Caveat emptor (Part 2) ...
Wednesday, December 9, 2009 at 9:05AM Following on from my blog post yesterday, I telephoned Apple to check on the validity of the AppleCare I purchased via eBay for my iPhone.
If you remember, I purchased three separate AppleCare agreements from three separate, highly rated eBay vendors. I received AppleCare Protection Plan Certificates for two of the items once registered online, but not for the iPhone 3GS.
What I didn't mention yesterday was that the iPhone does look registered on the system. It shows the full period of coverage, it's just that I haven't received the certificate for the iPhone and the Proof of Coverage link on the system isn't giving me any information.
So, on the phone with Apple and I asked the questions, is my iPhone covered and why haven't I received the Certificate?
The response was yes and it's probably just delayed!
The support lady could see the registration and as far as she was concerned, the iPhone is fully covered. No particular reason why the Certificate had been delayed but nothing to worry about.
I'm still not 100% convinced that everything is still OK but at least if I do have to ring in with a fault on the iPhone, the support person would see the same (presumably) and there would be no barrier to the iPhone getting repaired.
I'll keep an eye on the online system and see if the link starts working in the next few weeks.
As far as the other kit is concerned, I'm very comfortable with the coverage and I'm convinced I'm fully covered. Seeing as I saved over £290 on the deal, it shows you there are bargains to be had, but as I say in the title..
Caveat emptor!
Reader Comments (3)
Don,
Not to raise any alarm, but you may not be out of the woods yet. I've heard of yet another scheme out there where the AppleCare you buy is legit and able to be registered, but the original purchaser of the AppleCare can cancel the program and get a pro-rated refund? Is this a concern and is there any way to protect yourself from it?
Oh noes!
Thanks Katie, that's made my day ;-(
Seriously, I would imagine that the selection of the eBay vendor would be the best protection against this sort of behaviour. All were long standing vendors with good feedback ratings. Unless one of them suddenly nuked all their customers and then went AWOL...
I'm fairly comfortable that the suppliers seem legit.
Hi Don
I purchased Applecare for my AppleTV this way and it all went horribly wrong. Good feedback for the vendor and the code was initially accepted. My Apple TV has been in the 'registration in progress' state now for 9 months. No attempt to move it forward has succeeded as I dont have the applecare box with the s/n of the applecare on it only the email code. As a result my appleTV is stuck in limbo, not covered from this month and worse still I cant register a new one as it is in this limbo state and nobody seems able to clear it.
My advice for what it is worth is never buy applecare from Ebay. I certainly won't do it again.
My Macbook Pro was purchased through the Higher Education store and the Applecare is a steal if you buy it at the same time through the HE store. I paid £50 for a 3 year Applecare, yes £50! So if you ever study with a HE registered organisation it is well worth it to buy this way due to about 16% education discount and a further whopping 80% on the Applecare. The OU offer courses from £200 so if I ever need a new machine I would be tempted to sign up to get my registration active and then buy HE store just to get discount. Won't need that for 3 more years though while I complete my degree.....
John