In-depth buying guides from the AST-Drones certified inspection desk.
'Warranty included' means everything and nothing until you read what's covered, for how long, and who pays shipping. The used drone market has four distinct warranty tiers — learn them and you'll never overpay for a promise again.
The default for private and marketplace sales. You own every failure from the moment money moves, including the ones the seller knew about. This risk is already priced into private-sale discounts — as long as you actually inspected (see the checklist).
DJI's standard warranty runs 12 months from activation and generally follows the aircraft, not the owner — a 6-month-old used drone may carry 6 months of coverage. Activation date is verifiable in-app; ask for the screenshot. DJI Care Refresh is a separate, more complex story — our DJI Care transfer guide covers it.
Real dealer warranties are written, parts-and-labor, and tiered by condition: our own structure is 12 months on CPO, 6 months Excellent, 90 days Good grade. The questions that separate real coverage from marketing: Does it cover gimbal and camera (the expensive parts)? Who pays shipping both ways? Is there a claims email that answers? What's excluded — crashes and water damage are always out.
Extended-warranty providers will cover used drones for a fee, but read the exclusions: most omit crash damage, which is the failure you're actually insuring against. Rarely worth it versus buying a better-verified drone.
A meaningful dealer warranty is worth 8–15% of the purchase price — roughly the cost of one gimbal repair you might dodge. Paying that premium to a seller whose 'warranty' is a text message is charity. Every drone we sell pairs its warranty with 30-day no-questions returns, because the first month is when hidden defects surface.
Private sales: almost never. Certified dealers: yes, typically 90 days to 12 months tiered by condition. Remaining DJI factory warranty may also transfer with the aircraft — verify the activation date before counting on it.
At minimum: motors, gimbal, camera, ESCs and mainboard — the expensive modules. Expect crashes, water damage and consumables (props, batteries beyond DOA) to be excluded. Coverage of the gimbal assembly specifically is the real test of a serious warranty.