XXXXXXXXXXXXX
example@example.com
(123)-456-7890
To whom it may concern,
I am contacting you concerning a matter which troubles me. In January of this year I
called Applecare to request service on a mid-2008 iMac that I had recently bought
second-hand. In my conversation with an Applecare representative I explained how the
screen would slump forward as if there were no friction between it and the stand. The
problem was so singular that I imagined it would surely be covered under the one-year
warranty. To my surprise and consternation, the fact that it was a rare problem ended
up being one of the reasons I was denied coverage.
I live in Alaska, nearly 2000 miles from the nearest Apple Retail Store, so my options
for repair are limited. There is an authorized repair center (Alaska Mac Store) three
hours from me so I had a friend who was going that way drop the iMac off for me. I
called the next day to see if they could start the repair soon and was told by an
employee that the broken part was not covered by Applecare and that I would need to
call Apple directly to get a customer satisfaction number before the repair and part
would be covered. I did so the next day and spoke with an Apple Product Specialist
named Michael (oddly, he told me his name was Arcus). He asked for the phone
number of the store I had taken the computer to and told me he would call them and
straighten the problem out. I was put on hold for ten minutes before Michael came back
on and told me that they would be doing the repair and that I only needed to pick it up
when it was done.
I waited 6 days before I called the Alaska Mac Store to check on my repair. I was
again told that I needed to obtain a customer satisfaction number before the repair
would be covered. I called Applecare again soon after and re-explained the entire
situation. This time I was told that the part was not covered because I was the second
owner of the computer. I explained that the person I had spoken to previously (Michael)
had said that the situation was resolved and that it would be repaired. The Apple
Product Specialist then told me that she would look in to the case and get back to me. I
called her two days later and found that she was on vacation for a week.
That left me with no choice other than to call Applecare and plead my case for a third
time. I was again told that the part would not be covered, though not because I was the
second owner. This time the reason was because there had supposedly never been
another case of the part breaking (the part # is 922-8221), and that it must then be
assumed that it broke because of accidental damage caused by the first owner. I again
explained that the first person I spoke with told me that the issue had been resolved.
The representative sent Michael an email and he replied to her saying that he hadnʼt
called the Alaska Mac Store. He claims that he contacted an Apple engineer to find out
if there had been any problems with the part in question. It was then suggested to me
that there had been some miscommunication when I spoke to him.
I am absolutely certain that I did not mishear. I was asked for the number to the
store, told he would be calling them, put on hold, and then told that the computer would
be repaired. I do not see how I could confuse that with being told that he was
contacting an Apple engineer to inquire about a possibly faulty part.
I ended up deciding to do the repair myself since the part+labor would end up
costing me $145. I had planned on purchasing the extended Applecare warranty for this
computer, but now I feel that it would be a waste of money. Will I be treated this way if I
call about a future problem? If the logic board fails will I be told that it was probably the
former owner that caused irreparable damage and that Iʼll have to pay for the repair?
What happened to “the customer is always right”? I realize that weʼre not, but I would
like to see better support from a company Iʼve come to respect greatly.
I have been buying products from Apple for years, starting with a fourth-generation
iPod Photo. In the past year and a half alone, I have purchased a MacBook, a 2.8Ghz
24” iMac, a 32GB 2G iPod touch, a 30GB iPod video, two iPod shuffles, and most
recently, the Mac Box Set family pack. I also plan to purchase a MacBook Pro later this
year. In every other instance I have been very pleased with both your products and the
support you provide.
I have already ordered the part and my iMac is on its way back to me, so there is
nothing more that can be done in this specific case to resolve it. However, I feel that I
was treated wrongly and would appreciate it if it were somehow made up to me. I have
come to expect better than this from Apple. For your reference, the serial # of the
computer in question is WXXXXXXXXXX.
Yours respectfully,
XXXXXXXXXXXXX
