Didn't get any credits for AppleCare+ when trading in MBP 2019 bought earlier 2020.

[hajime]

Hi, I went to an Apple store to trade in my MBP 16" 2019 for a MBP 2021 but they did not have the models I want in stock. The guy inspected the machine and entered the information to that trade in form which did not ask if I have Apple Care+ or not. Then, he quoted me the highest value. I said OK. During the process, I asked him how he would refund me the remaining AppleCare+ and he said that the quote from the online form already included the refund cost of the AppleCare+. I don't believe that as in the past, Apple calculated the remaining days and refunded me the different. Then, he mentioned something like if I were to buy a machine at that time which they did not have in stock, they would transfer the remaining AppleCare+ to the new machine.

Anybody got any credits back for AppleCare+ when trading in the machine in less than 3 years? I bought it around February/March of 2020.

 

[jz0309]

I did that 4 or 5 months ago when I traded my 2 or so year old 15MBP for the M1 MBA, I called Apple and support forwarded me to a special department (can’t remember the name) and they refunded me in form of a gift card.
But had to call in order to cancel AC+

 

[hajime]

Thanks. Called Apple. Obviously the guy who did the trade-in had no idea what he was talking about.

He also said that they were going to throw away my machine and recycle the case only to build upcoming machines. However, he insisted on reformatting and reinstalling the OS which I did already. He also checked for defects several times. If they were going to throw away my computer, why bother with these?

When I called Apple, they tried to refund me via the original payment method which is visa. However, she said that for some reason, the system did not allow her to do that. Then, she said that she could give me an iTune gift card. However, she said that I cannot use it to buy hardware. This is a bit strange. Did you get an iTune gift card? The gift card I got for trade-in has 'The gift card for everything Apple' on top.

I contacted Apple again. One guy said I could use the iTune card to buy applications, movies, music. However, he said that I could not use it to buy software. Isn't applications software?

I also went to Apple website. It seems that they only have one kind of gift card which is 'The gift card for everything Apple'. There is no mention about iTune gift card. How many different kinds of gift cards are there?

 

[0128672]

I did that 4 or 5 months ago when I traded my 2 or so year old 15MBP for the M1 MBA, I called Apple and support forwarded me to a special department (can’t remember the name) and they refunded me in form of a gift card.
But had to call in order to cancel AC+

It's the Applecare Admin Department. You have to speak with them to request a refund if you've paid for upfront for a plan. Applecare goes with the device, so if you sell it to someone else, you can request that they transfer the Applecare to the new owner. You can also do it online. I've done this many times. You'll see on places like Swappa that the offer includes the remaining balance of the Applecare plan.

Obviously this doesn't apply to monthly paid plans.

Transfer your AppleCare plan - Apple Support

If you sell or give away your device, you might be able to transfer your AppleCare plan to the new owner.

support.apple.com

 

[hajime]

I paid in full amount all by visa and sold the machine to an Apple store

 

[Apple_Robert]

If you didn't redeem the iTunes gift card, call back to AAD as Wildsky stated and ask for a Apple store gift card instead.

 

[0128672]

Thanks. Called Apple. Obviously the guy who did the trade-in had no idea what he was talking about.

He also said that they were going to throw away my machine and recycle the case only to build upcoming machines. However, he insisted on reformatting and reinstalling the OS which I did already. He also checked for defects several times. If they were going to throw away my computer, why bother with these?

When I called Apple, they tried to refund me via the original payment method which is visa. However, she said that for some reason, the system did not allow her to do that. Then, she said that she could give me an iTune gift card. However, she said that I cannot use it to buy hardware. This is a bit strange. Did you get an iTune gift card? The gift card I got for trade-in has 'The gift card for everything Apple' on top.

I contacted Apple again. One guy said I could use the iTune card to buy applications, movies, music. However, he said that I could not use it to buy software. Isn't applications software?

I also went to Apple website. It seems that they only have one kind of gift card which is 'The gift card for everything Apple'. There is no mention about iTune gift card. How many different kinds of gift cards are there?

Whoever you spoke to is confused. The iTunes Gift Cards and Apple Gift Cards were combined. There is no longer an iTunes Gift Card option. The Apple gift card can be used for everything from iTunes to hardware purchases. To confirm try searching for one to buy on apple.com.

Apple Launches New Gift Card for 'Everything Apple'

Apple has introduced a new single gift card in the U.S. for all things Apple. First spotted by iCulture, the card can be used at the App Store and...

www.macrumors.com

 

[0128672]

I paid in full amount all by visa and sold the machine to an Apple store

An Applecare refund isn't part of the trade-in process with Apple. You have to request a refund on your own, which it sounds like you did.

 

[cardfan]

Just cancelled applecare a few days ago on a Mac. All gift cards are the same at apple. Just apply it your account. This account pops up when buying hardware. You can apply any amount of it towards a purchase.

I received mine by email a couple days after talking on phone to apple to cancel it.

It’s basically something you should always do before erasing hardware. Refund applecare if applicable. Apple won’t remind you or encourage it much. The phone call is already an intentional added barrier instead of making it easy to do online. Money reasons probably. I’d guess many never do this.

 

[hajime]

Thanks for the tips. Do you mean before I trade in, I could put a stop to Apple Care+ myself? Is it via their website?

I called Apple again. After citing the case number, a new lady asked me to repeat the entire story. She said that there is only one kind of gift card which I could use to buy anything including hardware. She said that the previous person I talked to confused about the gift card. She said that I would get another email few days later with the redeem code.

