You can search ft for b&r warranty war stories and find that when they can't (or perhaps won't?) make a repair, they'll offer you a choice of some credit towards a new purchase or some kind of sample bag as a free replacement.

The good news is that the bags are very well built and the most likely points of failure, wheels and handles, are all user replaceable and parts are available from the website, though the customer will be charged for shipping.

Ime, I have an 8 year old large expandable briefcase which is in very good structural and cosmetic condition. The only problem being the strap loop needs to be resewn or patched back onto the bag as it has started to fail. It's hanging on by a few threads and carried a 9kg load over the course of a month long journey. So I decided to send it in for repair before it fails. However, in line with previous ft experience, briggs offered me a choice of a substantial credit towards a new bag, a similar sample bag, or return of my old bag.

When briggs sent me the offer I was about to depart on another month long trip overseas and asked them to ship the new bag to my foreign address. The rep I was working with replied that they would have to get back to me as to whether that arrangement is possible or if there would be a charge, given that as per warranty, they pay for return shipping. It's been a month and I'm about to return from my trip and still no word back from Briggs, granted I havent poked them about it either.

So I guess this is what might be described as the catch.