Apple trying to cheat me out of warranty?

jaackyy on 14/05/2014 - 09:47
Last edited 15/05/2014 - 21:25

Hey all,

Just wanted some help regarding Consumer Warranty on my iPhone 5 !

Basically, i've have my iphone for a year or so now and the battery life will barely last me 2 hours if im texting/using 3G for facebook etc.
I went to the Genius Bar, and some lady did some battery test and said my battery has failed their test, meaning its crapping out basically.

She says it costs $95 to replace, and I asked her shouldn't it be covered by consumer warranty, and she says ' because it's the battery we can just replace the battery for you, for that fee '

From my knowledge, my battery should be very much covered under Consumer Law, after only 1 year, if i'm getting this phone under a 2-year contract, isn't it expected that my battery will last at least 2 years as advertised?

Any comments/advice will be helpful, thanks !

UPDATE: The senior advisor eventually called me back and offered to cover the cost of the battery replacement, but I would have to go to an Authorised Apple Repair store to get it done because he can't change the decision of the store(Chadstone) but he can change it on my case file.

SOO…. in the end, if you've had your iphone for 2 Years ish, fight for your Consumer Law rights… no matter what they say.

Mobile

Related Stores

Apple
Apple

Comments

    • chloden on 14/05/2014 - 10:35
      +3

      Nope 2 years warranty on iPhones
      http://www.afr.com/p/technology/apple_gives_australians_two_…

        • chloden on 14/05/2014 - 10:47
          +1

          No. Apple give a 2 year warranty. We had a 18 month old phone replaced last week

        • ExtraSalt on 14/05/2014 - 10:50
          -2

          oh really? thats good as then. wow, i got played lol. Did you buy it outright through Apple? or through a carrier?

        • chloden on 14/05/2014 - 10:58

          On a plan, but we all have iPhones (5 in total) and we have used the warranty on pretty much all over the 2 years, including having the battery replaced in one

        • ExtraSalt on 14/05/2014 - 11:28

          thanks. good to know for next time!

      • PissLUR on 14/05/2014 - 10:53
        +3

        I agree that its a 2 years warranty on iPhones, but battery is not covered.

        • [Deactivated] on 14/05/2014 - 20:57
          +6

          While I'd agree with you for most phones 100% that batteries are consumables, iPhone batteries aren't customer replaceable so you would expect they would at least last the contract period.

  • fox81 on 14/05/2014 - 10:15
    +8

    while the consumer law doesn't specifically address batteries, it sounds like your issue would come under a minor fault, which means they could repair it (and not be forced to give you a refund). none the less, this should be done at no cost to you. statutory warranty covers the reasonable life expectation of the device (and for phones most people agree it is 2 years). I believe apple have also updated their warranties to now be 2 years. apple's warranty may suggest that batteries aren't covered, or covered for a shorter duration, but remember that their warranty is in addition to your consumer rights (and the statutory warranty). give apple a call, be firm about your statutory warranty and consumer rights. you can seek remedy through the retailer or the manufacturer. if that doesn't work, your state should have a body that can help you out.

    • PresidentClinton on 16/05/2014 - 14:48

      I don't believe 2 years is a reasonable time for phones. More like 5. The manufacturers would like you to believe 2 though.

      • Ughhh on 16/05/2014 - 15:20
        +1

        20 years sounds more reasonable to me.
        I think the problem is, the word "reasonable" is such an open term, everyone's definition is different.

        • fruit on 16/05/2014 - 19:40

          As I've written in a previous comment:

          "reasonable" is a legal term, it is used extensively through out legislation.

        • Ughhh on 17/05/2014 - 01:03

          Never said "reasonable" wasn't a legal term.
          I think 30 years is reasonable now for a phone, isn't thats what Nokia brick phones were originally aiming for? Maybe my Nokia 3310 will still be under consumer guaranty!

          Lots of words are used extensively through out legislation.
          Not gonna bother looking up your previous comment btw.

  • p1 ama on 14/05/2014 - 10:18

    This is a grey area. I doubt that even statutory warranty will help you here as your phone is technically "working".

