AppleCare Warranty and Me

I love Apple, Macs, and iPhones, and I am completely sold on the brand. Not only are they acclaimed in marketing courses, it is truly a good and reliable brand. Macs never catch viruses, at least mine never have. However, I have a scary story to tell…

AppleCare Warranty and Me

I recently went to the Bahamas, please do not envy me, as it was cold and awful. I went during the off season, which was a big mistake. Anyways, long story short, it was very humid and my Mac didn’t like it. My friend, who also has a Mac, was fine, but my computer stopped working properly. The screen started flickering and sometimes it would not turn on at all.

My friend has a MacBook Pro, while I have a MacBook Air, and maybe that’s why there was a difference in reaction. So, stressed and worried, I hope that my Mac makes it until the end of the trip. Since there’s no swimming and tanning due to the bad weather conditions, there is hardly anything to do except for watching videos online and/or reading funny stuff.

So, luckily, I make it until the end of the trip. I come back home and my Mac stops working altogether. The screen is black and the computer won’t turn on. I try to call the Apple store to set up an appointment at the Genius bar, but the recorded message tells me to do it online. I wanted to speak to a human, so I’m already unhappy about the situation. After some searching on the Internet, I finally find a number I can call for customer service. A real person answers and tries to help me with my Mac by suggesting pressing different keys in different combinations. Nothing works. Then, they give me an appointment at the Genius bar.

When I bring my laptop there, they tell me that they need to assess the damage and that they’ll give me a call. I remind them that I bought the AppleCare warranty for three years when I purchased my laptop, which they agree with.

Finally, they call me and tell me that the repairs will cost over $600 because of water damage, and that it’s my own fault! I was shocked. What is the point of buying a warranty if it doesn’t help you in situations where you clearly had nothing to do with the damage? I understand that the warranty cannot cover all situations. For example, a friend of mine recently dropped her laptop in the tub because she was watching a movie on her computer while taking a hot bath. In a case like that, I agree that the damage is due to human error and cannot be covered by the warranty.

But, my case was different. I never spilled anything on my computer. I was so careful with it that I would never dream of holding it near, or putting it in any sort of contact with, water. The humidity in the Bahamas made my Mac stop working, and it was clearly due to a manufacture defect since my friend’s Mac worked just fine.

Perplexed, I called Apple support again. The lady taking the call frankly asked me “What do you want me to do?”. I replied that I wanted her to somehow remedy the situation, to which she suggested going to the store and talking to the manager, a very smart and helpful suggestion as it turned out.

Thus, I went to the store and demanded to speak with the manager. The manager was very helpful and understanding, and patiently listened to my story. He then promised to personally investigate the situation. He went away and when he came back he had good news. The water damage was not evident enough to prove that there was water damage, whatever that means. To my great relief, what that meant for me is that the repairs were covered. That’s how I saved $600 on the repair of my Mac, although I did buy a $100 warranty so I deserved it. Kudos to the manager, to the Apple store, and to Apple in general! Bottom line – Apple rocks!!

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