EXHIBIT B - WARRANTY SERVICE AND RETURN PROCEDURES

Dealer and Vendor agree that the intent of these Warranty Service and Return Procedures is to ensure that the Customers are satisfied with their purchases. The provisions of this Exhibit demonstrate the commitment of Dealer and the Vendor to provide the Customer with Product free of defects that performs to the Customer's expectations.

1.0 - Vendor Warranty Performance  

The Vendor will use all commercially reasonable efforts to resolve in a timely manner all legitimate warranty claims by Customers or Dealer whether arising before, during or after the termination or expiration of this Agreement.

2.0 - Vendor Warranty Obligations  

Vendor agrees to the negotiation and implementation of the Best Buy Canada Product Service Agreement whereby Vendor will:

1. authorize Dealer to facilitate, diagnose failures and/or service Products purchased by Dealer from the Vendor;
2. reimburse Dealer for the diagnosis and/or service performed by Dealer on Customer's Product and store stock Product at such amounts as may be mutually agreed to between the parties from time to time (including labour rates and any freight costs to and from service location);
3. negotiate in good faith with Dealer a service labour rate to be charged by Dealer to the Vendor for diagnosing failures and/or servicing Products, at a rate that is consistent with Dealer's cost of doing business and is aligned with current industry standards;
4. sell repair parts and accessories to Dealer at Dealer cost and to reimburse Dealer for in-warranty parts at Dealer's cost;
5. provide Dealer, free of charge, digital copies of owner's and service manuals for each Product prior to Dealer's initial receipt of the specific model; and, to grant Dealer a license to store and share said manuals within the Dealers own facilities;
6. provide Dealer, free of charge, any and all restore media (including any product licenses, keys, or activation codes) where applicable, required to reset a Customer's computer to factory settings;
7. to provide Dealer, free of charge, any and all training and technical support reasonably requests by Dealer in order for it to be able to diagnose failures and/or service Products purchased from the Vendor;
8. for all product qualifying for In-Home Service, shall:
   1. attempt schedule an appointment for service within four (4) business hours of an initial service request whether by the Dealer; it’s agents or subsidiaries; or, the customer directly;
   2. complete at minimum an on-site diagnostic call within five (5) business days, except where Customers’ schedule does not permit;
   3. at the request of the Dealer or its designated agent or affiliate provide a reference number as confirmation of required service appointments;
   4. provide updates on repair status as may from time to time be requested within one (1) business day of receiving said request;
   5. dispatch the service call to the Dealers’ designated partner or affiliate where customer resides within the Dealers’ service area and the product is serviceable by Dealer;
   6. will supply Special Equipment to Dealer at no cost to Dealer. Special Equipment is defined as testing/repair equipment unique to Vendor or non-standard in the Product repair industry.

3.0 - Returns for Credit

3.1 -

Dealer and the Vendor agree that all Product returned to the Vendor will result in a credit being issued to Dealer's account with the Vendor.

1. The Vendor agrees that all returns (other than overstock) will be shipped by Dealer freight collect via Vendor's designated carrier/courier. Appointment must be made within 2 days of our Returns Facility call;
2. The Vendor will provide in Appendix B-1 or B-2 as applicable, attached to the Vendor Agreement, the Vendor's RMA contact and contact information, RMA ship to address, choice of carrier, and the carrier account number or billing information. Freight, brokerage, duty and all other related expenses shall be the responsibility of the Vendor;
3. Any changes to the Vendor’s primary returns location must be noted on an updated Appendix B-1 which should be submitted to vsetpro@bestbuycanada.ca. Dealer shall not be responsible for any discrepancies for Product which has; at the Vendor’s direction, been returned to a location which differs from that listed on Appendix B-1;
4. Risk of loss or damage and title shall occur as follows:
   1. Where Product is shipped via the Vendor's carrier/courier, risk of loss or damage and title passes to Vendor upon carrier's/courier's signature at time of pick up by the Vendor's designated carrier/courier.
   2. Where Product is delivered by Dealer's preferred carrier, risk of loss or damage and title passes to Vendor upon delivery of the products into the possession or custody of the Vendor at its designated Return facility.

3.2 -

Dealer may return all or any part of Dealer’s inventory on hand of a particular SKU of Product when any of the following occurs:

