Thank you for shopping at DataStores. If you are not entirely satisfied with your purchase, we’re here to help.
1. Returns
Please check the product is compatible with your system before opening the box! If you are not sure, call our sales team on 0207 291 0890.
You have 14 calendar days to return an item from the date you received it. To be eligible for a return, your item must be unused and in the same condition that you received it. The product must be un-opened in the original packaging with all seals on the outer box in tact.
Your item needs to be returned with correct RMA paperwork which will be supplied by our customer services department. Call us on 0207 291 0890 or email: customer(dot)services(at)protape.co.uk
2. Refunds
Once we receive your item, we will inspect it and notify you that we have received your returned item. We will immediately notify you on the status of your refund after inspecting the item. If your return is approved, we will initiate a refund to your credit card (or original method of payment).
You will receive the credit within a certain amount of days, depending on your card issuer’s policies.
2B. Account Customer Returns
For items purchased on 30 day trading account a 10% surcharge will be applied to credits unless replacement goods are issued, in which case this will be wavered.
3. Shipping
You will be responsible for paying for your own shipping costs for returning your item. Shipping costs are non-refundable. If you receive a refund, the cost of return shipping will be deducted from your refund.
4. Faulty Products within the DOA warranty period
In the event your product develops a physical fault you will have the option of an exchange or refund if the fault develops within the DOA period (G-Technology 30 days from purchase, Lacie 14 days from purchase). This is subject to the terms and conditions outlined in section 6.
Goods will be tested upon arrival at Protape in order to verify fault found. Units found not to be at fault will be returned with a report.
The hard drive needs to be returned in the original packaging with all peripherals and the fault will need to be verified by us in order to qualify for a replacement or refund.
5. Faulty Products outside of the DOA warranty period
Should the product develop a physical fault after the DOA period but within the manufacturer’s warranty period you will be entitled to a warranty replacement. This will be supplied by the manufacturer but processed by us or if you prefer you can also raise an RMA directly with the manufacturer.
You will be without a product during the RMA returns process whilst we send off your faulty unit and await the warranty replacement (usually 14-21 days). We can check the warranty expiry date and warranty status of a hard drive with the serial number on the chassis.
6. Hard Drive Warranty Process
All hard drives must be returned with a completed Hard Drive returns form to our address:
Protape Ltd, 83 Charlotte Street, Lower Ground, W1T 4PR.
Please contact us by phone 0207 291 0890 or email us for a copy of the returns form.
Protape will test all hard drives in house to verify any product fault claims in order to process an RMA with the relevant manufacturer. If no fault is found then generally we would return the unit to the customer with a report outling tests done and possible diagnosis.
7. Advance Replacements
If you require an advance replacement it will have to be paid for. A refund will be issued upon receipt and verification of the faulty unit. If no fault is found with the drive it will be returned back to you.
8. Acceptable Product Faults
The manufacturer warranty only covers hardware faults not software faults. A corrupt hard drive does not qualify as a faulty drive unless there is an underlying hardware issue causing the file corruption. A corrupt hard drive is generally a soft’ fault caused by a malfunction with the operating system or by corrupt files. Drives can be repaired/restored in disk utility (MAC) or disk management (Windows) by using the First Aid and Erase functions. In the event you need to recover files we recommend using third party data recovery software e.g. Disk Warrior.
Hardware faults do qualify for replacements under warranty. Examples of these are:
- Hard drive does not power on.
- Drive is making loud clicking/ticking sounds.
- Hard drive keeps ejecting whilst in use.
- Hard drive does not mount or show in disk utility.
- Files will not transfer on to the unit.
- The drive cannot be successfully formatted.
9. Data Loss
Protape cannot be held liable for any data loss incurred by a product fault. Your data is your responsibility. All data should be backed up securely. We recommend backing up in at least 3 different places.
10. Contact Us
If you have any questions on how to return your item to us, please contact us on 0207 291 0890 or email: [email protected]