    Your best bet is to either replace the battery yourself or go to a 3rd party repair place who will swap the battery for you at a much better price.

    • verio on 14/05/2014 - 11:47

      I think you are right about that. If the phone works and this is a minor fault, it might be difficult to force a free replacement (still worth trying though).

      • Marty131 on 15/05/2014 - 16:03

        I'm sure the OP would be happy with a repair however.

    • OzBrogains on 15/05/2014 - 16:59
      +1

      The key question is - 'would a reasonable user buy a phone and deem 'working' as having 2 hours battery life'? I don't think many will, and this is the argument the OP will need to use.

      Another approach is to say you bought the phone on the pretense that the phone will last X hours (look at Apple's tech specs, print this off) and simply put, it's not meeting your expectations.

      Whatever you do don't fork a dollar to them.

  • ynot1985 on 14/05/2014 - 10:32

    I had a similar issue with my iphone 4s.

    The battery on my phone was getting used up like crazy…though it was my over usage. About 14 months in, my phone would die even when the battery says it has 20% left (so annoying).

    Finally had enough and went to apple genius bar. Apparently the Iphone guy at the genius bar said sometimes the iphone software has a glitch/bug where the phone was never on standby as if it was on constantly for 14 months. The guy even admitted it was an issue they see time to time.

    He gave me the option to replace it for $208. I was really pissed off when they want me to pay for a glitch that they knew about. As he was going through payment my Vodafone warranty paper work came up and to the genius dude's surprise, it was covered by Vodafone warranty.

    so my question is did you get your phone through a plan or brought outright?. If its a plan, then maybe contact your phone carrier to see what they can do

  • chloden on 14/05/2014 - 10:33

    Absolutely covered…for 2 years.

  • rambutann on 14/05/2014 - 10:38

    Definitely covered. I took my laptop in out of their 'complimentary warranty' and they tried to charge me $1100 because the motherboard fried itself and i gave them every last detail about australian consumer law and basically mainly argued that 'goods must last a reasonable amount of time' and 1 year is definitely not reasonable…

    Basically yeah just argue that 1 year or however old it is is not a 'reasonable amount of time' and that they have to repair it under australian consumer law.

  • lisss on 14/05/2014 - 12:38
    +3

    If it's a 2 year plan, regardless of what Apple's T&C are, I think the battery should be repaired or replaced (ie replaced with a refurbished one) (at Apple's option) at no cost to you. It's a 2 year plan, that's a pretty strong suggestion that it's supposed to be useable for 2 years under Australian Consumer Law.

  • [Deactivated] on 14/05/2014 - 12:55
    +1

    If it is normally expected that the battery should last for 2 years, lay the consumer law on them. The average mobile contract is 2 years and the part is not easily replaceable. Regardless of whether the warranty says 2 years or not I would say you would reasonable expect that the battery should be good for two years.

    Check out this clip of The Checkout covering Returns and Exchanges
    http://www.abc.net.au/tv/thecheckout/clips/

  • ilostnemo on 14/05/2014 - 12:56

    With Apple, it depends who you get. I had an ipod nano replaced for bettery issues at 23 months,

  • Sobai on 14/05/2014 - 13:32

    good luck. Apple pulled this crap on me when the ipod first came out many moons ago…happy android customer now.

  • jaackyy on 14/05/2014 - 14:00
    +2

    Update: I called the customer service, and one guy said to me that it barely made the battery test, and that the battery itself is not defective, but depleted. Therefore it's not covered under warranty. He said it's gone very much past the lifetime of cycles, and hence can't hold a charge properly.

    He asked if i wanted to speak to his advisor and after talking to his advisor, he said that ' although my battery is merely depleted, it may be due to the fact that it was already defective at the time, thus forcing me to charge my phone at least 2-3 times a day for a long time, hence depleting the life cycles remaining.

    He said he was going to check what he can do about the price and call me back.

    • Moots on 14/05/2014 - 14:06
      +6

      Don't depend on the call back… Unlikely you'll receive one.

      • Woodyg22 on 14/05/2014 - 20:00

        I've had good support from Apple, even with problems that clearly pissed them off. I would say that you can expect them to call you back, although no you shouldn't have to pay for it.

