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  • #2257438

    Help! Laptop Maintenance Policy

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    by shaishav ·

    Hi Everyone,

    I am managing IT resources for a Trading company. We now want our sales force to carry-a-laptop instead of their desktop.

    While this is a great idea to increase flexibility and efficiency, I have been asked to design a policy for maintaining the laptops.

    I am looking for answers to following questions:

    1. Who should bear the cost of maintenance company or employee to whom the laptop is given?

    2. If the laptop is damaged, who should bear the cost of repair/replacement?

    TIA!

    Regards
    Shaishav

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    • #3215257

      Lot of variables

      by mjd420nova ·

      In reply to Help! Laptop Maintenance Policy

      If the units are to be provided by the employer, then the employer would/should be responible for the maintenence/repair of those units. One cost effective way of doing this is to purchase/lease the units from a supplier that also includes a warranty program that would help to defray the cost of those units needing repair/replacement. A program could be started that would have a number of units that would be available for users whose units are out for repair. Also, some companies have incentive programs that reward users for “careful” use of the laptops, helping to prevent the carefree attitudes of certain users who seem to always have trouble with keeping the units working properly. I’ve seen many users who feel that because they are “given” a unit do not treat it with respect and as a result are always in limbo with a unit that is out for service for mosr than half the time. Care should also be taken to insure users treat said units as their own, and not abused lest they be liable for any repairs not within the scope of the warranties.

    • #3215179

      What cost

      by jdmercha ·

      In reply to Help! Laptop Maintenance Policy

      First off who is buying the laptop to begin with? If the laptop is supplied by the company, then the company should cover the maintenance costs. If the employees are buying the laptop then the employees should be resonsible for the maintenance.

      Then again what maintenance costs are you refering to? If the laptops are purchased with a warranty then there are no maintenance costs associated with the hardware.

    • #3214935

      Can of worms

      by zlitocook ·

      In reply to Help! Laptop Maintenance Policy

      You work from your user (computer usage policy) you do have one of those don?t you? Then the user internet usage policy. This extends to the laptops, if a person reads and understands both policies they sign off on it. We have CBT’s that they must take and pass before they are given rights to use the computers/laptops.
      All are under extended warranty and are disposed of after the warranty is over. The employee knows that if the computer/laptop is damaged it will be sent in for repair. And if the damage is from misuse the person is charged for the repair. If the employee cause the O/S to stop working it is looked at and if the person was doing some thing they should not be doing, like going to nonrelated sites or installing non approved software. They or their department are charged for fixing or reinstalling the O/S.
      Bottom line if your company provides the computer/laptop the person who gets it is responsible for the care and how it is used. If they let their kids use it and it gets infected with a virus or gets koolade in the keyboard the user or their department has to pay to fix it.
      This really cuts down on misuse on equipment and calls to the help desk.
      Never let people use their own computers unless you want to be responsible for it.

    • #3213393

      Our company policy

      by gojints ·

      In reply to Help! Laptop Maintenance Policy

      If you are given a laptop by the company, the company takes care of the maintenance.

      The employee is responsible to ensure the virus software definitions are up to date and that no illegal software is installed. We also have the right to inspect any laptop, company or personal, which is in the office and connected to the network to ensure everything is clean and software is up to date.

      If the laptop is damaged, it depends on how as to whether or not the company will replace it or if the employee will bear all or some of the cost of the replacement. If it was through negligence (left it somewhere, dropped it because it wasn’t secured properly in a laptop case, etc.), the employee will bear the brunt of the cost. If it was through no fault of their own, the company will bear the cost. Again, it depends on the circumstance, and the person.

      • #3202095

        Laptop Maintenance Policy

        by shaishav ·

        In reply to Our company policy

        friends, Thanks for your reply!

        Although all your replies were clear, I have following points to be discusse further:

        1. We have policy on computer usage and etc… however, there was never a policy on maintenance of laptops.

        2. Recently we are running into frequent problems with our laptops. For some of them warranty has expired and repair cost needs to be incurred and some laptops which are under warranty but some parts, such as LCD screen, are not covered by warranty and hence we need to bear the cost of repair.

        3. So far our Company used to take care of repair costs etc… but now we are working towards providing a laptop to each of the marketing staff; hence, the urgent need for an effective policy.

        4. It is difficult to identify the problem as user negligence and ultimately company will end-up paying for the laptop repairs; adversely affecting IT budget.

        5. Further, where we want to enable users to give flexibility in work-time and location, we as a SME do not want to contribute to such unforseen expenses.

        It will be helpfull if someone can share their policies in this respect.

        Thanks again!

        • #3200020

          Laptop Maintenance Policy – reply

          by gojints ·

          In reply to Laptop Maintenance Policy

          1. If you don’t have a policy on maintenance of laptops – WRITE ONE UP AND POST IT QUICKLY. Before the first laptop was given out, there was a policy in place and a form for the employee to sign. No signature – no laptop.

          2. Again, if you can show the damage was due to negligence, the employee should be responsible – something which should be made clear in the policy. If it is due to old age, out of date software/hardware, etc., the laptop should be replaced. (Suggestion, purchase a long-term warranty for the laptops. If you’re keeping them for a while, it may well be worth the extra cost.)

          3. You answered your own question with this one – you need an effective policy in place. If everyone in the company is to have a laptop, it is imperative you have a policy to fall back on.

          4. I agree it can be difficult to know if it is user negligence, but again, an in-place policy will help with this. As for the costs – that long term warranty will help. (We use strictly Dell workstation/laptops and get the 3-year warranty for every machine.)

          5. We are also an SME and need to watch costs. Because of our in place policy on laptops, and all machines, we have minimal issues with ‘broken’ equipment.

          If you have problems coming up with a policy, do what we did when coming up with ours – Google it! We came up with several options which we merged to a policy which fit our company. If you’re still having problems, talk to your legal department. They may have resources available to get you what you are looking for.

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