Apple’s rotten response

Here’s a story that was sent to us by a CHOICE reader that we thought you might find useful.

At the beginning of November 2020, CHOICE member Jackie’s MacBook Pro suddenly showed a vertical band across the screen. She took it to an Apple Store, where she was told that because it was a few months out of warranty, she’d have to pay more than $900 to have it fixed – or “upgrade” to a MacBook Air for just over $1700. For work reasons, Jackie was pressed for time and options, so she chose to buy the new product. But she wasn’t happy: “I am extremely upset that I had to buy a new product, and that the price of fixing my ‘old product’ was so expensive,” she wrote.

Jackie wanted to know what her rights were, and what she could do to get Apple to fix her original computer or replace it free of charge. Under the consumer guarantees of the Australian Consumer Law, goods bought come with automatic guarantees that they are of “acceptable quality”, meaning they should be safe, durable and free from defects for a reasonable period of time. The consumer guarantees are separate from the manufacturer’s warranty and may still apply, even if the product’s warranty has already expired.

We suggested Jackie contact Apple once more with a formal complaint letter or email, and mention that she believes the laptop does not meet the consumer guarantee of “acceptable quality”, and that she would like it repaired (if repairable) and replaced (if not repairable) under the consumer guarantees of the Australian Consumer Law. We suggested she include that she would like a resolution within a few business days and that if they don’t respond, she intends to lodge a complaint with the Office of Fair Trading.

We’re happy to report that Jackie has since had a very successful outcome. “Helping me understand my customer rights, having your back-up, and having a product that had been well looked after, all helped in my favour,” she writes. “Thank you for your support. Now I know why I subscribe to CHOICE!”

It is clear in this particular situation, that an expired warranty is not necessarily a reason to deny one’s rights under the law.

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7 posts were merged into an existing topic: Apple Service & Repair Issues

This post reflects Choice’s expert advice, and it stands alone. An older topic reviews various consumer’s challenges and how they were dealt with. I thus moved the replies into that topic since there were many germane posts there already.

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