    • johnno07 on 14/05/2014 - 22:34

      Can you actually test a battery and see how many times it's been cycled??

      • BadHorse on 16/05/2014 - 07:30

        Apple can

  • ilostnemo on 14/05/2014 - 14:29

    Just a heads up, with Apple devices, never complain about the battery, make something else up.
    Even if you have don't send diagnostics clicked, apple can still check battery stats.

    I know people who on a regular basis, buy secondhand iphones and have apple swap for a refurbished one.

    There excuse is usually something that can't be replicated, ie they often say during a call it gets echoey (why isn't that a word)

    Apple are generally good.

    • Binchicken22 on 14/05/2014 - 22:11
      +9

      People like that are exactly why people with genuine problems have trouble getting it fixed under warranty. They have to try to weed out all the people who are just exploiting their 'generous' warranty terms.

  • tonyjzx on 14/05/2014 - 14:46
    +3

    this is pathetic

    how is it possible that they covered everything BUT the battery for 2 yrs?

    the battery isnt even removable!

  • CI on 14/05/2014 - 14:58

    She's full of bs. Go get your replacement iphone! It's deifinitely 2 years. My local apple store are pretty good. On my 4th iPhone in 1.5 years. So they have replaced 3 for me, 2 times sleep button issue and once battery issue. And that is I could have with some discomfort lasted the iPhone full 2 years and beyond but decided to go apple store as soon as a problem appeared.

  • lakers1222 on 14/05/2014 - 15:02
    +1

    In my experience, Apple staff are greedy and will disregard your consumer rights.
    http://www.smh.com.au/digital-life/digital-life-news/apple-f…

    • jaackyy on 14/05/2014 - 16:08
      +1

      Well according to your link, it says that Apple must provide a refund or repair , free of charge, whether or not it is a minor or major fault. As discussed with one of the reps that called me, if the number of battery cycles i've gone through is due to a defect initially, then it may be repairable under warranty. Unfortunately he called me during one of my classes at Uni, and I had to re-schedule with him.
      ): guess i have to wait and see..

  • Typical16-bitEnjoyer on 14/05/2014 - 16:14
    +2

    Batteries are consumables. They have a finite amount of recharge cycles and their lifespan will depend on how you use them. If its nearly two years old would be hard to say its defective…more likely wear and tear.

    You're entitled to speak to ACCC/CA however.

    No doubt there will be further reform as "last as long as reasonably expected" is utter BS and what one person thinks a device will last is completely different than someone else's opinion.

    • jaackyy on 14/05/2014 - 18:24
      +1

      I'm pretty sure it's only 1 year old as my 2-year contract ends this November… If this phone costs roughly 800$ and is sold on a 2 year contract, I would expect that EVERY. SINGLE. PART. of it will last me 2 years. (Excluding accidental damages of course)

      Especially, if the relatively high charge cycle was due to the fact that the battery was so faulty anyway.. Requiring me to charge it 2-3 times a day…

      • tonyjzx on 14/05/2014 - 19:39
        +2

        this^^^

        i have no problem with a laptop with a removable battery that specifically states on paper that its 1 yr

        but a non removable battery and with nothing on paper that says that

        apple can use some of their $156 billion to fix this

      • microsnot on 14/05/2014 - 20:40

        So approx 1.5 years old rather than 1.0 years? I'm just wondering why you didn't report the issue earlier if you needed to charge it 2 to 3 times a day. At least then you they couldn't dispute that you had battery problems the whole time. I'm sure the call will eventually get escalated to one of the lawyers and an NDA will be required to replace it…

    • rambutann on 14/05/2014 - 20:37

      Thats like putting a lemon battery in an iPhone and turning around and saying 'oh ye the lemon went rotten' ….

    • fruit on 15/05/2014 - 16:54
      +2

      Wow - such ignorance.
      The ACL was essentially codifying what existed in common law.
      "reasonable" is a legal term, it is used extensively through out legislation.

      As I pointed out below, Apple themselves forecast power consumption over three years. It would be reasonable to expect at least three years lifespan, given the manufacture's forecasts.

