Apple stops Caring in Italy, probably all Europe soon
Questionably supportable support questioned by EU
Apple has reportedly stopped selling its extended warranty, AppleCare, in Italian stores following prompts from Europe's Justice minister that the company wasn't respecting EU-mandated guarantees.
AppleCare will still be available though the company's web site, but won't be sold in stores - according to leaked e-mails sent to retailers. Right now that's only in Italy, but with Europe's Justice Minister writing to every member country suggesting they take a long hard look at Apple's compliance it surely won't be long before the model spreads to the rest of the region.
All electronics sold in Europe are required to come with a two-year warranty, but Apple ended up in front of the Italian court for failing to make that clear to customers while selling them its own premium guarantee in the form of AppleCare, and was eventually hit with a €900,000 fine for the practice.
Apple has already been forced to update its warranty information, pointing out that its own (one year) warranty is superior to the EU-mandated two-year variety as it includes three months' telephone support and covers defects which arise after delivery, and the company provides a comparison table which tries to sell AppleCare Protection Plus on the grounds that it offers telephone support for the duration, but it's hard to see many people taking it up.
Which may be part of the problem: extended warranties were for a long time an extended profit margin for retailers and pushed onto customers at every turn, but Apple staff aren't supposed to be so pushy and with Apple already providing the required two-year warranty there might not be enough takers to keep the service viable. Add on the legal difficulties and dropping the offering is just easier.
We've asked Apple for clarification, but have yet to receive any response as Cupertino has recently gone quiet on us again. Hopefully we've not offended them too much and will have an update soon, in the meantime iFans can still sign up for the additional cover though the Apple web site, even in Italy. ®
COMMENTS
Well
Apples table is just blatantly misleading.
"Defects present when customer takes delivery"
or Apples:
"Defects arising after customer takes delivery"
Is just complete crap. If the product develops a fault within that two year period then Apple (as the seller) is obliged to repair it, refund or replace.
Also:
"In most EU member states, consumers may only claim for defects that were present on delivery. There are some exceptions including Czech Republic and Romania. The burden to prove that the defect (including latent defects) existed on delivery generally shifts to the consumer after the expiry of a period of six months from date of delivery. Examples of countries where the burden of proof does not shift include Czech Republic, Portugal and Romania. Please contact your local European Consumer Centre for details of the position in your country."
Another piece of absolute tosh.
Typical bloody Apple. Mind you, imho, if you buy one of their products, you deserve every bit if Apple "love" you get.
We've asked Apple for clarification, but have yet to receive any response as Cupertino has recently gone quiet on us again
I think that last sentence is meant to read "but have yet to receive any response as Cupertino are still sore we didn't take their side during the appleology incident
Poor old El Reg
Apple's naughty step must have a vulture-shaped dent in it by now.
Re: The bit that's valuable
My Dell monitor - with a three years dead pixel warranty. Two years after purchase - a row of dead pixels. Next day collection AND replacement with a brand new one - NOT refurbished like apple, all at no extra charge or cost. Total downtime - 20 minutes.
And no cooked up bills to show me some pretend savings.
No I did not buy their on site warranty package. Yes it is their upper mid product range, not their cheapest product. The price for the specs was the best in market, and far cheaper than the Apple equivalent.
Sorry, real life experience that is narrow is also useless. I can't believe you actually fell for the invoice they pretty much created. Another Apple marketing score. Can't deny that.
Re: Screw the EU
Hmm yes, the same kind of worldwide service that HP, Dell, Toshiba, Sony, Kyocera etc etc provide as standard.
In fact most companies with a global presence do that except Apple who want paying extra for it - remind me again why people think they are so wonderful
