I turned on my 4 month old canon xh a1 last night to receive the scare of my life, when i turn it on in any mode all i get on the viewfinder and the lcd is a blank white screen.

Has anyone heard of this happening before.

Should this be covered under warranty.

It definitely should be under warranty.

It's free, so when you send it in ask to join the XL-XL owners club. The do give priority for members.

... when i turn it on in any mode all i get on the viewfinder and the lcd is a blank white screen.

I'm assuming you mean all shooting modes & not playback mode as well? If so, check your standby/lock switch :)

edit: ooops! I didn't notice the "white screen".

What mode do you turn it on to? Manual ("M")? If so, then you need to adjust your exposure. Try turning it to the very last option (the green square) and see if you still get nothing but white.

Also locate the reset button under the flip-out LCD panel near the speaker and press it with the end of a a paper clip -- I believe you need to have the power source disconnected when doing this. If it doesn't work, then it's a trip to Canon service. If it works, then perform a full system reset via Menu > System Steup > Reset All > Yes.