    • OzBrogains on 15/05/2014 - 17:03

      The courts use the word 'reasonable' a lot in case law.

      Is it reasonable that a battery lasts 23 months? Probably. 2 months? No.

  • marc86au on 14/05/2014 - 20:40

    "she says ' because it's the battery we can just replace the battery for you, for that fee"

    They can replace anything on the phone. It's not something that the average user can replace themselves (i.e. it's not a removable battery) so should be covered for the full 2 years.

  • wbeer on 14/05/2014 - 20:54
    +1

    Even if they replace the battery you are still left with a worthless iphone :P

  • fruit on 14/05/2014 - 20:54
    +5

    https://ssl.apple.com/environment/reports/docs/iPhone5_produ…

    Customer use: User power consumption assumes a three-year period. Product use
    scenarios are modeled on data that reflects intensive daily use of the product.
    Geographic differences in the power grid mix have been accounted for at a
    continental level.

    Given that Apple models power consumption over a three-year period, it is reasonable to expect it to last three years.

    • snvl on 15/05/2014 - 06:14

      Did you pay with a platinum cc? You might claim it through that if you have no luck with Apple.

  • rbrb on 15/05/2014 - 07:32
    +1

    If a battery falls below a certain level before the expected amount of cycles then it is covered under warranty and consumer law. If it drops after that expected amount of charge cycles then the battery is considered consumed under general use, regardless of age. That is why you would have been positioned a cost. Consumable parts, just like the tyres on your car cannot be covered if you use it excessively.

  • Damonator84 on 15/05/2014 - 07:50

    It should definitely last. Apple trying to take you to the cleaners.
    The below is for Qld. And that iphone is obviously not of acceptable quality.

    I cite dot point 1 - are of acceptable quality and dot point 3 - are fit for their intended purpose.
    http://www.fairtrading.qld.gov.au/guarantees-warranties-refu…

    Guarantees, warranties and refunds

    As a consumer, the law automatically provides you with guarantees on certain goods and services. These are called consumer guarantees.
    You are guaranteed that the goods you buy:
    are of acceptable quality
    match the description, sample or demonstration model you were shown
    are fit for their intended purpose
    have clear title, unless otherwise stated
    do not have any undisclosed securities (money owing on them)
    come with a right to undisturbed possession
    will have spare parts and repairs available for a reasonable amount of time after you buy them
    will have express warranties honoured

  • paul_5666 on 15/05/2014 - 11:12
    +1

    I don't know why everyone is saying that Apple won't cover it.
    I have an iphone 5 that I have used since December 2012, so it's been 1.5 years and have similar issues to OP. I took it to the Apple store at Hornsby, they did diagnostic and said the battery is in the red zone and needs servicing, he also said that it will be free as the phone is still under warranty. I denied the service on that date as I needed to back my phone up first. I took it to the Sydney CBD store a few days later to get the battery replaced. Went through the whole diagnostic process again and signed a few forms. Nothing was mentioned about me paying and the work authorisation I got in the email said "Warranty Status: Consumer Law (W)".

    At no point did I have to argue about my rights and it was a very pleasant change. I'm not sure why the OP is having so much resistance when it was so easy for me to get the ~$90 battery kit for free outside their limited warranty terms.

    • rambutann on 15/05/2014 - 11:54

      I don't know whether apple employees are trained to ignore ACL until somebody mentions it but for me they tried to charge me until I bought up ACL.

      • djkelly69 on 15/05/2014 - 11:57

        Not trained to do it, just depends on the genius I think - I went in armed with all my consumer law stuff, and the guy was like "oh it's 15 months old, but all good, we will replace that for free".

        Kept waiting for him to try and sting me but didn't happen, and I left very happy with my "new" phone about 30 mins later.

  • JimmyF on 15/05/2014 - 12:16

    If they won't replace the battery, get them to replace the handset. Tell them it keeps freezing and reboots all the time. They should just then do a swapover on the spot with one they prepared 'earlier'.

  • samfisher5986 on 15/05/2014 - 13:06
    +9

    Its really simple. You can't replace the battery which means the battery is no longer a consumable.

    This means a minimum of 2 years but you could easily argue 3 years.

