Don't call me Mr. Despite the fact that people consider it a sign of respect, I usually equate this to people who are uptight, suit-wearers, who I find to be orifices of a certain lower body types. I don't wear a suit.
For $350 on an open box buy item, you have to wonder HOW thoroughly Sam Ash inspected the item. But, not to defect Sam Ash or anyone else, but how can you be sure they are thoroughyl testing it? Chances are they fire it up, if it makes pretty lights, it passes and gets the "stamp of approval" and they move on. You take your chances on used gear period, even with a major retailer. Unfortunately, it took more than 30 days to fail, and in your case, more than 90 days. Your options are limited at this point, and regardless, it's going to cost you one way or another.
Let me step it up one futher:
How about a $25,000 open box item, with 25 years of age, being sold USED and AS-Is? Yeah, it's a bargain I found on an ALL ORIGINAL Telefunken ELA-M 250. Chances are high that it may have a failed component inside, which would cost me around $300 or more to repair with NOS(new old stock) components.
Now, back to the credit card fraud: you are planning to commit credit card fraud. Your dispute would be immediately invalidated because of the terms and conditions surrounding the original purchase. Since you agreed to those terms on the purchas, you can file the complaint and watch it bounce off the floor and get swept into the waste bin. The only one doing anything wrong here would be you.
Defective or not, your dispute claim is going to be invalidated immediately and discarded once any sort of research goes on. They'll see "bought used item with 30 day guaranty/warranty, item failed after terms. Client agreed to terms at point of sale. Claim rejected." You agreed to the terms when you purchased it, so your dispute is already moot.
Happy customer or not, you'd be wrong. Recession or not, you'd be wrong. Good Customer Service: I'm not privvy to what went on in that phone call, but it sounds like they said "hey, it's outside any possibly warranty due to the situation it was sold in, so if you want a working light, it's going to unfortunately involve some sort of cost for a repair", which is no doubt going to be less than a new fixture.
This isn't to say ADJ doesn't make good stuff. I've been buying their stuff since 2001, and I've been pleased. But, when you buy used, and that's from ANY product, you don't know the exact history. Seeing obviously abused things like dents, scratches, cracks, bullet holes(yes, some guy tried to sell me some speaker cabinets with bullet holes in them, needless to say I passed on that one). Abuse or bad prior operation can be easily masked or even hidden without the inspector knowing anything.
Your options are limited to the following:
Repair at your expense
Replacement at your expense
Chuck it. Please use an electronic waste handling service.
Get something else.(variant on replacement)
Don't think you're alone in this sort of thing. A few weeks ago some guy who bought a top of the line CSU/DSU off my father many years ago was crying to me and demanding I do warranty repair on it. Well, yes, the gear cost around $5000 around 20 years ago, and that was when my father worked directly for the company that made it. He then worked for the company that bought out the orginal company(and they continued to make the same product). He then moved onto a VAR-type company, which I also worked for, then we both formed our own data comm company, which is where this guy got my number from. Now, seeing as how my father has been dead for 7 years now, and the item only had a 3 year warranty, and the guy had this unit for well over 15 years, AND I haven't sold any data comm gear for 5 years(because I don't get good margins anymore), clearly, this isn't my problem. Yet, what am I supposed to do? I'm not going to bend over and take it back, this gear long ago served it's purpose and considering the age, was a fantastic ROI and had been fully depreciated on taxes, so they got their money's worth out of this item and then some. I know people using units FAR older than this one that are still running strong.
Or how about this scenario: At least once a month, people call me about used gear from the same company, mainly expecting me to repair it for them for free. Wait, I don't work for that company, never did. Second, I didn't sell it. Third: My time is apparently worth so little that I'm expected to dig deep into my pockets to repair this gear out of the goodness of my heart? So now I have a bad reputation because I won't lube up my backside and let customers rape me over items I actually have ZERO responsibility for.
(and yes, I can repair these items, but no, I ain't gonna do it for free either)
Business seems to recall exactly what keeps them in business in the first place. You bought a used unit with an unknown history with a 30-day store warranty. Honestly, after that, you're on your own. ADJ sounds like it tried to find a way to extend that warranty to a 90-day warranty, which you unfortunately didn't qualify for either. That's the chance you took and unfortunately this one backfired on you, despite your past previous experience with ADJ. And based on my previous past experiences with ADJ is precisely why I bought 3 units under the same circumstances as I felt it would be a safe bet.
You're right, you're a customer, and happy customers are good for business. But, whining customers who are expecting things they aren't entitled to are not good for business, happy, sad, suicidal, homicidal or otherwise.
Now, going back to my case:
If my dealer that I normally use can do B-stock price matching(with full warranty), you can bet I'm jumping ship and going back to my prefered dealer. If not, my options after 30 days are as follows:
Repair at my cost, which will still be cheaper than a replacement.
Replacement, which if I do so would be NEW only.
I paid via credit card, and the terms and conditions are clearly laid out. The items come with a Guitar Center 30-day satisfaction guaranty and NO manufacturer warranty(even though the items are so new they are still under the 3-year warranty just via age of the product period). I understand these terms and am stuck with them.
I guess it comes down to:
What part of the agreed upon terms and conditions of the sale were you having a problem understanding?
Which comes down to the following:
Repair at your cost
Replace at your cost
You've exceeded any warranty, expressed or implied. Those are your choices with ADJ. Really, their hands are tied.
If a $350 item failed on me, I'd be angry to, but I also know my options going forward so I know my recourse of action. And for $350, I'd also expect the item to last a LOT longer(say, 5-7 years LONGER!!). Used is a gamble. Sucks that you lost. Sucks that it cost you. I'd feel the same way if it happened to me.
Now, if ADJ repairs the item and it FAILS again, then you've got a basis for a dispute on the repair IF the repair fails within the terms of the repair warranty.
I strongly suggest the repair route. You're not going to get any further than you already have with the angle you're going, even if you were handling it in a more polite manner. Of course, nothing leads me to beleive you're not handling this in a polite manner.
Look how much I talk up ADJ products. They don't cut me no slack or give me any favors. To them, and no offense to ADJ, I'm just another faceless customer, no better or worse than anyone else. I get the same courtesy any other ADJ customer deserves.
Want full warranty? Buy new. That's about as good as you can get.
Your help is:
Repair at your expense
Replacement at your expense.
You have other options, but they won't net results, so they are not worth discussing anyways, and will most likely cost you some amount of money anyways, unless the mystical Gear Fairy comes down and with his magic wand magically fixes your gear or grants you a new one.
(or is that Gear Faerie....)
It's been made clear. Now the choices are yours.
Sorry for your loss.