A cracked screen and a phone that cannot start need different preparation. Decide whether your immediate priority is preserving data, restoring use or retaining warranty eligibility. An instruction to inspect is not a clear agreement to replace the main board, reset the phone or accept any price. Explain an incomplete backup before handover and ask which proposed steps could erase data.
What to have ready
Separate inspection from repair authorisation
Ask the intake record to identify the model, serial number, fault, exterior condition and retained accessories. Clarify whether an inspection fee applies even if you decline repair, quotation validity, parts type, labour and repair warranty. If dismantling is needed before pricing, authorise inspection explicitly and require approval through an agreed channel before additional work.
A screen replacement description may leave sensors, face recognition, calibration and sealing unresolved. Ask which functions the proposed repair could affect. Manufacturer, authorised-centre and independent-shop arrangements differ. Check existing warranty terms and compare the quotation with replacement costs, including other diagnosed faults, before deciding whether the repair makes practical sense.
Prepare data and access before handover
PCPD recommends regular backups and erasing data before repair or disposal. Verify recovery of essential photographs, contacts and work files on a trusted device before following the manufacturer's preparation procedure. Authentication apps, banking access, eSIMs and chat histories can require separate arrangements; one completed backup indicator does not establish that every account can be restored.
If the phone cannot operate, document why backup or erasure is unavailable and ask about data-preserving inspection, subcontracting and access to the device. Do not hand over cloud passwords or one-time codes. Perform required unlocking yourself according to manufacturer instructions. Before remote erasure, understand the consequences for device location and recovery, rather than treating every reset as harmless.
Collect the phone with the same test sheet
- Record functions that worked before handover. At collection, check calls, charging, touch input, cameras, sound and the original fault, and compare the serial number.
- Obtain the work, parts and test record and compare the charge with the approved quotation. Document unresolved faults and ask the shop to note them before payment or signing a completion acknowledgement.
Example: screen repair does not settle data instructions
Yan's phone starts but touch input is unreliable. She verifies her photographs from another device, films the fault and records: 'Approve inspection and the quoted screen work only; contact me before other parts or a reset.' At collection she finds a microphone problem and asks for it to be recorded immediately, preserving a usable comparison instead of competing memories.
For unresolved price or service disputes, send the shop the intake record, approval messages, invoice and function evidence, then consider Consumer Council conciliation. Suspected misuse of personal data needs a separate PCPD enquiry. A functioning phone does not resolve a data concern, and a repair warranty depends on its actual coverage and conditions.
Verify recoverable data, limit authorisation and test each relevant function at collection.
Official information and enquiries
These are the reference and service entry points for this guide. Check current fees, eligibility, and schedules with the authority. The preparation date is not each source's official update date.