Hope someone has some recommendations for me on what to do after having major issues with Apple and their warranty terms.
I own an MBP 2016, Touchbar, 4TB ports. The computer was heavily used and this is pretty visible. At some point, i tried to close the lid with an airpod between screen and keyboard which caused a crack on the screen frame. No screen discolouration, no dead pixels, not even in the screen area, it is right next to the "Macbook Pro" writing underneath the display itself.
This never bothered me too much and i relied on the computer so i didn't want to take it in for repair. With time the keyboard started playing up, then the touchbar stopped working and last but not least two TB3 ports. I had no choice but to take it in to repair. I booked an appointment with Apple which they cancelled due to the Covid19 situation. There were no open stores in Vic and i had to get an appointment with centrecom.
I showed up to the appointment and was greeted by a not so friendly female worker. "You have to clean it if you want me to touch it" were her words. She handed over a dirty cloth and some unknown liquid in a bottle without any label. After i cleaned the computer she took it into the back room to the mechanic. He refused to repair it because of the crack on the screen frame. I was confused. Fair enough that he doesn't want to repair the screen, even if it is in a recall program due to a manufacturing fault, he also refused to repair anything else. He claimed it is policy that if he can't return the computer in 100% condition he is not allowed to touch it at all. He returned the computer and i left.
A bit confused i contacted Apple and after a while i spoke to a so called senior advisor which was supposed to know what she is talking about. I explained to her what happened and that i couldn't understand why the touchbar, keyboard and TB3 ports don't get repaired. They have nothing to do with the screen. She said that she couldn't understand that either and that this should have been repaired. She would give centrecom a call and see what is going on.
Next day she called me and was telling a fully different story. When i asked her how come that the Apple policy and guidelines changed overnight she said she didn't know them. That she is not a technician and tried to talk herself out of the statements she made. At this point, I had enough and said "i have recorded our conversation yesterday, you told me something fully different" What am i supposed to believe if Apple tells me every day a different story". When she heard that i had the conversation recorded she freaked out, mumbled something and hung up the phone on me. Without even saying good bye or anything.
Is this the customer support one can expect for such high priced items? Is a company allowed to lie over and over again and keep changing their "policy" as they feel? Does anyone know what i should do next and how to escalate this matter? The display itself is under a replacement program anyways, the crack is by all means irrelevant but APple is showing again that it will $hit over its customers whenever it feels like it.
Nice shifting of goal posts, you didn’t mention recalls (which are free). But since you’ve raised it, unlike other brands, Apple may actually acknowledge where they’ve made mistakes and look to rectify them, even after warranty finishes.
Good luck getting that support from some other manufacturers (can’t believe we’re actually arguing Apple products & support are shit)