Motorola radio warranties outlined and explained

Two-way radios are a costly investment that need to provide a return for as many years as possible. Every Motorola radio we sell includes a manufacturer backed warranty ranging from 1-5 years that covers any defect or issue not related to physical damage.

In this article our technician, Matt Ralph, breaks down what you can expect out of your radio's warranty as well as answers some common warranty related questions.

Need to check if your radio is under warranty, or have a specific question that wasn't covered here? Give our team a call at (888) 733-7681 or email sales@radiodepot.com.

How long does the warranty last on my radios?

Warranty lengths differ based on the radio purchased. The easiest way to confirm the warranty length is to go to the product page of your specific model of radio. The length will be noted under its specifications.

A quick rundown of current Motorola radio warranties are as follows:

XPR series – 5 years from date of purchase

CP and SL series – 2 years from date of purchase

BPR Series – 1 year from date of purchase

What does my warranty cover?

The warranty covers manufacturer failures. Some of the common issues we’ve seen are volume controls spinning and not turning off, failure to transmit or receive, or antenna nut failure.

The warranty does not cover physical, liquid, or chemical damage. If the radio is crushed or water damaged, an estimate by the Motorola repair depot will be needed.

Are accessories included in the warranty of the radio?

This warranty length applies to the radio body only. Accessories such as belt clip, battery, antenna and charger all only have a one-year warranty. The warranty will begin on the date of purchase from Radio Depot, not the manufacturer’s warranty database.

How do I submit a radio for warranty repair?

To submit a radio for a warranty repair, you must first contact a sales rep or technician via phone or email. We will provide you an address to ship the item to. We generally request that some sort of documentation be sent with the unit so that we can attach the radio to your account (a business card or printed out email).

Radio Depot does not provide a shipping label for the shipment, but we do cover the shipping to return the warranty repair to you.

Is it the same for accessories?

For the most part, yes. Please contact us about your accessory and we will determine if the accessory is under warranty.

If it breaks, do not throw it away. It will need to be returned to us to process the warranty replacement. In order to process any warranty claim, we will need the original failed part.

Do I need an RMA number for submittal?

No. Just providing a company name to connect to the radios will allow us to connect the radios to you, if you have purchased with us previously.

If you are a new customer, we will need to take down your contact and shipment information before processing the repair.

How long does it take for the radio to be repaired?

2-3 weeks is typical, but repair times can differ based on the severity of the damage. We have received radios back from warranty as quickly as 1 week, however it generally takes 2-3.

The process breakdown of why it takes 2-3 weeks is as follows:

Shipping from customer to Radio Depot (1-5 days)
Shipping from Radio Depot to Motorola repair depot (2 days)
Repair time at Motorola repair depot (1-4 days – possible delays if parts are backordered)
Shipping from Motorola repair depot to Radio Depot (2 days)
Shipping from Radio Depot to customer (1-5 days)

I cannot go without a radio that long, what are my options?

The first thing to consider would be purchasing more radios. Having spare radios is always a great ease to the strain of losing a radio or two. However, if purchasing a new radio is not within your budget, Radio Depot has rental options to help in this situation.

We are generally willing to offer a demo from our fleet for the needed time period. Our demo contract would allow you to use the radio for the length of the warranty.

If the demo radio is damaged or lost in this time, additional charges will apply. This option must be approved and quoted by a Radio Depot sales representative.

Where is my radio? It has been taking longer than estimated.

At any point, if you need an update on where the radio is, please contact us via email or phone. We will be happy to provide an update on where the radio is in the repair process.

Common reasons repairs might get delayed include issues with shipping and backorder parts.

My radio is out of warranty, what should I do?

This would depend on the model of radio that you use. Our in-house repair option covers a limited list of models. The base cost of this repair is $50, if the repair costs more than $50, you will be quoted the full cost. This option is not available for XPR, SL, or BPR series radios.

If your radio model is not covered by our in-house repair department, all Motorola radios would have the option of flat-rate repairs through the Motorola repair center. However, this option is quite costly and usually makes less financial sense than just buying a new radio. If you would like pricing for the Motorola flat-rate repair, please contact our team for a quote.

The flat rate repair would not cover liquid, physical, or chemical damage. If the radio has suffered liquid, physical, or chemical damage; a quotation from Motorola will be needed in order to repair the unit.

Quite commonly, it would make more sense to buy a new unit at this point due to cost comparisons. We would break down the difference in cost for you if this were the case.

I just sent my radio in for warranty, and it is acting up again. What do I do?

If there is an issue with the radio after it has completed repair. There is a 90-day post repair warranty that will cover any failures with the radio in case any of the repairs were insufficient. We would likely need to cover it again.

If the error occurs three times and warranty still have not sufficiently repaired the issue, Motorola will provide another refurbished radio in the stead of the failed radio. This is a rare occurrence and when it does occur, generally deals with board-level repairs.