaaaa. i got all that info and then email the head of BOD,
Rosemarie Thomas
Secretary to the Board of Directors
3000 Hanover Street, MS 1050
Palo Alto, CA 94304
e-mail: bod@hp.com
well still have not heard back, so i made the fix with super glue having no choice and needing this for home based work. and knowing i will get a new one in the end i didn’t care, but does it look gooooooood. not the point, they have admitted to the defect-fault and need to stand up to it. case closed. yes i will be filing my own case. thanks, and by the way, if you have a hp printer with smart tech that tells you the ink is empty when its still1/4-1/3 more left in the cart making them mega bucks on ink replacement when its not due(premature). this is also another area taking advantage of the consumer and they owe me lot of ink. thats my next one. as i have 7 of those running. ps i have 11 pc’s running and 6 are hp, 9 printers and 7 are hp. unreal i think. and a FYI. Sony bought Minolta, and dumped not sold off like should have been done, all the parts. so now Minolta camera’s have no parts for repairs and the 2nd market for Minolta if you own one has gone so low, its like a bic lighter. no body wants them now because no parts. im ok when one buys another to conquer a larger part of the market but when you make my 800.00 camera go to a 35.00 value overnight im not going to support Sony any more, and i have 6 sony cams i use daily. oh well there’s others. thanks for listening and keep up the good work. sorry if i sound po’ed, but i am. scott
September 15th, 2009 at 2:35 am
I have news!! I have been through all the steps, just like everyone else. I was definitely not getting anywhere, I just got the usual “the recall program is expired, you are out of warranty, blah blah blah”. So, I filed a complaint with the Better Business Bureau. AND IT WORKED!! Do you hear me?! HP has authorized free repair on my dv9000 series! They are sending a box and everything! Of course, the hinge will probably crack again someday, but that’s another issue I suppose. Anyways, read my emails:
Complaint Details
Hewlett Packard
3000 Hanover St MS1247
Palo Alto, CA 94304-1112
Contact: Hurd, Mark
Phone: (650) 857-1501
Sawyer, Nola
Below is the company’s response to your complaint.
What a company does to resolve complaints is part of the information we report to the public on individual companies. To be certain that our report on this company is accurate, we need your confirmation that this complaint has been settled. Would you take a minute to tell us about your satisfaction or dissatisfaction with the response? The yellow shaded area indicates the complaint’s current processing status and will allow you to enter your response in the text box.
If we do not hear from you within the next seven days, we will assume you have accepted the company’s offer or explanation and are satisfied with it. However, please feel free to contact us again if the company has made an offer to settle your complaint and fails to perform accordingly.
Thank you for using the Better Business Bureau.
Complaint ID: 16033194
Complaint Classification:
Complaint Description - Posted 8/7/2009
I purchased an HP Pavillion dv9000 series notebook computer from HP in June 08. 11/21/08, HP initiated a free repair program for Pavillion notebooks that had a broken left hinge because the break was found to be caused by a design flaw. 8/5/09, 2 months after the expiration of the warranty, the left hinge of my notebook broke. After discovering notebookhingecrack.com, I found that thousands of other consumers have had the exact same problem, & that HP has fixed a large number of these at no charge to the consumer. HP acknowledges that the break is due to product design, & isn’t the consumer’s fault. However, since the voluntary “Service Enhancement” ended in 5/31/09, HP now refuses to repair my computer at no cost, citing that their program ended & my warranty expired. I understand that my warranty is expired, but the left hinge crack is a well known & documented design flaw, & HP has been fixing this for other consumers at no charge. My notebook wasn’t broken at the time of the free repair program, nor was any effort made to contact me that my computer was likely to break & I should take steps to prevent this, even though my contact info must be on file with them since I paid for the notebook with a CC. In addition, HP would charge me $398 for repairs, which is half of the original purchasing price of the notebook. I’ve spoken on the phone to 3 different customer service people, including an Executive Case Manager, & spent time in a customer service chat. All of these people
Complaint Summary
HP initiated a free repair program for Pavillion notebooks that had a broken left hinge because the break was found to be caused by a design flaw.
Resolution Sought
I want the faulty left hinge of my notebook repaired at no cost to me.
Additional Information
Date Problem First Occurred:
Product or Service:
Model Name or Number:
Date Purchased:
Order Number:
Amount In Dispute: $0.00
Company’s Response
Company’s Initial Response - Posted 09/12/2009
Hewlett-Packard’s Executive Office sent an email to Nola Sawyer on September 10, 2009 and offered to set up a repair for the HP Pavilion dv9827cl Entertainment Notebook PC. Hewlett-Packard’s Executive Office will also need to verify the mailing address so Hewlett-Packard can send a box and label to return the Notebook PC to Hewlett-Packard’s Service Center for repairs. Hewlett-Packard’s Executive Office has not received a response from Nola Sawyer in regards to the Notebook PC. Nola Sawyer can send this information to Kyle via email at kaneshiro@hp.com. This offer is valid for 30 days.
