Hi,
I bought an iPhone 4S outright from Apple store - Sydney in Dec 11. It developed a minor defect as the charging cable doesn't quiet fit into the iPhone port/slot. It just remains tilted to one side but charges without any issue. Took it to Apple and they told me in Dec 13 that it is only covered for a year and as I don't have the apple care so it will not be covered and I have to pay for it. As it was just a minor and phone has been charging just fine so didn't take it seriously.
Recently found that apple actually has to and does offer the warranty for 24 months rather than 12 months so just bit annoyed that I was misguided by Apple. Intend to take the phone back on Monday even though it has been 27 months rather than 24 months but still I think after spending about $800 on iPhone 4S, I expected it to last a fair bit longer than the 23 months thats when it first developed the charging port issue.
Any guidance on what I can do if Apple refuses to fix the phone under statutory warranty?
If you made an actual booking at the Apple Store they will have a record of your last visit and the person serving you should have made notes about your last interaction.
However! I've come across the same issue a few times, usually there's been a little bit of lint or fluff that has gotten in the charging slot. If you use a thin toothpick/tweezers/pin you can usually pull out the fluff or whatnot that's stuck in there. It's a pretty common thing.