VARs defend Dell support record

UK resellers have rallied round Dell after a US judge slated the PC giant’s customer support record.

A New York State Supreme Court judge ruled that Dell had engaged in false advertising and deceptive business practices in the state. This included depriving consumers of the technical support to which they were entitled under their warranty or service contracts.

Alastair Edwards, senior analyst at Canalys, said Dell was paying the price of its recent cost-cutting drive.

“The support issue has been something of a problem for Dell in the past. Two years ago it said it would put a huge effort into improving customer support, so it is possible [the complaints] date back to before this happened,” he said.

However, allies of Dell on this side of the Atlantic believe the ruling would have little impact in Europe, adding that the vendor had recently improved its warranty offering.

Robert May, managing director of VAR Ramsac, said: “It would be different if this happened in other territories, but at the moment I see it as an isolated New York State issue. Dell’s support has become a lot more intelligent now it has a pro-support option on its warranties, which allows resellers to do the diagnosis themselves. It would be great to see other vendors offering the same thing.”

Simon Aron, managing director of Eurodata, said: “Dell in Europe is pretty much a European entity and is far removed from the US.”

Dell said in a statement to CRN that it did not agree with the judge’s decision and that it would defend its position rigorously.