WARRANTIES AND CONTINGENCIES (Notes)

6 Months Ended

Apr. 30, 2021

Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]

Warranties

We accrue for standard warranty costs based on historical trends in actual warranty charges over the past 12 months. The accrual is reviewed regularly and periodically adjusted to reflect changes in warranty cost over the period. The standard warranty accrual balances are held in other accrued and other long-term liabilities on our condensed consolidated balance sheet. Our standard warranty terms typically extend to one year from the date of delivery, depending on the product.

A summary of the standard warranty accrual activity is shown in the table below:


	Six Months Ended
	April 30,
	2021		2020
	(in millions)
Standard warranty accrual, beginning balance	$	32	$	32
Accruals for warranties including change in estimates	26		25
Settlements made during the period	(26)		(27)
Standard warranty accrual, ending balance	$	32	$	30

Accruals for warranties due within one year	$	31	$	30
Accruals for warranties due after one year	1		—
Standard warranty accrual, ending balance	$	32	$	30

Bank Guarantees

Guarantees consist primarily of outstanding standby letters of credit and bank guarantees and were approximately $47 million as of April 30, 2021 and $43 million as of October 31, 2020. A standby letter of credit is a guarantee of payment issued by a bank on behalf of us that is used as payment of last resort should we fail to fulfill a contractual commitment with a third party. A bank guarantee is a promise from a bank or other lending institution that if we default on a loan, the bank will cover the loss.

Contingencies

We are involved in lawsuits, claims, investigations and proceedings, including, but not limited to, intellectual property, commercial, real estate, environmental and employment matters, which arise in the ordinary course of business. There are no matters pending that we currently believe are reasonably possible of having a material impact to our business, condensed consolidated financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.