Eugene's observations

It used to be the case that Internet connection losses were hardly ever due to router failure, but now almost everyone has a router and they are beginning to age. Hence, I presume, I am now often finding router problems at the heart of connection issues. Normally I am able to deliver a loan router within 24 hours and am asked what the options are. I say:

1. Call your ISP as many will offer a free router in exchange for a 12 month commitment. These routers that come 'free' are sometimes from the bottom of the quality barrel, but hey, it's free (excluding post & packing).

2. You can call the failed router's manufacturer and ask for a warranty replacement. A lifetime warranty is offered by many manufacturers and is often a good option as long as the fault is not intermittent and you don't mind jumping through the configuration hoops that the Indian call centre asks of you.

3. Try performing a hardware reset by pushing a reset tool in the appropriate hole in the rear of the router. Make sure you know all the settings first as they will need to be re-entered after. Also, try downloading updated firmware from the manufacturer's website. No guarantees, but this sometimes is all that is necessary. Make sure the surge protector is still active.

4. Go to the shop and buy a router. This does allow you to get the quality and features you need by paying between £30 and £90.

5. Retain my loan router and pay me the cost of replacement.