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AMEX and Applecare

M

MuDPHuDStudent

macrumors member
Original poster
Feb 8, 2009
65
0
Hanover, NH
I know people have posted asking about whether to get Applecare for a MBP purchase or just to pay with AMEX and receive the one year extended AMEX warranty. I've search (mroogle and google) but haven't been able to find the answer to one question: If I purchase a MBP with my AMEX and then six months later I decide to purchase Applecare, would my warranty be extended to three years total (year 2 both Applecare and AMEX warranties) or would the AMEX warranty be tacked on to the end of the Applecare for four years total? If I buy the computer and Applecare with my AMEX at the same time I know I get four years but I'm not sure if that is the case if I buy Applecare after purchasing my computer.

Thanks!
 
Pretty sure your warranty would only be extended 2 years past the first year from the date of purchase. AMEX, unless offering a 4-year from date of purchase warranty, would not be a successor to the extended warranty (AC).
 
My understanding is that the AMEX warranty only extends one-year warranties by an additional year (2 total). As Applecare extended warranty is 3 years, AMEX would not add a year at the end of that.
 
AMEX does not care about your Applecare.

You either get Applecare and have 3 years total warranty.
You can choose to not get Applecare and you would have 2 year total warranty if paid with your credit card.
 
If you buy with your AMEX and only get the included 1-year warranty, Amex will cover repairs on the second year. You will need to take it into the genius bar, get a quote, get it approved, and then repaired by Apple.

If you buy with your AMEX and get the extra 2 years from AppleCare, Amex covers repairs for the fourth year of ownership (from the day apple care runs out through the next 365 days). AMEX is 1-year from the time the original warranty expires, which is 3-years with the factory extended warranty.

You can read the terms and conditions on the American Express site, but extended warranties are clearly spelled out in the terms.
 
PhatBoyG said:
You can read the terms and conditions on the American Express site, but extended warranties are clearly spelled out in the terms.
Click to expand...

Hmmmm.... I'll have to do that. A few years I read through the warranties as I had this same exact question and it specifically stated that the warranty could not be extended past 2 years total. That would be great if that was no longer the case.
 
PhatBoyG said:
....If you buy with your AMEX and get the extra 2 years from AppleCare, Amex covers repairs for the fourth year of ownership (from the day apple care runs out through the next 365 days). AMEX is 1-year from the time the original warranty expires, which is 3-years with the factory extended warranty.

You can read the terms and conditions on the American Express site, but extended warranties are clearly spelled out in the terms.
Click to expand...

That's pretty much how it works. Buy Applecare and they do the extra year after Applecare.


from their extended warranty policy;

If the product also is covered by a purchased service contract, this Policy’s extended warranty time period begins at the end of the service contract and extends the original manufacturer’s warranty for a period of time equal to that warranty, up to one (1) additional year.
Click to expand...
 
Be sure your AMEX is listed on the linked extended warranty policy. Mine is not and the rules in my paperwork state "If your service contract or extended warranty exceeds twelve (12) months, this coverage does not apply." IE, if the original/purchased warranty is longer than 12 months then the AMEX warranty does not apply.

So just a caveat that it can vary by each individual card.
 
PhatBoyG said:
If you buy with your AMEX and only get the included 1-year warranty, Amex will cover repairs on the second year. You will need to take it into the genius bar, get a quote, get it approved, and then repaired by Apple.
Click to expand...

The nearest Apple store is 100 miles away from me. How does this work in that situation? Would I mail it in (at my expense) to get a quote?
 
Bob Coxner said:
The nearest Apple store is 100 miles away from me. How does this work in that situation? Would I mail it in (at my expense) to get a quote?
Click to expand...

Their original warranty also covers repairs by Certified Service Centers, so you could get a quote from them too. Make sure they're actually certified by Apple though.
 
PhatBoyG said:
If you buy with your AMEX and only get the included 1-year warranty, Amex will cover repairs on the second year. You will need to take it into the genius bar, get a quote, get it approved, and then repaired by Apple.

If you buy with your AMEX and get the extra 2 years from AppleCare, Amex covers repairs for the fourth year of ownership (from the day apple care runs out through the next 365 days). AMEX is 1-year from the time the original warranty expires, which is 3-years with the factory extended warranty.

You can read the terms and conditions on the American Express site, but extended warranties are clearly spelled out in the terms.
Click to expand...

Note, though, that AppleCare is one of the few extended warranties that passes AMEX criteria, ie the AMEX year comes after 3 years of AppleCare. For most other extended service plans (geek squad, service master, etc the bulk of what's out there today), AMEX warranty overlaps with the extended plan and elsewhere in the terms, AMEX states they won't provide repair if the product is covered under any other plan.
 
Last edited:
jenzjen said:
Note, though, that AppleCare is one of the few extended warranties that passes AMEX criteria, ie the AMEX year comes after 3 years of AppleCare. For most other extended service plans (geek squad, service master, etc the bulk of what's out there today), AMEX warranty overlaps with the extended plan and elsewhere in the terms, AMEX states they won't provide repair if the product is covered under any other plan.
Click to expand...

I think that's because the original manufacturer is the one who is providing the warranty; not a third-party retailer or insurance company.
 
blevins321 said:
Their original warranty also covers repairs by Certified Service Centers, so you could get a quote from them too. Make sure they're actually certified by Apple though.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, the nearest Certified Service Center is also 100 miles away. :-(
 
blevins321 said:
I think that's because the original manufacturer is the one who is providing the warranty; not a third-party retailer or insurance company.
Click to expand...

Correct, the bulk of everything other extended warranty is either provided and/or administered by a third party. For AMEX to recognize the extended warranty contract, it has to be both "provided and administered by the original manufacturer" ... see #11 on page 3 in the terms linked in a prior post.
 
I read somewhere that you didn't have to by AppleCare at the original purchase date as long as you buy it on your AMEX later on and it will cover the 4th year for you. Can anyone confirm this?
 
cloroxbleach4 said:
I read somewhere that you didn't have to by AppleCare at the original purchase date as long as you buy it on your AMEX later on and it will cover the 4th year for you. Can anyone confirm this?
Click to expand...

Correct, as long as both the Apple hardware and AppleCare were purchased on the same card, they do not have to be bought at the same time. I myself buy AppleCare almost at the 1 year warranty mark.
 
jenzjen said:
Correct, as long as both the Apple hardware and AppleCare were purchased on the same card, they do not have to be bought at the same time. I myself buy AppleCare almost at the 1 year warranty mark.
Click to expand...

Correction: American Express doesn't care how you bought your Applecare, you just need to prove that you had it. I sent them the "Applecare Protection Plan Certificate" I dug out of my email, which shows what was covered and the end date. That was sufficient. I didn't buy it at the same time I bought the computer (in fact, I bought it for cheep on eBay, and paid with PayPal bank transfer).

I dealt with this just this week, and Amex just approved my claim.

They were incredibly fast too. My hard drive died last week, my Applecare expired in November. I called Amex on Sat. I went to the Apple Store on Sun. and got an estimate, and had them begin the repair. I faxed the required documents to Amex on Mon. Today, Wed., I got an email saying they approved the repair, and will credit my Amex card with the amount on the estimate. Making the claim was incredibly quick and easy.

This thread actually saved my bacon. When my hard drive died, I had forgotten about the Amex deal. I ran across this thread which prompted me to look into it, and lo and behold, I actually have a whole extra year of warrantee protection. Anyway, I thought I'd share. Applecare + American Express = 4 year warrantee, which is a great deal.
 
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