Apple Service & Repair Issues

Its about helping the next poor soul as well …

Maybe here: Report a consumer issue | ACCC

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There is a possibility that the Manager was not following Myer policy/procedures, so going through the reporting process will not only hopefully result in the manager being made fully aware of his responsibilities viz-a-vis the ACL, but also encourage Myer to ensure that all managers are aware.

So you would possibly helping many, many, future shoppers. :triumph:

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I’m glad you found Apple cares about its customers. I have had nothing but good service from Apple and I am thrilled to pieces with them. I know some of their products seem more expensive than some of their competitors’ products - but I’ve gotten back the difference from all the help, advice, guidance and assistance they’ve provided me, over a period of (now) nearly 20 years.

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My memory may mis-serve me, but I seem to recall an issue in the last decade or so in which Myer or David Jones (or one of those other chains) got into big trouble with the ACCC for sending customers to the manufacturer.

They really have no excuse for not knowing the rights of their consumers, and I would strongly recommend telling your story to the ACCC.

(The previous case may also have involved Apple, which tends to be somewhat tetchy about supply chains and about who deals with its precious hardware.)

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It’s sagas like this that reveal how faulty our consumer law is. If you overstay a park you get an on the spot fine. Same for speeding.

When a retailer does not follow consumer law can you simply call a cop and wait for them to turn up? Of course not! But if you could and waited for 30 mins for a cop to turn up and record the event for possible prosecution, how less often would us poor consumers face such poor responses. Just look at the time and effort spent in this instance, and then to suggest the poor consumer invest even more time in taking it to the store manager, the ACCC and the local state consumer affairs office. Who has that much time to waste. For most other offences at law we rely on the support of someone who has the power to assist directly. Why should consumer law be any less, other than it serves big retailers to have it the way it is now. A pain the backside to seek remedy. So consumer law is not really law, it’s just a loosely followed guideline that may be observed, or may not, in which instance remedy is a civil matter that might result in an outcome, or might not.

All I can add is that I had a similar situation with The Goodguys and an Apple IPad with only weeks left in warranty when the screen colours went wonky. With a 50 km round trip to the retailer I was advised to go to Apple, unless I had purchased extended cover from Apple or The Goodguys warranty extension. So I drove the 100km round trip to Apple only to be told I had to book a service appointment. Ahhhh! After a 3 hour wait including remonstrations that was not an obvious and clearly evident requirement on the web pages of either business I got service. Another hour and they could offer me a replacement - none in stock for a current model! Ahhh! So what do you say. Yes, I could now seek costs and seek further remedy. And no doubt somewhere in the fine print Apple has an out.

Despite what consumer law might say over several recent experiences with electronic goods including laptops the retailers rely on passing the obligations back to the manufacturer or importer. Some at least offer a free pick up and return to your home. So the legally supported advice of returning a faulty item to the retailer is unreliable in observance.

Surely we need a simpler way of ensuring fair enforcement?

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The problem with the consumer law is that there is no definitive answer on what are reasonable exceptions of fault free life of a product is. They also know that even if their decision on an claim is disputed, they still don’t really need to follow through with any independent ruling for this individual claim. It also takes much time and effort to make a claim through State Agencies/Tribunals which may won’t do as the reward possible is less than the actual cost.

The retailers and manufacturers know this and will often dig their heals in and refuse to deal with out of manufacturer warranty periods, saying that at such time the customer takes on the full risk. But this should not be the case.

Examples like the Tataka airbags where in effect many vehicles (some manufactured in the early last decade) warranty on such products have been extended from say 3 years (which was the norm 15 years ago for new car warranty) to over 15 years due to a design/manufacturing fault associated with the airbags.

I have raised with Choice in the past that possibly more work should be done to determine what is considered, by a reasonable person, the expected life of products…including fault free periods. Such for common consumer products (white, electronics and other major purchases such as furniture, vehicles, caravans, water heating solar etc and common in Australian households) would allow consumers to challenge some of the nonsense coming from retailer and manufacturers. Such could also be used to dispute responses from retailers/manufacturers where products have been used normally and not abused.

Food for thought,

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Totally true, however for items still within the agreed 12 month or longer warranty period consumer law speaks very plainly. The retailer is the responsible person.

The Takata airbag issue is certainly different in that it creates an added safety hazard. Might failure of a percentage of air bags to inflate after 5 or more years have raised a similar response?

That the expert motorists clubs like the RACQ and NRMA did not lead the charge on Takata suggests that as consumers with cars, we should simply accept that airbags age and need relpacement before they become unreliable?