Initial Response Summary
Hewlett-Packard’s Executive Office sent an email to Nola Sawyer on September 10, 2009 and offered to set up a repair for the HP Pavilion dv9827cl Entertainment Notebook PC.
Of course, I haven’t gotten any such email from the company, even after giving them my email address several different times, including during a chat session (can’t screw that one up!). But I’ve already emailed this Kyle, so I’ll keep you guys updated on whether or not they follow through with this.
I AM SO GLAD I FOUND THIS WEBSITE!
September 28th, 2009 at 11:11 pm
Okay, so I have had to return this laptop (dv9420) into HP more than four times for repairs…first the mother board, then the LCD screen, then the mother board again, and then you guessed it…the mother board again..
Now, the RIGHT hinge is cracked and I am on the phone with Michael who is telling me that $298 is his best price for me to get this thing fixed…even though obviously this issue is beyond both him and I…
(sigh) Mike just offered me a “brand new” laptop for the same price with seemingly similar features as the current one I have…I told him no….Because buying a new HP laptop is like buying a knock-off version of my favorite perfume…seems to be good quality and feasible for the right occasions..but then I spray it on my skin and realize the 40 bucks saved just was not worth it…..
Thanks for this site…and what I WILL be doing is filing a lawsuit locally in my county courthouse…
Good luck all..
Kerri-Ann
October 22nd, 2009 at 3:35 pm
My DV9000 cracked recently and HP is going to repair the hinge for $149 +tax. They are sending the box. Unfortunatly, I didn’t read the most recent posts and possibly could have negotiated for them to repair for free, but alas, it will get done, I rely on that darn thing! Fry’s wanted to charge me a $70 diagnostic fee when I told them I know what the problem is, give me a quote to fix the hinge, so HP is better that Fry’s, no unneccesary diagnostics… next time , I go mac
November 3rd, 2009 at 5:55 pm
I have an HP dv9035nr computer with the same hinge and cover problems. I talked with HP for hours, back and forth. Bottom line is they will do nothing at all to help. Will be buying parts on ebay and fix myself. Also will call BBB of Palo Alto, CA and will be filing a complaint. Also, I will check out filing an out of state small claim action.
November 5th, 2009 at 5:34 pm
Well i finally heard from HP after initially filing a complaint with them back in August and filing a complaint with the better business bureau in September. They state that they are sticking to their guns and will not offer anymore free repairs. I spoke to a case manager named Gloria who stated that they are normally given certain powers to handle issues but the corporate suits have come down and stated that this issue is resolved and they will no longer fix these problems without payment. I am at a loss as to what else to do other than file a lawsuit. What I can do is trash HP with all my friends and family by letting them know the issues that I have had and HP’s lack of concern for their faulty products. To date, I am proud to say that I have talked three friends out of buying HP products in only three months. If all they are concerned about is money, then more needs to be done to get their attention.
December 4th, 2009 at 7:54 pm
if hp was good at waranty`they would fix there
black screen issues,motherboard also.
hinges don`t cost that much to fix!
just crack heads trying to over charge for
something simple.
December 17th, 2009 at 1:41 pm
You folks had 1 year of warranty period.
Nothing last forever and I wish I could do better.
Sorry but I hope you come back to HP again.
December 23rd, 2009 at 4:35 pm
Mark Hurd says “You folks had 1 year of warranty period.”
Well that is so true, but when Ford or Chevy (is there still a chevy?) issues a recall and you have moved … with no forwarding address (as in my email address changed), when you visit a service center, the recalls are honored without consideration of the passing time.
This is a design defect and I think it should be covered.
I’ve been using HP computers for nearly 20 years, but this year I’m moving to ASUS. Give them a try; the prices are better; the service is great; the computers are great!
Consider that all manufacturers are using the same parts now, so consider two factors in purchasing your next computer:
1. Price
2. Service
If you don’t like dealing with the HP, English as a second language, offshore service, take your business elsewhere.
December 23rd, 2009 at 4:37 pm
One more thing, I have some influence with two educational instutions, currently using HP products. I intend to change this.
January 11th, 2010 at 12:19 pm
Marc Hurd is a spineless hollow selfish bastard looking to gold line his and investors pockets… when rather he could be a honorable exec for a reputable company.
But instead he has to the gall to say:
You had a 1 yr warranty
-which did not cover their bad quality workmanship
Nothing last forever
-it could when you build a fair product with quality parts
I wish I could do better
-dell can do it — why cannot HP. I tried a HP laptop after being a DELL customer 10+ years, I go and buy one HP product — and its total CRAP!
None the less I have purchased a new DELL LAPTOP. HP get your $**t straight, build quality products and just maybe you will get me and others back.
