Apple Pencil (1st Gen) Pairing Unsuccessful

Since I updated to the latest iOS 12.3.1, my Pencil is unsuccessfully pairing with my iPad. I appreciate the higher echelon support technician for spending over an hour troubleshooting the problem with me, but at the end of the call, the last resolution was to mail the Pencil to Apple for repair. The repair cost is $91 (USD) - $8 less than a new Pencil. The update basically rendered my Pencil inoperable. Is the consumer option to buy a new device every time there is a software update?