    This is because Apple know the battery only last a certain amount of charges, by not making it replaceable they are forcing their customers to replace their phones sooner then they have to.

    Now the problem is you have to fight them for it…

  • hippies on 15/05/2014 - 15:37
    +2

    Replaced mine twice eventhough out of warranty with no additional fee. I replaced them at southland apple store, the genius bar name is Mel.

  • TScott on 15/05/2014 - 18:30

    Perhaps you could try another Apple Store, as they might be more considerate towards your situation. I had problems with my laptop and I took it to the apple store but they said it was working fine, nothing was wrong and they can't fix it. I was unconvinced that it was my fault that the laptop was behaving in such a way, so I rang up apple care. Apple-care initially said that my apple-care warranty had expired and therefore they cannot help, but because I also had apple-care they were happy to fix it. In the end, apple care rang up the apple store and authorized my repair. And about 1 week later, I have a brand new laptop.

  • ozzz on 15/05/2014 - 21:03

    I haven't read any of the comments above but yesterday I went to Chadstone (Vic) store to change my faulty battery of my iphone 5 ( it is very common problem in this phone). I had 2 year normal warranty & already consume 1.5 years but they changed the battery free of cost without any question. May be try another store.
    other thing you can do get the name of the rep who quote you that amount & lodge a complaint with apple helpline number.
    hopefully this will help.

    • jaackyy on 15/05/2014 - 21:23
      +3

      wow. are you actually serious?

      I WENT TO THE CHADSTONE STORE AND MY IPHONE 5 IS ABOUT 1.5 YEARS INTO THE 2 YEAR WARRANTY….
      If I could remember her name I would so (profanity) lodge a complaint about that bitch… I don't even think she knew what Consumer Law was….

      I had to f**king online chat with apple support, get someone to call me, who referred me to his Senior, who then finally cut me a deal but I have to go to a Authorised Apple Repair store to get it fixed ……

      F**KKK

      • rambutann on 15/05/2014 - 23:43

        My laptop issue featured above occurred at the chadstone store too lol try highpoint or something. Or just another member of staff.

  • T1OOO on 16/05/2014 - 01:00
    -1

    Issue boils down to this. The cort ruling stated. If the phone is sold on a contract plan of 2 years then it must be covered under warranty for 2 years. However. U might have to go through ur teleo to get it resolved rather than an apple store. Apple might honour it it send u to ur telco.

    • fruit on 16/05/2014 - 19:41

      Please use English.

  • tomwood on 16/05/2014 - 01:58

    great story

  • onlyletters on 16/05/2014 - 08:14

    These types of batteries start to develop issues after 2 years, so if its started during your 12 month warranty period, then clearly its a problem with the battery (manufacturing defect) not wear and tear.. go tell them that..

  • McFly on 16/05/2014 - 08:30
    +2

    I would have to go to an Authorised Apple Repair store to get it done because he can't change the decision of the store(Chadstone) but he can change it on my case file.

    It's great they finally saw reason and decided to obey the law… but "can't change the decision of Chadstone store" - what a load of crap!

  • tinx on 16/05/2014 - 11:01

    does anyone know if apple keep history of when you went to apple store to get repair?

    Say I went to chadstone store to get repair done under warranty as OP, declined / have to pay.
    Can I go to other store and try again ? Or they have the record that they can look up to and said you already tried at another store, and it's the same outcome here ?

    I'm just wondering for future reference :)

  • Islund on 16/05/2014 - 21:45

    Must be your shop or the crappy staff in that shop.

    I may in Sydney and have never had a an issue with either the George Street or Chatswood stores in replacing my iPhones/iPads.

    This is one of the reasons I will never change from Apple.

    Try getting that sort of service from any of the Koreans/Japanese/Taiwanese Android disciples

    • imolared on 17/05/2014 - 19:36

      ^^^^ This!!! I have brought stuff in for service at Sydney George St, Chatswood and Castle Hill without any issues, even some items that I have purchased from the US without any issues. Same thing with getting items serviced that were bought here in Australia at stores in Northern California (ipod touch/mini).

Login or Join to leave a comment
Login Join