***************
# Mark Hurd Says:
December 17th, 2009 at 1:41 pm
You folks had 1 year of warranty period.
Nothing last forever and I wish I could do better.
Sorry but I hope you come back to HP again.
***************
You figured HP would try to repair their reputation and make things right with their customers.
Have you guessed yet, yeah I own a HP PAV. DV9000 series.
Guess its onto the BBB then the Courts if not a Class Action suit.
January 29th, 2010 at 2:40 pm
dv5000. Both hinges are cracked. Enough said.
February 4th, 2010 at 9:23 am
I also have an HP Pavillion dv9208nr laptop with a broken left hinge. It is exactly as described by others with overheating also. I have contacted them on numerous occasions concerning the overheating and was never told of the possiblity of the hinge failing as a result. (I was told that I should not use the laptop on my lap!) I am not giving up and I am continuing to try to get my laptop repaired by HP. I feel I should not be punished for taking good care of my laptop to the point that the hinge did not break until the enhanced warranty period expired. If negotiations with HP lead nowhere then I will take your advice and contact the BBB and file a suit in my local parish court.
March 17th, 2010 at 10:39 am
I have a FE945UA , HP PAVILION NOTEBOOK PC DV2945SE and I wrote the board of directors (bod@hp.com) out of frustration with HP. I have never been treated so poorly by a company as I have by HP when dealing with a computer problem I had/have. I will begin the story when I purchased my laptop in September of 2008. I chose HP because of the great things I have been told previously. The pricing was right and the many features I needed were there. HP had great ads on at the time and I was convinced to go with HP because of these few reasons. This was the first laptop I had purchased on my own. I have hand me downs, work laptops, etc. I was impressed. I love my laptop. However, a week after my warranty expired my laptop stopped working completley. One week! I called HP and dealt with the Indian office and was told (after talking to a supervisor) I could extend my warranty for two years by paying $140 but I would have to wait 30 days before sending in my computer for repair. That seemed fishy to me so the next day I called HP again and they sent me the packaging to send my laptop in for repair. Not sure why I was told to wait 30 days but the girl I spoke with kept reiterating how important it was. I received my laptop back in working order. I was estatic to have my computer back and they didn’t have to wipe the hard drive. I was glad to have paid to extend my warranty. And forgot about the whole issue until six months later when my motherboard seems to have went out again. Twice in a year and a half. I have used lots of different laptops and never have I had a laptop with two major issues like this. I realize computers have issues. All products have issues. But to be repaired and the same part fails again? What gives?
I called HP and I get the Indian office again. The guy is extremely hard to understand and hear. Which I realize he has an accent and all but his is really hard to understand. He didn’t speak clearly. I did all the steps he asked me to do. Removing the RAM and the hard drive, things I really didn’t think I should be doing or even feel comfortable doing. Isn’t this why I paid for a warranty so I didn’t have to do this? After our phone conversation which was probably about an hour, he stated he would transfer me to the person that I would need to speak to to arrange to send me out packaging and things to send my laptop in for repair. After waiting on hold (empty airspace, no music or HP ads) he told me someone would call me back the next day by 3pm to arrange it. No one ever called.
I called HP the next day after no one called from my work about 4pm. I was in contact with the Canadian office I presume? They couldn’t see any of the notes from the Indian office. It was like I never called. The lady stated my warranty was phone support only which really upset me because I paid $140, seemed like a lot for phone support. After she looked into my account further she found that that wasn’t true and my computer was covered also. At this point I am frustrated again but not angry. I explain my frustration. I explain to her that this is the second time I am sending my computer in for repair and that I have spoken to friends that work in IT and they stated problems do arise but to have such a young laptop fail twice is crazy. I tell the girl I talked to at HP on the phone that I want HP to extend my warranty for me to protect my computer since it seems I have a lemon. She tells me they can’t and they won’t. She asks me everything that happened the night before with the other tech in India. When she couldn’t do anything for me regarding the warranty I asked to talk to a supervisor. The supervisor explains to me that there are more things I need to do with the laptop and that I should call from home when I get there. He tells me that they can’t extend my warranty also. I tell him how frustrated I am. He is a really nice guy but I don’t seem to get anywhere at this point. Neither the girl or the supervisor guy can see the notes from the Indian office and they checked “all their systems”. I hang up with him and tell him Ill call back.
