Very bad support

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Level 1

4 points

Very bad support

I live in Portugal, a small european country, where we don't have an official Apple Store.

I have dropped my iPhone 6 (purchased on Portugal's official online Apple Store), and the screen has shattered. I contacted online support to ask about my options. They said my only option was to go to an authorized support center, and so I did.

I contacted 4 support centers, and the answers made me feel silly:

Repair: 340€, Time: 2 working days
Repair: 347€, Time: 3-5 working days
Repair: 335€, Time: 5-7 working days
Repair: 339€, Time: 15-30 working days!

I saw on the global support site that an iPhone 6 screen repair costs $109, that's under 100€.

I have also read somewhere that in an official apple store, you can schedule an appointment in the Genius Bar, and the screen is replaced in a few minutes/hours.

You have also an additional option to send your iPhone to repair.

I contacted support again, asking for the option to send for repair. I thought that even paying the delivery, it would be better, and at least more reliable, as I don't trust that much some of these "Authorized" support centers. They told me that was not an option for me. Just take it to a "repair shop"

So, for me that's absurd. I own 1 iPod, 3 iPhones, 2 Mac Minis and one macbook, and never needed support, but this time, it made me very angry.

That's not one company ? Different prices, absurdly expensive, and absurdly different repair times ?

And absolutely NO OTHER OPTION ?

I absolutely love Apple products, and being an IT professional with more than 30 years experience, I tried a lot of different brands.

But, this kind of support made me feel sad an angry.

Probably not choosing Apple again on next purchases.

Has anyone a similar experience in a country "without" oficial Apple Store ?

Any other suggestion ?

Regards,

GHubsch

iPhone 6, iOS 8.4

Posted on Jul 7, 2015 9:01 AM

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Answer 1

Best reply

ChrisJ4203

Level 10

230,347 points

Jul 7, 2015 9:12 AM in response to ghubsch

The issue that you describe has to do with the fact that service in your country is handled by an authorized Apple Service Provider, not Apple itself. Because of that, these providers have the option to charge their own fee, where as the site that you linked is quoting the price in the US for screen replacement. And, it is true, that if you have a physical Apple Store in your country, you can make an appointment and bring the device in for service. The support centers are independent businesses that contract with Apple to provide service, and as such can charge their own prices.

Since Portugal is a member of the EU, your Apple warranty is good in any EU country. If you can easily travel to another country that has a physical Apple store, you could get service there.

The decision to choose Apple is your choice, and you are free to make whatever choice you want, however the fact that service in your country has to be a decision making factor when choosing products. That could have impacted your decision in the past if not being able to get service directly from Apple would have influenced your decision.

However, your statement about "Bad Support" is not about Apple, however the Authorized Apple Service Provider. You would need to take up your complaint with them.

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Answer 2

ghubsch Author

Level 1

4 points

Jul 7, 2015 9:25 AM in response to ChrisJ4203

Hi Chris,

Your answer answered another question I had. I was considering to go to an official Apple Store in Spain, to get the service.

And, yes, the decision is mine, and yes, if I knew Apple support was that bad here, it would had influenced my past decisions, and for sure will influence my future ones.

And, yes, for me, this is Apple... if they thrive to have such a high level of standard in quality and everything else, they should have the same on the support side.

As an example, we don't have official Apple store here, so Apple products are sold on several stores. The price is the same everywhere, as it is on the online store... it doesn't seem to me to be a coincidence, and all shops charge the same price! Apple certainly has a price "control" here. I think that an even more rigid control should exist on Service Providers, as support can easily ruin an image. But... that's just me!

Thanks.

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Answer 3

deggie

Level 10

167,177 points

Jul 7, 2015 9:26 AM in response to ghubsch

The dollar amounts aren't that far off and you could ask them why they are different.

I am assuming each shop examined your iPhone, correct. And in all cases they saw that the damage sustained was going to require replacing the entire iPhone rather than just replacing the screen hence the cost you were quoted.

You can call AppleCare and ask to be transferred to Customer Service, or ask for a supervisor, and tell them your experience.

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Answer 4

ChrisJ4203

Level 10

230,347 points

Jul 7, 2015 9:34 AM in response to ghubsch

While Apple may control the price of purchases for new products, although I have seen differences in other places that have Authorized Resellers, they cannot control the prices of the independent shops, as they are able to recover their costs of labor, as I have read in many other discussions regarding Authorized Service Providers.

Your decision to blame this on Apple is yours and everyone is entitled to their opinion. If you were a business and providing a service and paying your employees who are just certified to work on Apple products, would you want Apple to tell you how much you can charge for your services? I think not. You did not experience bad service, you just were not happy with the price they were wanting to charge you. As such, you have the freedom to choose which provider your bring your business to. To get the Apple rate, you know you can go to the Apple store now.

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Answer 5

ghubsch Author

Level 1

4 points

Jul 8, 2015 2:57 AM in response to deggie

Hi Deggie,

That's even funnier. All the Service providers where contacted by phone. No one examined my phone. All of them said that they will replace the iPhone, even without even looking at it, so, I can assume they don't even try to fix it.

Even more than the ammount charged, what made me more "surprised" is the lack of uniformity, especially on the "repair time".

And all of them said that these were the standard times.

Well... up to 1 month to simply replace an iPhone ? Ok, I understand that they may not have stock at a certain moment, but, that much time ? And you have to handle your broken iPhone while they replace it ? What ?

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Answer 6

ghubsch Author

Level 1

4 points

Jul 8, 2015 2:59 AM in response to ChrisJ4203

Hi Chrisj4023

I'm absolutely not sure at all that they have "Apple certified" employees, as it seems they are not even able to replace a screen in any of the Service Providers! That's what not even considered, something like "Bring your iPhone for us to check, if that's a screen replacement the price is "X", but if the damage is more extensive, the price is "Y". And, in any case, a "reasonable" time... I know that's subjective, but seems that in an Apple Store you can have this issue solved in a few minutes/hours, and not several days!

And also, I don't see that this is so strange about having my own business, and have to follow certain rules. My father has a business on dental esuipment. He is certified by a vendor as an Authorized Service Provider, and the services he does has standard values and even standard repair times.All of these take into account that he needs to pay his employees, of course.

He obviusly can do what he want, it's his business after all, but he can be sure that if a customer complains about his service, it will loose the certification. So, that's not strange at all for me.

What got me surprised is that a company that has a standard so high in everything else, and also in Service, based on what I have read in the past, has this high standard just in home country, or at least in countries that are "blessed" with an oficial store. Very disappointing experience.

Thanks

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