igor_kavinski
Quasi-regular
- Joined
- Aug 15, 2025
- Messages
- 256
- Reaction score
- 138
Hi everyone,
I’m posting this here because I know this community understands the technical side of things and I want to warn other 13th/14th gen owners about what’s happening with Intel RMA right now.
The Short Version:
My 13900K degraded (2nd unit). Intel Support offered and approved a full Refund in writing. Based on that official confirmation, I bought a new 14900K to minimize downtime.
Two days later, they revoked the refund without explanation, forced a standard replacement, and then ghosted me when I provided proof of their errors. Today, they silently CLOSED the ticket without resolving anything.
The Full Story:
1. The Failure
This was my second i9-13900K dying due to the known degradation issues (Vmin shift/instability). My system is a custom water loop, and I used exactly the settings suggested by them (Intel Default Settings) with the latest BIOS microcode.
Let's be clear: if you buy a top-tier CPU like this, it is unacceptable that you have to downclock it or live in fear of it breaking. I never abused the chip, I followed their guidelines, yet it failed again.
2. The "Refund" Trap
Since this was a repeat failure, Intel support themselves suggested the Refund option.
Almost 48 hours later, I received a notification: "Refund denied. Proof of Purchase failed validation."
When I protested (because I had already spent money on the new CPU!), the "Escalation Team" (Agent Sonali R.) took over:
Just now, I logged into the support portal to check for an answer.
They have CLOSED the ticket silently.
Conclusion:
This is how a multi-billion dollar company treats a loyal customer with a recurring failure on their flagship product. They promise a solution, let you spend money based on that promise, and then pull the rug out from under you.
Be careful if they offer you a refund. Until the money is in your bank, do not trust them.
I’m posting this here because I know this community understands the technical side of things and I want to warn other 13th/14th gen owners about what’s happening with Intel RMA right now.
The Short Version:
My 13900K degraded (2nd unit). Intel Support offered and approved a full Refund in writing. Based on that official confirmation, I bought a new 14900K to minimize downtime.
Two days later, they revoked the refund without explanation, forced a standard replacement, and then ghosted me when I provided proof of their errors. Today, they silently CLOSED the ticket without resolving anything.
The Full Story:
1. The Failure
This was my second i9-13900K dying due to the known degradation issues (Vmin shift/instability). My system is a custom water loop, and I used exactly the settings suggested by them (Intel Default Settings) with the latest BIOS microcode.
Let's be clear: if you buy a top-tier CPU like this, it is unacceptable that you have to downclock it or live in fear of it breaking. I never abused the chip, I followed their guidelines, yet it failed again.
2. The "Refund" Trap
Since this was a repeat failure, Intel support themselves suggested the Refund option.
- I sent the invoice (from Alternate, a major authorized EU retailer).
- The Communication: I had explicitly told support that if they approved the refund, I would immediately purchase a 14900K. They knew my plan.
- I received the official email: "Your refund case has been created" (Case #06743940).
- My Action: Trusting this written confirmation—and needing a working PC for my job—I immediately purchased a brand new i9-14900K from another retailer (Caseking).
- Why I did it: I bought the 14900K to have a stable system waiting for the new CPU generations to launch, specifically to avoid being taken for a ride again by accepting another 13900K replacement that would risk degrading again. I wanted to break the loop of failures.
Almost 48 hours later, I received a notification: "Refund denied. Proof of Purchase failed validation."
- They refused to explain why an official invoice from Alternate was suddenly invalid (after they accepted it to open the case!).
- They forcibly closed the refund case and opened a "Standard Replacement" case against my will.
When I protested (because I had already spent money on the new CPU!), the "Escalation Team" (Agent Sonali R.) took over:
- The Lie: They claimed they "tried to call me" but I didn't answer. My call logs show ZERO calls received.
- The Ghosting: I sent them proof of their lies (call logs) and proof that my return package was delivered (tracking showed "Delivered" while they claimed it was "in transit").
- Result: They stopped replying. Complete radio silence.
Just now, I logged into the support portal to check for an answer.
They have CLOSED the ticket silently.
- No reply to my urgent emails.
- No resolution for the money I lost relying on their approval.
- Just a silent "Case Closed".
Conclusion:
This is how a multi-billion dollar company treats a loyal customer with a recurring failure on their flagship product. They promise a solution, let you spend money based on that promise, and then pull the rug out from under you.
Be careful if they offer you a refund. Until the money is in your bank, do not trust them.