I call when I get home and get the Indian office again. The Indian office does see the notes from the previous night and they said that someone tried to call me but couldn’t get through. They confirmed the number with me and it was right. I had my cell phone waiting for them to call all day. No one called me. The guy stated that all the steps were done the night before and nothing else needed to be done except transfer me over to the department that sends me the box. He was very helpful and nice. Even dealing with my frustration the best he could. The girl I spoke to in the hardware department was really nice too. She arranged to send me out packaging and everything. But I realized today when I checked my email that she even though she confirmed the address with me twice she put in the wrong address. The street and house number are my old address in Providence, RI and the city and state was my office in Hopkinton, MA 01748. The address doesn’t even exist which I don’t know how they were able to actually send something out via FEDEX. I called today to correct the issue. Thinking they could just resend another empty box to the correct address since HP messed up. I didn’t even think they wouldn’t. I called and got the Indian office. The guy was really bad customer service. There was a lot of silence during the call when I would ask him questions and such and ask if he was still there. Numerous times I thought he disconnected me. He told me that they couldn’t send me a new box. They had to wait for the other box to come back and they would resend it back out. I laughed; “it’s an empty box”, I tell him. Can you just send out a new one to my work address. He said no. It would take 3-5 days to get the box back and resend it out. I told him it would take two days to just send me a new box. He said he couldn’t do that. I asked to talk to a supervisor again and he wouldn’t get me a supervisor. He said he spoke to the supervsior and the supervisor agreed with him. I laughed again. I was delusional at this point. I am beyond frustrated. I am so angry but I didn’t vent my anger to him. I wasn’t going to let this incident raise my blood pressure. I just thanked him and told him I would send an email.
As you can see this is a ridiculous situation. Never have I had such poor customer service. It seems HP’s computer system databases are not connected, the tech people are poorly trained in providing good customer service, refusing to transfer me to a supervisor, lack of follow through, etc. I have worked in customer service for over ten years. One thing I always try to ensure is total customer satisfaction. The customer is the one that is doing business with your company, always make the customer feel as though their needs are being met. Alway make them feel as though you are listening and wanting to help resolve their problem. Not once did I feel good customer service. HP has great marketing and a strong hold on the American market but I am saddened that a company can treat a customer like I have been treated. I even understand outsourcing the work to foreign companies to remain competitive with pricing. But to call so many times and to get treated like this is unfair. To have a laptop breakdown twice for the same issue (the motherboard) is bad too. I just want my laptop to work and to have all my stuff stay on there. I wanted to call once and not have to reach this level of frustration. HP should do what’s right in this case to retain a good customer.
As a side note, no one rarely tells the story of good customer service or how they were treated fairly by a company but they always tell the negative. And that story gets told and retold. I want to walk away from this feeling as though HP did the right thing.
Above is the email I sent to HP Board of Directors. I was given a case manager. She has been out “sick” and even though the many emails and phone calls I have made and sent are answered by other case managers. No one seems to be able to help me. Only today was my case handed off to a different case manager. I recieved my laptop back repaired. They repaired the motherboard, the battery and the cooling element. However, they sent it back to me with a broken hinge which it didn’t have when I sent it. Hence, how I stumbled on to this site. All I can say is buy the extended warranty to hopefully get a year or two more out of it. Tell everyone you know the poor service and quality you recieve from HP. For every person you tell they tell more and more. If a class action can’t be filed then maybe word of mouth will put them out of business. Shame on HP!
March 25th, 2010 at 2:53 pm
My HP scanner G4050, purchased in Nov 08 has developed stress cracks at the two hinge points. They will ultimately completely fail and become useless. I spoke w HP customer service and in typical HP fashion they told me that is was not under warranty and they would only make the necessary repairs for a fee. This is an obvious design flaw and they should do the correct, ethical choice and make good on their products.
May 19th, 2010 at 4:33 pm
I have a DV9200 bought in 2007. Hinge broke two weeks after HP’s extended warranty of May 2009. Which is ridiculous to say yes it was our fault but only until May 2009. I think it is much cheaper for HP to fix these hinges than the alternative which is: I tell all my friends adn those who see the laptop how HP stands behind their products and I myself am buying Dell (even though it is more expensive) because they stand behind their products and my Inspirion bought in 2002 stil works fine (including the hinge)
June 18th, 2010 at 8:26 pm
Where do I start…My hinge cracked like all others..classic split up the side..screws popped out of the plastic…Contacted HP several times but got the standard party line from the contracted laborers in India. I tried a do- it-yourself repair from the Instructables website, but it didn’t last. I took it to a local small business computer repair shop and he happened to have the exact model with a fried motherboard. So I negotiated a resonable price to buy the memory, 140 gig hard drive, battery, and LCD screen with webcam. Was swapped out in 30 minutes and I was off. I now have a fully loaded computer waiting to break. I am amazed that HP has chosen this route in losing so many customers rather than just doing what you would expect in serving their customers who purchased a flawed product. I am thinking about selling this potential boat anchor before it goes belly up, but then I’m knowingly dumping a lemon onto some other unsuspecting schmuck..Now when I see HP products in the stores I cringe..Will never buy another HP product. It’s just stupid, arrogant, uneccessary, and irresponsible business practice.