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Will HP warranty cover a computer that the previous owner broke in an accident if I have no receipt?

I bought a used HP Pavilion Entertainment PC (a fairly new laptop computer) for $20 from a guy I know (not a store). A previous owner accidentally cracked the display. Most of it still works, but there is a black stripe running down the screen, approximately 1" wide, which is why it was so inexpensive. My boss saw this and thinks that HP should cover the computer looks new and should be under warranty. I looked at the warranty at http://welcome.hp.com/country/us/en/privacy/limited_warranty.html#psg and it says "You may be required to provide proof of purchase or lease as a condition of receiving warranty service" and "This Limited Warranty does not apply to expendable or consumable parts and does not extend to any product from which the serial number has been removed or that has been damaged or rendered defective (a) as a result of accident, misuse, abuse, contamination, improper or inadequate maintenance or calibration or other external causes". I do not have any proof of purchase and the damage is obviously the result of accident, misuse, or abuse (something must have hit it, because this problem results from physical damage, not a malfunction). Is there any possibility that my boss is right and HP will cover this?

Public Comments

1. Call them and ask.
2. good luck. it's hard enough to get HP to cover your warranty if you are the 1st owner with proof of purchase. They have a habit of losing stuff in their repair facility http://consumerist.com/search/HP/
3. It sounds very unlikely it will work, but as a first step I would call HP and ask them. I did when my old computer's usb port broke and they fixed it for free. I had some kind of extended warranty tough. So calling them looks like your best shot.
4. Accidental coverage is not covered under the warranty plan