1. Product has been determined to be defective by the Customer within thirty (30) calendar days from date of purchase by the Customer;
2. Product cannot be repaired by Dealer, the Vendor or the Vendor's Authorized Servicer within five (5) business days of the date that the Product is received for service;
3. During the period of warranty, a part for any Product is not delivered to Dealer or the Vendor's Authorized Servicer within 5 business days of receipt of a purchase order for the part
4. During the four year period commencing on the first date of purchase by Dealer of a particular model, style or SKU of Product, a cabinet or cosmetic part for that Product is not delivered to Dealer or the Vendor's Authorized Servicer within twenty (20) business days of receipt of a purchase order for the cabinet or cosmetic part;
5. During the five year period commencing on the last date of purchase by Dealer of a particular model, style or SKU of Product, an electronic component or functional part for that Product is not delivered to Dealer or the Vendor's Authorized Servicer within 10 business days of receipt of a purchase order for the electronic component or functional part;
6. During the period of warranty, the Product has the same fault or component failure on three separate occasions or is deemed uneconomical to repair (i.e., the repair cost of parts and labor exceeds one-half of Dealer's purchase price) by a qualified Dealer service technician or Vendor's Authorized Servicer;
7. The Product has not met CSA, UL, FCC or DOC approval when applicable; or
8. Any particular Product line:
   1. that is affected by defects related to usefulness, value, or safety of the product; and/or,
   2. has greater than 5% errors attributed to the same fault; and/or,
   3. has a failure rate that is fifty percent (50%) higher than the average failure rate of comparable models of other manufacturers, as determined by Dealer, acting reasonably and/or,
   4. is subject to a product recall;
      constitutes "Catastrophic Defect". Vendor agrees to fully compensate Dealer for all costs of Warranty Service required to remedy and remove all liability resulting from Catastrophic Defect; which may include, at the Dealer's sole discretion, full credit for return of the affected product. Catastrophic Defect returns shall be excluded from returns caps or defective allowances held under this or any other agreement.
9. Where the Vendor has failed to provide, or correct information required under Best Buy's Transportation of Dangerous Goods or Sustainability Reporting & Fees policies.

Vendor will grant a Return Material Authorization (“RMA”) number within three (3) business days to Dealer, or Dealer will use the Open Return Authorization number provided by Vendor as the case may be.

3.3 -

The Vendor agrees that the time frame for Defective Products that are eligible for return for credit (RTV expiry days) is calculated from the customer purchase date to the customer return date in-store or to Dealer’s call center RMA issue date. This time frame will be specified in Appendix B-2 as applicable, and is attached to the Vendor Agreement. Where Appendix B-2 does not exist; the time frame will by default, align with the product warranty (as days) submitted by the Vendor for each item on the SKU set up form. Dealer reserves the right to update SKU return eligibility (RTV Days) based on the warranty program and the risk assessed by the Dealer. Dealer shall notify Vendor of any updates; said updates shall be considered final and will be honored by vendor until such time that an update is requested by the Vendor as per Section 3.6 herein.

3.4 -

Open Box and Demo Products are entitled to Warranty Services from the date the Open Box Product is purchase by the final customer. If an Open box Product requires Warranty Services, Dealer will repair such Open Box Product in accordance with the normal procedure for originally purchased products in accordance with Vendor Warranty repair processes.

3.5 -  

In the case of product that is entitled to a defective allowance in lieu of returns, the Vendor agrees to allow Dealer to sell these defective products as salvage.

3.6 -  

The Vendor agrees to provide Dealer forty-five (45) business days’ prior notification when the Vendor changes its return policy for a Product in any of the following occurrences:

1. Product becomes obsolete and is no longer eligible for return for credit (designated to be End of Life); or
2. There is a change to a Products’ return period (RTV Days).

All changes are to be submitted to BBYC_RTV@bestbuy.com for review and approval. Notification timeframe for approved requests commences as of the request submission date. Vendor shall be notified by Dealer of all approved and/or rejected requests.

Changes to warranty days or warranty type are to be requested by contacting the Best Buy Canada Product Manager.
 

3.7 -  

If Vendor ceases doing business with Dealer or the Vendor Agreement is otherwise terminated for any reason, then Dealer may destroy any remaining inventory or hand with Dealer that the Vendor has not, within 60 days of the cessation of business between the parties or the effective date of termination, either (i) picked up from Dealer's designated location; or (ii) accepted the return shipment of such inventory pursuant to the terms of the Agreement. Dealer may destroy such inventory without any liability to Vendor whatsoever and at the Vendor's sole cost and expense. Vendor agrees to fulfill all outstanding obligations unless otherwise provided in writing by Dealer.
 

4.0 - Return Procedures

4.1 -

The Vendor agrees to issue Dealer an RMA (or an open or virtual RMA) for credit within three (3) business days of a valid request from Dealer. Dealer may rely upon any RMA issued by the Vendor. In the case of an Open Return Authorization granted by Vendor to Dealer, Dealer will issue the return as follows, relying on the RA number on records.

4.2 -  

Dealer will prepare a Request for Return Form detailing the debit note number, the Vendor's Ship to address, the Vendor's contact and contact information and the Product being returned. The Product information will only include the Dealer Item number, item description, quantity, and price. Serial numbers, Dealer invoice or purchase order numbers, return reason and proof of purchase will not be provided. The price to be used on the Request for Return Form will be the price most recently paid by Dealer for the Product. In the case of broken bundles, Dealer will use Product pricing.

4.3 -  

With the exception of blister package or bubble packaged product, Vendor acknowledges that Dealer will use reasonable efforts to obtain from the Customer original packaging or at least provide sufficient packaging to prevent in transit damage to the returns. Vendor will not withhold credit to Dealer in these circumstances.

