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What to do if the radio is damaged

The two way radio is considered one of the most stable and reliable modes of communication available to modern man. This is why industry, commerce, emergency responders and consumers around the world rely heavily on radio technology to communicate every day. As stable and reliable as it is, the two way radio itself is still a man-made device, and like all devices, stuff happens. It's inevitable. So if it does happen, and your two way radio becomes damaged, what do you do?

Troubleshooting radio damage
Follow these steps to troubleshoot possible radio damage before contacting the manufacturer or dealer for warranty support.

Step 1. Check for exterior damage.
Inspect the exterior of the radio for any sign of external damage or trauma. Check for the following:

  • Excessive wear or stress
  • Missing knobs or other parts
  • Broken or missing antenna
  • Broken, cracked, scratched or discolored display
  • Chips, gashes scrapes or other signs of trauma to the chassis
  • Traces of contamination from bodily fluids, i.e vomit, urine, blood, etc.
  • Burn marks
  • Outward signs of moisture

If your radio shows signs of exterior damage, skip to step 4.
If no exterior damage or trauma is visible, proceed to step 2.

Step 2. Check for internal damage.
Inspect the radio for any sign of internal damage. Check for:

  • Moisture or condensation inside the display, particularly around the edges.
  • Slight or heavy burnt smell when battery compartment opened or back of radio exposed
  • Slight dank or moldy smell when battery compartment opened or back of radio exposed
  • Water or moisture
  • Excessive dirt or dust
  • Traces of contamination from bodily fluids, i.e vomit, urine, blood, etc.
  • Signs of corrosion on battery terminals
  • Signs of leakage in battery compartment

If your radio has signs of internal damage skip to step 4.
If your radio does not have signs of internal damage, proceed to step 3.

Step 3. Check to determine if the radio is operable.

  • If the radio shows no signs of physical damage and is still operable, no warranty support is needed*.
  • If your radio shows signs of external or internal damage, go to step 4.

*Important: If an intrinsically safe radio is subjected to possible damage, never turn it on or attempt to use it in a potentially hazardous environment until it has been thoroughly inspected offsite. Just because the radio looks undamaged, doesn't necessarily mean it is safe to use in such an environment.

Step 4. Review the terms of the manufacturer warranty.
In most situations, the manufacturer warranty does NOT cover damage to the radio, including damage caused by intentional or unintentional misuse, contamination from foreign substances, electrical damage, battery leakage, improper storage or failure to follow proper usage or care as instructed in the owner's manual. The damage from improper use may even void the manufacturer warranty, depending upon the situation. when in doubt, contact the manufacturer of the radio.

In such situations, an extended warranty or service plan could be the answer. These service plans can not only extend the life of the existing warranty on your radios, they may also provide some coverage or provision for the repair or replacement of your radio when the damage is not covered under the warranty provided by the manufacturer.

A selection of service plans is available from Buy Two Way Radios through CPS. These service plans are flexible and provide coverage for a wide variety of electronic devices, including consumer and business two way radios.

Icom also offers a 3 year extended warranty for its line of business two way radios.

For more information on these extended warranty and service plans, contact us.

7 thoughts on “What to do if the radio is damaged”

  • Frie van Peer

    Since two months I have a baofeng uv-5r+but, for some reason, he stopped working. When I want to charge the device with a battery, a red light stays on all the time, but if I only charge the battery, then the red led became green after a while and it works perfectly. But even with a full battery the radio does not turn on, I have tried all the tips and trucks but nothing helps. I submitted it to the salesmen and I made a video at their request what they would need for the research evidence, I would receive an email within 48 hours,

    I'v spoken alot with the seller but he keeps me on the line.

    This doesn't look so good for baofeng uv-5r Hopefully you can?? Best regards. I stay :Frie van Peer

    Reply
    • Rick

      If the UV-5R doesn't power on, you can follow the steps in the article What to do if the radio does not power on to troubleshoot the issue. If you follow all the steps and it still doesn't work, either the battery or the radio itself may be defective. Your only recourse at that point is to contact the seller for a replacement if it is still under warranty. Unfortunately, the manufacturer warranty for the Baofeng UV-5R is generally considered worthless due in part to the low cost of the radio so it's usually not worth spending the expensive shipping cost to send it back to the manufacturer or the dealer. We stopped selling Baofeng radios a few years ago, so we no longer support their radios.

      Reply
  • darrin lingle

    radio receives but does not transmit
    why

    Reply
    • Rick

      Hi Darrin, it can be due to a number of reasons. We need more information about your radio. What is the make and model? How old is the radio? What channel and frequency is it using? What other radio is it attempting to communicate with? Did it work before? If so, what changes were made between then and now? Has it been dropped or damaged at some point? If operational, is it transmitting at full power? Are you using CTCSS tones or DCS codes? If so, are the other radios using the same tones or codes? Did you follow all the steps in the article? Just saying that your radio doesn't transmit without any other information doesn't give us much to go on.

      Reply
  • Larry Vangor

    Radio powers on but, recieves
    an transmits but I'm unable to change the band or channel. It's as though the keyboard is locked.

    Reply
    • Rick

      Hi Larry, we need more information. What is the make and model of the radio? When was the last time it functioned normally? Did anything change between then and now? In other words, was it dropped, did it get wet, or was the programming changed? Just posting that it doesn't work doesn't give us much to go on.

      Reply
  • colt

    I need help with this Baofeng UV-5R because everytime i try to talk in the radio, it either it dose not transmit or it makes a DUE sound over the other radio and nothing comes over

    Reply

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