Your leased copier stopped working Tuesday morning. You called the dealer. They said a technician would come Thursday. It is now the following Monday, and the machine still displays the same error code it did a week ago. Meanwhile, you are paying $425/month for a 300-pound paperweight.
This situation is more common than it should be, and most businesses handle it wrong. They call, wait, call again, wait longer, and eventually just accept that the copier will be fixed “when the part comes in.” Here is what you should actually do.
Understand Your Two Separate Agreements
You have two contracts: a lease agreement with the leasing company (for the equipment financing) and a service agreement with the copier dealer (for maintenance and repairs). The lease payment goes to the leasing company. The service obligation belongs to the dealer. These are usually separate companies.
This distinction matters because your service complaint is against the dealer, not the leasing company. But if the service failure is severe enough, it can become grounds for lease termination. Knowing where each obligation sits determines your strategy.
Step 1: Document Everything in Writing
Stop relying on phone calls. Starting now, every communication goes through email. Document the date and time the copier broke down, every service request you have made (with dates), the dealer’s response time for each request, what the technician found and attempted, how many business days the copier has been non-functional, and the business impact (outsourced printing costs, employee downtime, missed deadlines).
This documentation serves two purposes: it creates leverage for your complaint with the dealer, and it builds a record you can use if you need to escalate to the leasing company or pursue legal remedies.
Step 2: Demand a Loaner Machine
Check your service agreement for a loaner provision. Many agreements require the dealer to provide a temporary replacement when repairs exceed a certain timeframe (usually 48 to 72 hours). Even if your agreement does not explicitly mention loaners, most dealers have spare equipment and will provide one to prevent a formal complaint.
If the dealer refuses a loaner, document the refusal and start tracking your outsourcing costs. Every dollar you spend at an outside print shop becomes part of your damage claim.
Step 3: Escalate to the Manufacturer
If the dealer cannot resolve the problem within 5 to 7 business days, contact the copier manufacturer’s dealer relations department. Canon, Ricoh, Xerox, Konica Minolta, and Sharp all have dealer support teams that handle customer escalations. The manufacturer cares about their brand reputation and will put pressure on the dealer to resolve the issue.
Step 4: Notify the Leasing Company
Send a formal letter to the leasing company documenting the equipment failure and the dealer’s inadequate response. Copy the dealer on this letter. This puts both parties on notice that the situation has escalated. The leasing company has a financial interest in keeping the equipment functional (it protects the asset’s value), so they may intervene with the dealer.
What Most Guides Miss: The Lemon Threshold
While copiers are not covered by consumer lemon laws (those apply to vehicles), repeated breakdowns can establish a pattern that supports lease termination. If the copier has required more than 3 major repairs in a 6-month period, or has been non-functional for more than 20 cumulative business days in a year, you have a strong case for demanding a replacement or terminating the lease.
Document every service call, not just the major ones. A pattern of consistent breakdowns is more compelling than a single catastrophic failure. Keep a log with dates, symptoms, repair actions, and downtime duration. This log becomes your primary evidence if the situation escalates to a formal dispute or legal action. Learn more about dealing with persistent copier problems in our broken copier lease guide, and understand your contract rights in our fine print guide.
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