When I googled regarding this issue people have pointed out that this has been an issue with multiple S20 and S21 models and that Samsung offers one time free display replacement. I would like to point out that the appearance of green line is not the result of any negligence or mishandling on my part. The phone has been handled with care and has not been subjected to any physical damage or exposure to water. Samsung should take responsibility for this issue as this has to do with the integrity and reliability of the product.
When someone purchases a flagship phone like the S series the performance and service expected from Samsung is excellent but my experience has been below par to say the least. I have tried everything including following the troubleshooting steps, visited a nearby Samsung authorized service centre and contacted Samsung via email. They have expressed an inability to help citing the fact that the 3yr warranty period has passed and that the phone was not purchased from India. They offered to replace the display for 20000 indian rupees. I don't agree with paying such a large amount for an issue which the company has already acknowledged to be a mistake associated with the manufacturing of the phone.
As I am working in the merchant navy I am constantly travelling and therefore purchased this phone from Qatar duty free in 2021. This has proven to be a headache with regard to customer service as the phone was not purchased from India. I am even more stressed because I have recently purchased 2 other newer Samsung S series phones for my family members; both international models- one from duty free and one from Amazon in Dubai. Considering how poor samsung's service has been for international models and how the service centres don't offer any solutions or even offer any information regarding who to even contact I would advise everyone against buying Samsung devices from duty free or any country other than your home country. I am even more disappointed since our whole family has been Samsung users since the time we started buying smartphones (though i would like to mention that the S21 ultra is our first S series phone and being the flagship we expected better longtime performance compared to the cheaper M series and A series which lasted for similar duration). This unacceptable stance not only fails to acknowledge Samsung's accountability for inherent defects of their flagship phones which is a shame on its own and undermines the loyalty and trust placed on the company by a loyal customer.
I would also like to point out that brands like ONEPLUS have handled similar green line issues in a very smooth manner and also received appreciation for the same. It is appalling that Samsung while being one of biggest smartphone companies is not being able to do the same. The warranty period having just passed and the phone being an international model which was purchased while travelling can't be reason enough for Samsung to conveniently absolve themselves of all responsibility.
I saw similar posts in the community forum with people raising red flags regarding how the issue appeared just outside the warranty period and how Samsung is using that as an excuse to not provide the one time free display replacement. Such a post which highlighted the exact same situation as mine is what pushed me to write this as a last resort. Given the fact that this issue has definitely happened due to a manufacturing defect, it is absolutely imperative that Samsung take immediate effective action regarding the same and not merely give false promises which is unbecoming of them. I request Samsung to kindly contact me and offer some solution.
