Made an account just to contribute to this thread. My 2018 Macbook Pro (15 in.) has the same issue. Brought it into the Apple store and surprise, surprise they want $600 to replace the entire display. Completely absurd they can get away with this. Spoke to multiple layers of customer support and got nowhere. I posted on Reddit as well to raise awareness:
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Macbook Pro Flexgate discussion [Merged]
- Thread starter SourceSunTom
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Which country did you purchase the device in? If you're in UK/Ireland or many other EU countries, you have quite strong consumer rights. You should email Tim Cook with a well-written, polite but firm email regarding the issues, which should get you through to executive care who will be more likely to help.
Best of luck to you, I will be really interested in how this develops for you (just in case I have that issue again in the future) so please come back with an update
Thanks!Best of luck to you, I will be really interested in how this develops for you (just in case I have that issue again in the future) so please come back with an update
Just to update on what is going on... on Tuesday morning at 9.30am, I had a phone call with a senior specialist, who ran me through some stuff like resetting the SMC, NVRAM etc to ensure that it wasn't the cause of the problem. He was very friendly and we ultimately ruled out any software issues and put it down to a hardware problem. He said I'd likely hear back from Executive Relations same day, or the day after.
I didn't hear anything until this evening, just before close of business, where the Executive Liaison told me my case was still ongoing and that she'd be going on leave for the next couple of weeks, so her colleague would be monitoring the case and updating me on it, in her absence. So we'll see what happens, but it appears it could take a while to resolve!
Another update, got a call from the executive who took over the case while the original executive is on leave. He said the case is still in progress but they don't yet have all of the info required to make a decision on the consumer law claim... he said they have around 60% of the required information and the delay is due to consumer law claims having 'a lot of moving parts' (whatever that means). He did, however, tell me that if they believe I have a claim, I will need to have an authorised service provider assess the device for damage (understandable) and that I will also need to provide the original invoice, despite buying direct from Apple, which I did after the call.
He said it will take 1-3 working days for him to get the remaining required information which he has requested internally (again, no idea what information they're talking about), and then he will be able to come back to me with another update on the case. So... possibly progressing? Quite confusing, though.
If you don't mind me asking, did you have this much strange back and forth and waiting while they continue to 'gather information' and 'investigate' in your case, before they agreed to replace it for you?
I've spoken a lot about the problems with the device, how they've been causing me issues and are not of satisfactory quality for an expensive device, and also how I have been a loyal Apple customer and have purchased many Apple devices, and this is the first and only one thus far that I haven't been happy with, so I would appreciate if they grant a replacement under consumer law to rectify my poor experience with the device. I've never had any dealings with Apple support for any other Apple product prior to this one. I'm surprised the executive care agents are going through the motions with me on this, as I would have thought it was going to be fairly straightforward, reading other people's experiences with this department with similar hardware issues.
That agent got back to me today and it was another frustrating experience of still not having everything needed to make a decision on my case, apparently.
He started giving me incorrect info which he said he had to check with internal legal teams, such as 'the fault must be reported within 24 months' (wrong, not under Irish consumer law - it's six years, which I told him). Then he said he found something about 'computers are only covered for 3 years', which was wrong again.
He doesn't seem to be very knowledgeable on Irish consumer law (which is very similar to UK)... surprising, since I'm sure they've dealt with similar cases in Apple's HQ in Cork before. What has become clear to me however is that he's been spending this time delaying me to try to find ways to invalidate my claim. Honestly, this is really, really disappointing considering how much of a loyal customer I am and the number of devices I've bought from them... I thought their exec relations team would do right by me and solve this Flexgate issue under my consumer rights entitlement, without dragging this out for weeks.
I bought an iPad Pro 12.9 inch, AppleCare+ and AirPods Pro for myself this week, and an iPad Air, AppleCare+ and AirPods Pro for my partner this week. It looks like Apple doesn't really care about brand loyalty anymore though... have they just become another company who try to squirm out of standing behind their devices?
