tfar

The subject comes up again and again, so I figured we could compile a list of brands and/or series with unconditional, life-time warranty. By that I mean a warranty that covers any damage (not cosmetic) for as long as you own the bag. Doesn't matter if an elephant stepped on it or the airline broke the wheels off.

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First Tier:

- Briggs and Riley: afaik on all pieces but double check
- Eagle Creek: On the ES, Velocity and the HC2 series.
- Boyt: On the Mach5 series.
- Travelpro: On the Platinum series. Warranty is not as concretely worded as BR but it comes down to the same. I've used their service once and they were very good.
- Redoxx
- Costco basically has a waterproof warranty with return/replacement policy.
- Osprey as the "almighty" warranty on all their bags
- Victorinox has it for their higher end lines.
- Titan luggage has it for US bags. They are originally from Germany and much cheaper there but don't feature the super warranty there.
- L.L. Bean
- Travelsmith
- Norm Thomson
- Land's End (see discussion below for more info on the last four brands)



Second Tier:

- Delsey has an unconditional warranty but ONLY on the Elite series and ONLY for one year.
- Tumi on most lines has it also for the first year. After that you got another 4 years of normal warranty. http://www.tumi.com/about/warranty-five-year/
- possibly Ebags on their own gear. The warranty info isn't explicit.
- Mosaic Travel Gear has it for the first three years. But not sure if they are still in business.

Disappointments:

Tom Bihn is supposed to have very good service but explicitly excludes airline damage. The same is true for Hartmann and Zero Halliburton.
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Note that for luggage that is always with you, the warranty is less important as you will take good care of it, presumably. Though, I have seen people totally overload their wheeled carry-ons and then drag them up and down stairs by the telescoping handles and wonder why they break. Duh!

If it has wheels and/or is checked regularly, the warranty is VERY important.

Final tip: Buy the luggage with a credit card that has a warranty extension if it doesn't have a waterproof warranty.

And a nice link for laughs:
http://www.saddlebackleather.com/17-warranty

Please add other bags to the list or correct mine if you find it faulty.

For better results and connectivity I have allowed myself to cross-post the link on OBOW and on the Practical Hacks Forum:
http://www.1bag1world.com/obow-light...um/post/989099
http://www.practicalhacks.com/forum/...warranty/#p162

I am sure both will turn up additional brands and interesting discussions.

Till

slidergirl

Add Osprey to the list. And, I think Eagle Creek is lifetime guarantee on the entire line, not just those you mention.

tfar

http://www.eaglecreek.com/ethos/lifetime_guarantee.php

Nope, only ES, Velocity and the new HC2 have the No Matter What policy.

Life-time is not the same as life-time AND unconditional.

This difference should be clearly noted so that the thread doesn't get watered down. Everybody and his dog (almost) offer life-time warranties. What we are looking for is one takes care of you in any event!

However, as you say, Osprey's warranty qualifies for this distinction:

http://www.ospreypacks.com/CustomerS...ghtyGuarantee/

Thanks for the input!

Till

GadgetFreak

Thanks for the summary. It is very useful.

As for the bolded part, I wasnt aware we had met. And it doesnt hurt the B&R rollers.

tfar

Well, I am sure if it were to break because you overloaded it and dragged it by the extension handles, you at least wouldn't wonder why it happened. ,)

GadgetFreak

Heh, no, I suppose not. Im thinking though of the times I go careening down the steps late at night at LGA to the downstairs pickup area from the AA gates with my B&R roller bouncing down the steps behind me. Probably not a great idea, but late at night after a trip and Im tired. And it doesnt seem to hurt the bag. I havent checked the steps

tfar

I just updated the info in the original post. It seems like Victorinox also has a really good warranty on their higher lines. Plus they have a tracer program. I think they might be the only ones to have the tracer program AND the unconditional warranty. This and the sales prices that can be had make it more interesting. I always found Victorinox luggage a bit lackluster (except the Architecture and Tourbach lines) but may look into it again.

Just saw that they are changing models in the Tourbach line to 2.0. So really nice deals can be had. Check it out. The Tourbach warranty is also even improved over the other V. warranty in that they will expedite a loaner bag to you while yours is in repair. I like that.

Till

gaflyguy09

While not particularly glamourous, and you'd have to see if their luggage is suited to your specific needs, I would recommend both Patagonia and LL Bean. I have had the "burrito suiter" from Patagonia replaced twice with no problems whatsoever. Additionally, I have had returned a laptop bag to LL Bean where the handle became unstitched, and the item was replaced with no hassle.

Hope that helps.

tfar

Patagonia says "damage due to wear and tear will be repaired at a reasonable charge".
http://www.patagonia.com/web/us/pata...tid=3915&ln=26

I just brought them a 12 year old Torre jacket. They fixed it up for me for free. Nice! But this is not a warranty that takes care of a torn bag for free. It is not quite in the same league as the ones we are talking about here. Also most Patagonia packs would be carry-on, so warranty isn't that important.

The "satisfaction guarantee" at L.L. Bean is not exactly worded very concretely.
http://www.llbean.com/customerServic...ee.html?nav=gn

Till

dave-b

I've always been impressed with LL Bean's customer service. I've had a number of items that they've simply replaced without any hassle.

tfar

Good to know. Water-resistant but not waterproof. We'd have to make a third tier. At that point it gets too "watered" down, pun intended.

Till

carolinelb

Hey, Till,

Land's End, Travelsmith and Norm Thompson allow returns at any time if a customer is not satisfied - no questions asked. I think for Land's End, you pay the return shipping, and I didn't check the other two...

jbart74

I've never had a problem returning any LL Bean product for a full replacement with no questions asked. Never owned their luggage, but this thread has prompted me to look into it as I need a new rollaboard. I've returned 8 year old shoes with soles worn through that were replaced with the latest version of the same product free of any charges. That's good Customer Service, IMHO.

oldpenny16

The Delsey bags I've owned that have been destroyed by airlines' baggage handling have not been covered under any warranty at all even though it was obviously a poor design that has been replaced by full zippers.

RedOxx is good as gold although their bags are very difficult to harm. I can't even think of what it would take to hurt a RedOxx product.

hopscotch1

Here is LL Beans warranty which does apply to luggage:

Our products are guaranteed to give 100% satisfaction in every way. Return anything purchased from us at any time if it proves otherwise. We do not want you to have anything from LL Bean that is not completely satisfactory.

From kayaks to slippers, fly rods to sweaters, everything we sell at L.L.Bean is backed by the same rock-solid guarantee of satisfaction. It's been that way since our founder sold his very first pair of Bean Boots in 1912. Today we're proud to continue the tradition � by offering quality products and standing behind them.