The Birmingham AV service level agreement explained

Buying refurbished IT is a trust exercise. The photos look sharp, the price is right, but the real question is what happens after the money leaves the account. Does the seller answer messages? Does the parcel go out the same day? If something is wrong on arrival, is the return path straightforward?

Birmingham AV publishes a service level agreement that answers all three questions in specific numbers rather than vague promises. This article walks through each commitment and shows how the SLA translates into a lower risk purchase, whether the buyer is a home worker or a fleet manager ordering forty machines.

Message response times

Every question sent through eBay messages, the contact form or the phone line is triaged inside the same working day. The target is a first human response within four working hours between 09:00 and 17:00 Monday to Friday, with a fallback of the next working morning for anything landing after 15:00 on a Friday or over the weekend.

That four hour target is what the desk actually hits on more than nine out of ten tickets. Complex questions (compatibility checks, bulk pricing, custom specifications) may need a second reply once the workshop or procurement team has weighed in, but the acknowledgement goes out inside the window either way.

Dispatch commitments by cut off time

Orders placed and paid before 15:00 on a working day ship the same day via tracked courier. Orders placed after 15:00 or over the weekend ship on the next working day. The default carrier for single unit desktop and laptop orders is DPD next day, with signature on delivery and a one hour delivery window sent to the buyer by SMS or email on the morning of arrival.

For larger consignments (multi unit pallets, bulk laptop orders above ten units, workstation towers with monitors) the default upgrades to a pallet network with a booked slot. The tracking number is emailed within two hours of the parcel leaving the Bromsgrove workshop.

What "refurbished to grade" actually means

Every machine that ships has been through a documented refurbishment process before it reaches the listing. That includes a full data wipe to NIST 800 88 standards, a fresh install of Windows 11 Pro or Windows 10 Pro (whichever the hardware supports), a laptop battery health check with replacement if design capacity falls below 80 percent, a thermal paste refresh on any unit older than three years, and a 24 hour burn in test under load.

Cosmetic grading is honest. Grade A means no visible marks under normal viewing, Grade B means light scuffs consistent with careful office use, and Grade C means visible wear that does not affect function. The listing photos show the actual unit or a representative sample from the batch, and any cosmetic defect above the stated grade is grounds for a no quibble return.

Browse the Birmingham AV eBay store for live pricing on Dell OptiPlex, HP EliteDesk and Lenovo ThinkCentre desktops, plus ThinkPad T and L, HP EliteBook 800 and Dell Latitude 5000 and 7000 laptops.

Return handling and the twelve month warranty

Every Birmingham AV listing carries a twelve month back to base warranty as standard, which is materially longer than the 30 or 90 day cover offered by most refurbished sellers on the platform. Inside the first 30 days a buyer can return for any reason, faulty or not, with the return postage covered on faults and a small restocking arrangement on change of mind returns above a certain unit value.

After 30 days and inside the twelve month window, faults are handled on a repair or replace basis. Typical turnaround from receipt of the returned unit to dispatch of the repaired machine is three to five working days, with a courtesy loan available for business customers on bulk contracts. Warranty claims are logged against the serial number, so buyers who lose the invoice can still be served on the strength of the eBay order history.

Bulk orders and account customers

Buyers ordering five or more units get an account manager assigned by default, because it is faster for everyone. The account manager confirms specification, agrees a delivery slot, and handles imaging or asset tagging if the machines need to be pre configured with a Windows image, joined to a domain, or engraved with an asset number.

Payment terms of 30 days net are available on request for limited companies with three or more years of filed accounts, subject to a credit check. For repeat buyers, the dispatch SLA tightens to same day on any order confirmed before 12:00, and messages move to a dedicated inbox with a two hour target.

FAQ

How do I get the tracking number for my order?

Tracking is emailed automatically within two hours of the parcel leaving the workshop, using the email address on the eBay account or the address supplied at checkout on the direct site. If it has not arrived by 18:00 on the dispatch day the customer service desk will resend on request, and eBay orders also show the tracking under the order details page.

What if the machine arrives with a fault?

Report the fault through eBay messages or the contact form within 48 hours of delivery. A prepaid return label is issued the same working day, and the replacement or repaired unit ships within five working days of the faulty machine arriving back at the workshop. No forms to print, no phone tag.

Can I collect from the workshop instead of using a courier?

Yes. Collection from the Bromsgrove workshop is available by appointment, and is the fastest option for urgent orders placed after the 15:00 cut off. Book the slot through the account manager or by phone before travelling.

Do the warranty terms cover business use?

Yes, the twelve month warranty applies whether the buyer is a consumer or a business, and covers hardware faults arising from normal use. It does not cover accidental damage, liquid ingress, or faults caused by third party components fitted after purchase, and the standard remedy is repair or replacement rather than refund after the first 30 days.

About Birmingham AV

Birmingham AV Ltd has sold more than 87,000 items on eBay since 2017 under the midlandsav store handle, backed by 24,756 buyer feedbacks at 98.9 percent positive. We are one of the highest volume refurbished PC operations on eBay UK, and every machine we ship carries a twelve month warranty as standard. Companies House number 12383651, VAT number GB 348755066, based in Bromsgrove Worcestershire.