She gave me the pricing of $120.4. I told her that the previous lady told me that I would get $120.4 + tax. She said that AppleCare+ does not include tax which is not true. I paid tax when I bought AppleCare+. Then, she said that $120.4 already included the tax. Did you guys and ladies get the remaining amount + tax?

 

[Apple_Robert]

Thanks for the tips. Do you mean before I trade in, I could put a stop to Apple Care+ myself? Is it via their website?

I called Apple again. This time another person said that there is only one kind of gift card which I could use to buy anything including hardware. She said that the previous person I talked to confused about the gift card. She said that I would get another email few days later with the redeem code.

She gave me the pricing of about $120. I told her that the previous lady told me that I would get about $120 + tax. She said that AppleCare+ does not include tax which is not true. I paid tax when I bought AppleCare+. Do you get the remaining amount + tax?

I have never paid tax on AC+ when buying from Apple.

 

[hajime]

I have never paid tax on AC+ when buying from Apple.

Is this depending on the city where one lives?

 

[Apple_Robert]

Is this depending on the city where one lives?

Not that I am aware of. My city and state normally charge sales tax but, it has never happened with AC+.

 

[hajime]

An Applecare refund isn't part of the trade-in process with Apple. You have to request a refund on your own, which it sounds like you did.

Exactly! The guy at the store had no idea what he was talking about.

 

[0128672]

Is this depending on the city where one lives?

Do you have your Applecare receipt to double-check you paid taxes?

 

[hajime]

Do you have your Applecare receipt to double-check you paid taxes?

Just double checked. They added the cost of the MPB, AppleCare+ and a dongle together. Then, applied tax on the total amount. So they did charge the tax on AppleCare+.

 

[hajime]

Called Apple again. The 3rd agent said that they charged tax for AppleCare+ but when refunding, they don't refund back the tax. Never heard of this from any company before. I asked her who set this rule and she asked me to hold on.
Either they are incompentent or they are trying to discourage request for refund.

 

[0128672]

Well, it's not a complete refund, it's a pro-rated refund, so maybe that's the policy. Regardless, it's probably not a huge amount, is it? Whenever I've requested an AC refund, I've never had the impression they were in any way trying to discourage the request; just the opposite: they were upbeat, professional and friendly about it, and it was processed quickly.

 

[hajime]

Thanks. I know it is a pro-rated refund. I even calculated the number of remaining days to make sure that the tax is not included. Anyway, after waiting for awhile, the 3rd agent asked somebody else to continue the conversation. Now this lady knows what she is talking about. Sha confirmed that the 2nd and 3rd ladies made a mistake and I should get the tax back as well. She also said that I could use the gift card in both physical stores (which the 2nd lady said no) and Apple online store. She also confirmed that I could use it to buy anything including hardware which the 1st lady said no. The entire day is spent on trade in and getting refund.

 

[0128672]

Thanks. I know it is a pro-rated refund. I even calculated the number of remaining days to make sure that the tax is not included. Anyway, after waiting for awhile, the 3rd agent asked somebody else to continue the conversation. Now this lady knows what she is talking about. Sha confirmed that the 2nd and 3rd ladies made a mistake and I should get the tax back as well. She also said that I could use the gift card in both physical stores (which the 2nd lady said no) and Apple online stores. She also confirmed that I could use it to buy anything including hardware which the 1st lady said no.

There you go, and I'm pleased that you got connected finally to someone who had the right answers. If you're sent a satisfaction survey for these encounters, I hope you'll send it in.

 

[hajime]

Thanks but I have wasted a lot of time. That is why in another thread, I complained about many companies hiring people who don't know what they are talking about.

 

[0128672]

Thanks but I have wasted a lot of time. That is why in another thread, I complained about many companies hiring people who don't know what they are talking about.

To me it's not a hiring issue, it's a training issue, and post-training to have knowledgeable and more experienced resources available for chat and phone support staff when they're unsure of the right answer. The pressure behind the performance metrics for support staff is pretty heavy, so instead of waiting for someone to help, they may give the wrong info just to keep the call time low. Obviously that doesn't help the customer.

 

[hajime]

Apple agents are aggressive in getting us to say we are satisfied with them. At the end of the call, the 2nd lady asked if I was satisfied with her performance on the phone. Chat agents also try to hurry up and get us to say we are satisfied during and before terminating the chat. Same for those chat agents. In some companies, they ask for feedback at the end of the chat. Customers should have an option to delay the feedback as sometimes we found out that agents gave incorrect information later. By then, they got our positive reviews already.

 

[0128672]

Apple agents are aggressive in getting us to say we are satisfied with them. At the end of the call, the 2nd lady asked if I was satisfied with her performance on the phone. Chat agents also try to hurry up and get us to say we are satisfied during and before terminating the chat. Same for those chat agents. In some companies, they ask for feedback at the end of the chat. Customers should have an option to delay the feedback as sometimes we found out that agents gave incorrect information later. By then, they got our positive reviews already.

You have the option to say you're not ready to provide feedback, simply decline, or end the chat. Or tell them how you felt about the support session. I rarely respond to those direct in-chat (or phone) requests but will occasionally if it's a follow up email invitation (from Apple, that is) to provide feedback.

 

[chasedme3333]

I can tell you that the comments and feedback are taken very seriously by Apple and the chat/phone rep. Their very livelihood most times depends on the feedback received as these "Metrics" grade their overall job performance.