He started giving me incorrect info which he said he had to check with internal legal teams, such as 'the fault must be reported within 24 months' (wrong, not under Irish consumer law - it's six years, which I told him). Then he said he found something about 'computers are only covered for 3 years', which was wrong again.
He doesn't seem to be very knowledgeable on Irish consumer law (which is very similar to UK)... surprising, since I'm sure they've dealt with similar cases in Apple's HQ in Cork before. What has become clear to me however is that he's been spending this time delaying me to try to find ways to invalidate my claim. Honestly, this is really, really disappointing considering how much of a loyal customer I am and the number of devices I've bought from them... I thought their exec relations team would do right by me and solve this Flexgate issue under my consumer rights entitlement, without dragging this out for weeks.
I bought an iPad Pro 12.9 inch, AppleCare+ and AirPods Pro for myself this week, and an iPad Air, AppleCare+ and AirPods Pro for my partner this week. It looks like Apple doesn't really care about brand loyalty anymore though... have they just become another company who try to squirm out of standing behind their devices?
This is a very strange experience. When an issue reaches the executive relations team they usually bend over backwards to resolve the issue in the customers favour. Keep us in the loop. Hopefully, it all works out for you.
Thanks… it is really strange alright, I thought. I didn’t expect to get really poor misinformation about consumer law from them, while they keep me waiting so that they can explore potential technicalities under which they might disqualify my claim.
I’m quite disappointed with the standard of care from this agent, to tell you the truth. I expected a lot better from Apple.
The original executive liaison has now returned from leave and has taken back ownership of the case. She said she'll reach out to me tomorrow with an update. Hopefully it will be good news, after I voiced my disappointment with getting false information regarding consumer law from the agent who took over the case on a temporary basis.
I'm very disappointed with Apple. They just came back to me and informed me that because it is over 3 years from purchase, the issue is very unlikely to be a manufacturing defect with the ribbon cable, as it usually would have appeared before now (which is bull, most of the people claiming under the 2016 13" repair programme have the issue occurring after the 3 year mark). So, they won't be doing anything for me, they said.
I'm really disappointed with them, and I'm going to put in a small claims court claim here in Ireland. It only costs 25EUR to do so, so no major loss if I get nowhere, but at least I'll be satisfied that I tried.
I'm really disappointed with them, and I'm going to put in a small claims court claim here in Ireland. It only costs 25EUR to do so, so no major loss if I get nowhere, but at least I'll be satisfied that I tried.
They're playing the semantics game. Very disappointing to see.
To answer your question - not really. There was a little back and forth on the phone call, but it didn't last more than an hour or so. Then they were happy to give a replacement... Reading this forum has made me realise how easy I got it.
Just wanted to the crowds opinion on whether this issue I'm having with my Late-2016 13" MacBook Pro w/ Touch Bar would've been a qualifier for the recall.. Couldn't find anything on if the models with a touch bar were even considered. the bars seen move up and down the screen in-sync with opening and closing. Not seeing any "apple authored" posts showing anything but the hazy glow being the issue that is covered.
![IMG_20210723_180554173.jpg]( "IMG_20210723_180554173.jpg")
![IMG_20210723_180614630.jpg]( "IMG_20210723_180614630.jpg")
I have seen some Flexgate complaints online that look like that while I've been doing research; looks like it could well be the culprit judging by that image.
On the initial boot while on the white screen with the apple logo there is a single solid vertical bar which is "Noise"like about 2" wide on the left side of the screen that disappears when OSX boots and it turns into those bar's seen in the photo which are always parallel on the x-axis and move along the y-axis when i move the screen so leads me to believe it might be GPU, saw these posts and started to think about it again, haha. tossed it aside when it happened, going to see what it looks like on an external monitor. Started on a cold boot and heat didn't seem to change the condition, kinda was consistent with LVDS issues so I just labeled it "flexgate". Is this service program still active with apple, since they state it only applies to 2016 models i figured it would all kinda end at the same time based on purchase date.
