FTC Proclaims 'Warranty Void if Removed' Stickers Are Totally Illegal And Moronic

At this time we do not know the six companies that've been sent the letter of warning from the FTC.

The use of Hyundai parts is required to keep your. manufacturer's warranties and any extended warranties intact.

The FTC warning states that language like "this warranty shall not apply if this product.is used with products not sold" and requiring warranty stickers to maintain a warranty are all illegal.

That's according to the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC), who yesterday posted a press release warning vehicle, phone, and video game console makers to stop using warranty terms that aren't legally enforceable.

As for PlayStation VR owners, Sony demands they take particularly good care of the "warranty seal on the product", which shall not be "altered, defaced, or removed" to continue enjoying the benefits of the headset's limited hardware warranty.

"The letters warn that FTC staff has concerns about the companies' statements that consumers must use specified parts or service providers to keep their warranties intact", the release says. To their credit, Apple has loosened that grip around third-party iPhone screen repairs, honoring in-warranty pricing even with the fix. The FTC cites the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, which in 1975 determined that manufacturers can not restrict repairs on devices which come with warranties, and the FTC Act.

According to the FTC, those types of provisions are generally prohibited unless a company provides free parts replacement and repairs, or has received a waiver from the FTC.

As tech enthusiasts, we've all come across "warranty void if removed" stickers.

The illegal act here is companies appearing to "tie warranty coverage to consumers' use of authorized parts or service".

The FTC is demanding that the companies stop voiding warranties and remove statements from their websites and other materials threatening to do so within 30 days. Here are the statements the FTC didn't like, with the company names in bold where they were blank before. This in effect forces consumes to forgo do-it-yourself repairs or paying a potentially reduced rate to a third-party fix shop, rather than going through the manufacturer.