4.4 -  

In the case of Product being returned to the Vendor with accessories missing (eg. a television without a remote), Vendor may claim back for the value deducted by of Dealer's Claim process (see Exhibit D). Vendor will not withhold credit to Dealer in these circumstances. Both parties will agree upon a regularly updated price list of the applicable accessories which will be attached to this agreement as Appendix C. Where Appendix C does not exist, Dealer shall not credit Vendor for any missing accessory claims.

4.5 -  

All Products being repaired either by Vendor or at Vendor Authorized Servicer and resulting in a Full Credit Return Authorization must be returned to Vendor (at Vendor’s complete expense) via Dealer Returns Facilities in compliance with Sarbanes-Oxley standards. Vendor shall not accept returns directly from a third party servicer without express written permission from Dealer.

4.6 -  

Vendor agrees that any special handling requests, product information, inspections and additional services requested by the Vendor in addition to Dealer's standard operation policy will be subject to a negotiated cost which will be invoiced and deducted monthly from outstanding payables owed to the Vendor.

5.0 - Vendor RTV Rejection, Claims and Product Discrepancy Notice Procedures

5.1 -

In the event a Vendor identifies a discrepancy, it must complete Dealer's Product Discrepancy Claim Form in full within 72 hours of its receipt of the shipment and submit it to Dealer's Return Center by electronic mail only (e-mail: rtvliaison@bestbuy.com). This notice will contain items that are discrepant along with this items that are being rejected by the Vendor in accordance with either an RMA or contractual guidelines and therefore must be returned to Dealer. Notwithstanding any terms outlined in section 3.1, any claims related to damage shall be accompanied by pictures of the following:

1. dealers Tag ID (affixed to the shipping carton or product);
2. Product serial number plate (where applicable);
3. damage to product;
4. packaging used to ship the product.

Discrepancy notices submitted for damages which do not include all of the required information/pictures shall be immediately refused. Vendor will have the ability to resubmit via RTV Liaison within 48 hours.

5.2 -  

Upon receipt of the Notification, Dealer's Return Center will review and issue an authorization/purchase order number for those items shown on the Product Discrepancy Notice that are requested for return back to Dealer. Dealer's Return Center will then arrange pick up of the Product. Alternatively, Vendor may ship authorized Product back to Dealer's Return Center, but must have a valid appointment prior to shipment. Any shipment arriving without an appointment will be refused.

5.3 -  

Dealer reserves the right to inspect all disputed Product which has been returned by Vendor. Dealer reserves the right to amend the dispute amount based on any discrepancies between the physical product or, its’ condition at the time of receipt by Dealer. Vendor will be notified of any discrepancies within three (3) business days.

5.4  -

Products which have been approved on the Product Discrepancy Notification Form which are not required to be returned to Dealer (i.e. shortages or missing accessory claims); Vendor must follow Claim Guidelines (see Exhibit D).

5.5 -  

If no discrepancies are reported to Dealer within three (3) business days, then all items will be considered by Dealer to be received and accepted by the Vendor.

5.6  -

Dealer's RTV Liaison will arrange pick up of the Products from the Vendor and coordinate delivery and appointments to Dealer's Distribution Centre at the Dealer's cost. Vendor shall submit the carrier name; pick-up date; and waybill with their request for reimbursement (see Exhibit D).

6.0 - Product Recalls -  Product Recall Policy Notice

In the event of a Product recall (including without limitation, a recall of one or more components of a Product), whether or not initiated by the Vendor, the Vendor will:

6.1 -  

accept all liabilities for the affected Product’s SKU(s) for the lifetime of the Product;

6.2 -  

not assign any responsibilities of recalled Product SKU without first obtaining written approval from Dealer;

6.3 -  

accept all returns of the recalled Product at any time, without restriction;

6.4 -  

provide an Open RMA for the processing of all recalled Product; for clarity, returns will be offset from payables, and Dealer reserves the right to implement an immediate payment hold pending completion of a risk assessment;

6.5 -  

ensure all appropriate authorities including, but not limited to Health Canada, have been properly notified;

6.6 -  

prepare and post recall notices (in both English and French language) to advise customers of the recall, and supply copies to Dealer to post online and instore;

6.7 - 

cover all costs associated with any customer communication with respect to the recall;

6.8 -

execute Dealer’s standard Non-Disclosure Agreement before receiving any customer information or sales data;

6.9 -  

provide Dealer with all equivalency certificates, shipping materials, guidelines and such other documents as required in connection with Product which contains materials subject to Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations, including, without limitation, for the transportation of all such Product to Dealer’s designated location for consolidated pick-up by Vendor; (for clarity, such Product cannot be picked-up from individual store locations);

6.10 -  

cover all costs associated with special materials for, and handling of, Products which contain materials subject to Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations;

6.11 -  

set up a new SKU and UPC for any replacement product (including instances where recalled Product is being replaced by a revised version of the same model or manufacturer part number).

Click here to view the Warranty Service and Return Procedures Overview for Canada.