While this isn't the typical way that the spotlight issue appears for most MBPs with the flexgate issue, I think it'll likely been covered.
The display service program runs until 5 years from your purchase date, so you should still be covered since earliest delivery of these MBPs (I have the same one) I think was Nov 2016, so good until at least Nov 2021.
13-inch MacBook Pro Display Backlight Service Program - Apple Support
13-inch MacBook Pro Display Backlight Service Program
support.apple.com
Seriously, wow. I though it was over for sure.... Man, I'm glad I called that guy.... ☝️
I know back in the day when I submitted the original ipod touch gen 1 to apple for the service they had no issues that I was not not the original owner but I was wondering how they would react to macbooks with non original parts like i replaced the bottom cover and the trackpad so if they looked closely the serial dates on parts might not date wise as the should. Basically do they go out of their way to find reasons why they could deny a claim or are they straight put and base it on the issue itself? if it may cause it a problem it would be worth my tie and money to find parts that are OEM with closely matching date codes just to get a working macbook...
I don't know if Apple will cause a fuss for there being non-OEM parts in your MBP... It's possible. I think it's probably luck of the draw on who inspects / repairs your MBP. But I do think it's a real risk.
In terms of length of time for the program - I had forgotten it was 5 years from purchase date as well. The Keyboard Service Program for the butterfly keyboards is more widely known for this generation of MBPs, and that program is only 4 years from purchase date.
Figures I pulled it back out charged it up same issues then screen and touch bar went black, wouldn't turn back on so I set it down came back 15 min later and when i picked it up the bottom was so hot I had to drop it back on the couch, got the back over off quick to disconnect the battery and the cpu heatsink was red hot no fans running nothing. Completely random, prob not going to do anything to take it in to a place now right?
I went into the Genius bar today because of my 2016 MacBook Pro 13":
![IMG_2053.jpg]( "IMG_2053.jpg")
They told me that although display service program applies to this model, that program only covers backlight issues. Because my issue is flickering stripes, and not backlight related, it isn't covered. It's disappointing but that's what their website says too.
They told me that although display service program applies to this model, that program only covers backlight issues. Because my issue is flickering stripes, and not backlight related, it isn't covered. It's disappointing but that's what their website says too.
Just created an account to complain about this.
I had taken my 2016 Macbook Pro 13in w/ Touchbar to a Apple store and they confirmed it was covered by the Backlight Service program.
I had also agreed to pay the $200 for replacement of battery since it was showing "service recommended" and was at 83% capacity.
They sent it in for repair over a week ago and I just received an update today that they are denying it due to "liquid damage" and it will cost $1,299 if I want it repaired.
I've owned this MacBook since it was new. It sits on my desk 99.9% of the time, has had a protective skin on all external surfaces as well as a keyboard skin. There is no way it could have liquid damage.
At least this has helped me decide not to purchase another Mac.
I had taken my 2016 Macbook Pro 13in w/ Touchbar to a Apple store and they confirmed it was covered by the Backlight Service program.
I had also agreed to pay the $200 for replacement of battery since it was showing "service recommended" and was at 83% capacity.
They sent it in for repair over a week ago and I just received an update today that they are denying it due to "liquid damage" and it will cost $1,299 if I want it repaired.
I've owned this MacBook since it was new. It sits on my desk 99.9% of the time, has had a protective skin on all external surfaces as well as a keyboard skin. There is no way it could have liquid damage.
At least this has helped me decide not to purchase another Mac.
my 4 year old 15" 2017 has not flexgates (yet...) does this not happen to 100% of all units or am i just lucky ?
I have 2014 and 2015 MacBook Pro 15s and have not seen FlexGate though I have heard of it happening to other people but it seems rare on the Retina generation compared to post Retina 2016-2019. I'd guess that the overall number is relatively small in percentage terms. I asked the IT guy at my office one time (responsible for about a thousand MacBooks) and he said that he had no FlexGate problems on the 2016-2019 generation.