Rude Apple care specialist

Is Apple outsourcing now?

No.

Sharon, I sincerely believe you were treated rudely, but I am equally sincere in my belief that whoever you contacted was not Apple. Your explanation of the events is so remarkably unlike anything I have experienced with them that I wonder if you actually called a phone number found by a Web search for "Apple Support".

Most of the contacts and phone numbers that will result from an Internet search are not affiliated with Apple in any way. They are criminals fraudulently representing themselves as Apple. That makes me wonder if the person you called was attempting to defraud you into paying for something — AppleCare in this instance — that they had no legitimate way to sell, and that you would not have received if you had agreed to pay.

The only legitimate way of contacting Apple is to start with the Support link at the top of this page. Never use Google to find Apple Support.

... after seeing my serial number had no apple care attached to it.

Literally anyone with your product's serial number can determine if you purchased an AppleCare Agreement for it, or not. It is one reason serial numbers should be considered personal information.

Phony "tech support" telephone and Internet scams are commonplace but attempting to defraud you into buying phony AppleCare would be a new twist on that old story.

Another thing I noticed about the phone call was that it was very noisy in the background, like I called a call center. Also The man on the other end had an accent.

It is certainly possible for an AppleCare representative to have a regional or foreign accent, but their English communication skills should be impeccable. Apple requires and expects nothing less than excellent listening and speaking skills. Their calls are routinely monitored for that ability.

Also, I have never heard any background noise from them at all. That is the most unusual aspect of your experience.

All those clues support my suspicion that you did not really contact Apple. I'm sorry but that's the only explanation that makes any sense to me.

Sorry... I find this hard to believe.

It costs Apple more money to have you go to the store than for that advisor to help you over the phone.

Where did you make this call?

Currently in North America, Apple is rumoured to be providing all callers with phone support regardless of their AppleCare status. They do this around holiday shopping and major iOS releases.

This is likely done deliberately to keep traffic away from the stores who are busy selling phones.

If the advisor did take your serial number, there is a record of the call. Call again and ask for a senior advisor and tell them your story.

Needless to say the treatment you describe is inexcusable. Perhaps that specialist doesn't appreciate the fact that there are plenty of qualified people who would love to take his place and treat you with the respect and patience you deserve as a customer.

Even if you did not purchase AppleCare, single incident telephone support from Apple is $29 US. For that fee they will spend as much time with you as it takes to resolve your problem. If an Apple Store is not convenient for you, I suggest you contact Apple again:

https://www.apple.com/support/products/pay-per-incident.html

Seattle is fortunate to have a number of Apple Stores: http://www.apple.com/retail/storelist/

If the University Village store happens to be convenient for you, I hope you get a chance to meet with Jordan at the Genius Bar. He'll make things right, maybe not enough to make up for the rude treatment you received, but your iPhone will be fixed.

They're busy though, so make a reservation: http://www.apple.com/retail/geniusbar/

Did you receive a followup message from Apple with a case #?

Apple support personnel have no reason to "prefer" those callers with AppleCare over those without. Nor would Apple direct them to do so. They are also trained to refer any software issues to the stores only at the customer's direct request or as a last resort.

Try the following steps:

1. Reset your iPhone 6. Nothing will be lost.

2. Uninstall and reinstall iTunes from your computer.

3. Try deleting and reinstalling your previously purchased apps from the app store again.

4. You might also want to do a factory restore.

5. Make sure that all your data is backed up in iTunes.

Good luck!

sharonfromkihei wrote:

They are an independent support center for technical problems for apple bblah, blah, blah, number was 18669410262,

That is not an Apple Support phone number. I got "Addiction Treatment Specialists" when I called. Mystery solved.

That's unacceptable. You can contact Apple directly on Twitter: @AppleSupport

Aside from that, what problems are you having?