Dell complaints

[Irving Tech]

New Texas Law Limits Computer Repair To Licensed Private Investigators
Rife v. Texas Private Security Board



IJ client Mike Rife cannot compete with a government-created cartel that demands he close his businesses and complete a three-year apprenticeship under a licensed private investigator to get a state-required license to fix computers.

Texas now demands that every computer repair technician in the entire state acquire a private investigator’s license to repair a computer. To get that license, you are required to have a degree in criminal justice or perform a three-year apprenticeship under a licensed private investigator. If you perform certain repairs without a private investigator’s license, or if you have your computer repaired by someone without a license, you can be punished by a $4,000 fine and one year in jail as well as a $10,000 civil penalty.

Matt Miller, the executive director of the Institute for Justice Texas Chapter, which is located in Austin, said, “Texas is working hard to bring technology innovators to the state. Laws like this tell computer entrepreneurs that they are not welcome here, and that they must risk jail time in order to continue working in their chosen field.”

Computers can be unreliable and computer repair is a common, everyday transaction. Yet under the new law, consumers must take their computer to a licensed investigator to have it repaired, or risk one year in jail for using an unlicensed company. The law leaves consumers with fewer choices and higher prices for computer repairs.

http://www.ij.org/first_amendment/tx_computer_repair/index.html
_________________
chuck
http://tech-installers.com/forum

[guest_s]

WTF? Why?

[Commendatore]

That's a ridiculous and stupid law and the courts will rule it unconstitutional eventually because it will violates the right of people who perform computer repair to earn an honest living free from unreasonable governmental interference.

The rights of consumers to contract with the company of their choosing is being irrationally restricted by this new law. The Texas Constitution protects citizens from arbitrary and unreasonable restrictions on individual liberty, including the right to contract with the company of one’s choosing for everyday transactions like computer repair.

Theres no justification for a legitimate state interest in regulating that activity.

The law is overly broad.

[FallenAngel]

You have got to be kidding me.

Only in America.

[GripeIsMe]

Only in Texass! It Figures. Dubya must be worried that some poor DSP will stumble across lies on his Crawfrod PC! How stoopid can you get?? I guess if this sticks to the wall Dell will be paying huge dollars to get everyone a PI permit or they will tell the TX Legislature to go F itself and move to Colliefornia! Which would serve Texass right! What a joke! Don't them people down there have anything better to do?? Oh yeah...I fergot Dubya rules!

[tech-installers]

It seems as though they are actually targeting the companies that are into hard drive data fields

[GripeIsMe]

I stick by my post back in July. With the revelation last week that NSA phone spies were recording "pillow talk" btw our troops in Iraq and their wives/GF it reeks of Dubya!! If you have the PI license then you have to do what the state wants. What a slick way of getting info w/o a warrant! Shure as hell am glad I do NOT live in Texas!

[Rocke_T_Sinetist]

I've lived here 20 years. Seldom does a week go by without Texas embarrassing itself--and me--with nonsense like this.

IF it's true and complete. Y'see, all those guys barely breaking even driving their own cars working for Banctec and Unisys fixing Dells would be out of work, and if it takes 3 years to qualify, "licensed" techs aren't going to work for what Banctec is willing to pay. I guaran-dam-tee you the guys at Best Buy Geek Squad do not have pvt investigator licenses.
_________________
Rocke T Sinetist
as in, 'it doesn't take a...'

[GripeIsMe]

I'm sure Dell's legal beagles have been working OT on this. I think for the most part Dell and it's contractors will be exempt from this because we do not work on any other computers. And while under warranty Dell retains a "vested interest" in their products. And Dell also prohibits field techs from doing anything with the software already. They may have to change the way hard rives are done in certain cases like a certain business customer they have that requires the tech to replace the HD and then reinstall OS and leave the old HD with the customer. They may require sending that HD to the depot going FWD.

Otherwise it will be a legal can of worms as to where a company's franchise headquarters is located. Like Geek Squad. If say their HQ is located in Seattle are they bound by TX law? Probably. All those kind of places will either have to comply or not offer PC repair in TX anymore. Or limit service to only if you bought it thereunder warranty. Sounds like big money somewhere is behind this.

QXS will have to take a look at this. They sarted a contract with a big box
retailer and QXS does setup, software install, and some repair for the big box. That may not happen in TX any more. I'm sure if there is a way around it the legal beagles will find it. But I feel for the mom n pops.