I was recently informed by a national auto service provider automotive tyre only have a safe life of 5 years, irrespective of use. Are we too hard on retailers and asking too much that they really only want the best for us? Just keep paying and trusting!

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I have also been impressed with the service from Apple, my home has many Apple products.
Only once was it not fully satisfying:
I bought a MacBook from the online store, it developed a major fault under warranty, I tried to take it back to my local Apple store but was advised it had to be returned to the online store (which I think is silly, and the store staff agreed). Apple did pay for all postage though which was excellent.

End result, brand new MacBook delivered.
The process could of been less messy with less phone calls needed.

I now purchase in store only.

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This practice has now stopped. Apple online purchases can now be taken to an Apple store to be fixed.

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I’ve had great experiences with Apple itself (not so their local agent in my regional centre… but as soon as the dingbats here send it on to Apple its great). My Apple watch 3 was a month or two out of warranty when it developed water damaged. Bear in mind, this is a watch marketed for use when swimming…
Apple replaced. Was impressed.

Had a warranty claim on a product purchased from Myer online late last year, a Tefal FryDelight air fryer. The coating on the pan began to disintegrate. Myer gave me a return shipping label, and had actually shipped the replacement to me before I had found a box big enough to put the original one in…
(Replacement has started to develop the same problem so it might be a known issue with that)

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The partner has an iPad5 that developed an intermittent charging fault after 2 1/2 years. The Apple Store checked it out and confirmed a hardware fault. The Apple warranty was 12 months and they apparently have a default position re the ACL that case dependent seems to give some discretion but ‘we’ were beyond that leeway. The ‘repair’ solution was $380. The staff at the Apple Store (Doncaster) were very good and when broaching the ACL they advised I should contact ‘legal’ to see if they would override and authorise the repair, and told me how.

Ringing the switchboard instead of ‘legal’ they routed us to a ‘case manager’ in New Zealand who knew nothing about the ACL, and did what amounted to a 2 hours song and dance of time wasting, bordering on being insulting although he was professional throughout.

Since the iPad was purchased at Myer that no longer sells Apple or electronics we decided to see if Apple would help via the ACL. I drafted a well documented letter explaining why we were approaching Apple not Myer and sent it off to the MD by email.

Not having any auto-receipt or acknowledge for the day I expected the email got blocked, but. A staff from the MD’s office rang from Singapore and went over the case, asked some questions about the basis of my ‘claims’, and over the next days rang multiple times; short story is he a did brilliant job arranging the repair. When I walked in to the agent with the unit they knew I was coming, all the ‘paperwork’ was in order, and no hassles. 3 days later a reman (‘repair’) was in my hands.

There are apparently some issues with the ACL getting a reman rather than a repair of the original unit re ongoing warranty but at the end of the day we are very happy how Apple stepped up and the outcome was 100% satisfactory.

I’ll give a +1 to Choice’s recent survey report on satisfaction with Apple service, although for that case manager in New Zealand, not so much.

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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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Most of the “geniuses” at Apple Stores only know the basics. It always pays to speak to someone higher up, and, of course, it also helps if you already know about the ACL.

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What was the warranty period, do we know?

Not repairing for a reasonable cost and upselling to new is Apple’s business model. They even are going to great lengths to prevent right of repair, which is them preventing independent repairers fixing their products. There are some great videos here from a repairer that explains what Apple get up to in order to prevent repairs so that they can force buyers to purchase new. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCl2mFZoRqjw_ELax4Yisf6w

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12-months on all Apple products.

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Ive made a number of post-warranty claims with Apple. Each time the same pattern plays out, they say ‘its out of warranty’, I reply its only a few months out if warranty and is therefore still covered under Aust Consumer Laws.

As soon as you mention ACL, they cave, knowing its an fight they probably cant win (within reason).

Got an 2yo iphone fixed under that; and a 15-month old iPad. But if its say, a $3000 iMac, the real warranty could he as much as three years, you could argue with them!

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Actually 24 Months or longer according to Apple under ACL. Although the standard Apple warranty (international) still says 12 months.

https://www.apple.com/au/legal/statutory-warranty/

They explain the differences between the 3 different warranties in the doc.

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Yes, so their warranty (unless you pay up for Apple Care) is 12-month. My experience is Apple never mention the ACL option unless you do, then they concede it.

In first instance they stand by the 12-month warranty to avoid repairs, until you press the ACL point.

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