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Applecare Of ebay

W

wehaveamacbook

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Mar 20, 2009
8
0
Hello,

Would anybody trust buying applecare of ebay ?
The seller has loads of positive feedback from purchacers happy with their purchace and saying how they registered it no problem. Is it possible to register it even if it is in someway dodgy ? I mean no one has left feedback saying they registered the product and then 6 months later apple refused to to fix their machine cause they registered a fake warranty. I asked apple sales UK their opinion and said they were not aware of applecare being sold on ebay (?) and that they alone could sell applecare , there are no 3rd party sellers in the UK.

Anyway if anybody has any opinions or advice I would be most grateful.

here is a link, the saving is considerable.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=250390159420



I have exchanged emails with the seller and he has been happy to offer his assurances about his product.
the email exchange went something like this....

How can you sell apple care ?

Their sales team told me there are no third party sellers.

me...I would like to buy from you at the greatly reduced price but how do I know what you are selling ?

seller :
Hi there! I am authorized!! I do not ship the box internationally! It is way to expensive! I send you the the code with complete instructions on how to activate with Apple!

me
OK, thanks for the swift response,
I just don't understand how you have authorization when the apple sales team claim that they don't sell applecare through third parties. My local dealership also said beware of buying applecare off ebay as they have had people come in to have repairs but the warranty they bought (off ebay) was invalid. Sorry to appear distrusting but is there a way to check your credentials ? Can i check your autorisation with apple for example ? Cant be too carefull and my years free warranty is nearly up so it would be not only the money i would loose if there was a problem with the warrenty but the ability to extend the cover for the next two years. Hope you dont mind all these questions

seller:
I honestly have never had anyone be so cautious as you, but in this day and age you have to be! Look at my feedback! You will activate it on your computer and you will know if it's valid right away!

me:
Yes indeed.
And cautious I remain . I dont know how many of the folks leaving positive feedback have been for repairs do I ? My local shop said they have had people come in with fake warranties. You said you are authorized to resell, is there a way I can verify this?
Again sorry to be a pain... You might have to work for this sale !

seller:
It is not a fake warranty if when you activate it Apple says it is valid... I honestly up to you if you if you want to purchase from me and save! Or just pay $170! I really don't have anyway to prove to you this is real!

me:
Ok I believe you .
Now if you can just back up your claim to be an authorized reseller you have got a sale :)

seller:
Hi.. I don't know how I can do that.. I personally am not 100%
authorized, but the distributor I purchase from is authorized... I
am selling you an authorized warranty...

me:
Humm.. please excuse my caution, and I hope you understand. All your feedback would indicate that nobody has a problem registering their number , but there has been no feedback about using the warranty. Can you see the difference? I mean people often 'register' illegal software. How do I know you are not selling the equivalent of a crack that registers online and nothing else ? Hey call me paranoid.. Who is you distributer ? Can I check them out ?
Again, sorry to be such a pain

seller:

I have never been asked this information and I cannot disclose
my distributer... It's up to you...



so what do you think ?

saving of over £100 or a scam ??

:(:confused:
 
I don't think you will be scammed. I bought two Applecare policies from the seller macman212 in January at a greatly reduced price and everything is fine. My Air was even replaced under the original 1 year warranty and they transferred the Applecare policy to the new Air the other day when I made a phone call.
 
If you are so worried then just buy Applecare from Apple and get on with your life.

While I think it's a good idea to be cautious in any transaction, especially on eBay, you have to assume a certain amount of risk if you want to save money. What you are looking for is a 100% guarantee AND cost savings on eBay. I don't think that exists.

You can spend so much time worrying and doing research to find out the legitimacy, that you waste any benefit to the money you saved. In that case, you might as well have paid full price!

Also, if you buy a lower cost item such as Applecare and get ripped off, I'd assume you would have some protection from your credit card company or eBay if you file a claim.
 
THX1139 said:
If you are so worried then just buy Applecare from Apple and get on with your life.

While I think it's a good idea to be cautious in any transaction, especially on eBay, you have to assume a certain amount of risk if you want to save money. What you are looking for is a 100% guarantee AND cost savings on eBay. I don't think that exists.

You can spend so much time worrying and doing research to find out the legitimacy, that you waste any benefit to the money you saved. In that case, you might as well have paid full price!

Also, if you buy a lower cost item such as Applecare and get ripped off, I'd assume you would have some protection from your credit card company or eBay if you file a claim.
Click to expand...

I think that's what the seller was trying to tell you. If you're scared then get ripped off from apple. I purchased my applecare for my macbook pro from ebay and it worked fine. You should be ok as long as the seller has 98% feedback or more. Just use paypal via your CC if you're really concern. If they scam you just issue a chargeback. I don't think you'll have a problem though.
 
THX1139 said:
If you are so worried then just buy Applecare from Apple and get on with your life.

While I think it's a good idea to be cautious in any transaction, especially on eBay, you have to assume a certain amount of risk if you want to save money. What you are looking for is a 100% guarantee AND cost savings on eBay. I don't think that exists.

You can spend so much time worrying and doing research to find out the legitimacy, that you waste any benefit to the money you saved. In that case, you might as well have paid full price!

Also, if you buy a lower cost item such as Applecare and get ripped off, I'd assume you would have some protection from your credit card company or eBay if you file a claim.
Click to expand...



a couple of hours of research /queries to save £140 quid seems like time well spent. I dont know how much you get paid but its way over my hourly rate.

And creditcard/pay pal protection is very well, except that what if i dont find out its fake untill after its too late to buy legit ?
Is it possible to to registar it on the apple site with a fake serial number ?(or whatever it is you get )

by the way , you say;
you have to assume a certain amount of risk if you want to save money
Where do you live ? I shop at ASDA because it is cheaper than Sainsburys. There is no more risk associated with it.
 
wehaveamacbook said:
And creditcard/pay pal protection is very well, except that what if i dont find out its fake untill after its too late to buy legit ?
Is it possible to to registar it on the apple site with a fake serial number ?(or whatever it is you get )
Click to expand...

Most ebay sellers will send out the reg code immediately after payment. You enter it, and find out if you're good to go. If not, contact the seller, the money broker, and the cc company. Then hit the apple store. Really, buying from a reputable seller on ebay is just as safe as from amazon (or any other third party).
 
techound1 said:
Most ebay sellers will send out the reg code immediately after payment. You enter it, and find out if you're good to go. If not, contact the seller, the money broker, and the cc company. Then hit the apple store. Really, buying from a reputable seller on ebay is just as safe as from amazon (or any other third party).
Click to expand...

Thank you, I guess that is what i needed to know.
Once it is registered with apple that's it is it ?
Is it not possible to to register a fake warranty which would only come to light if i needed to use it ?
 
wehaveamacbook said:
Is it not possible to to register a fake warranty which would only come to light if i needed to use it ?
Click to expand...

That is my understanding. If you want to give it a try, go to the reg page, make up a number, and give it a spin. My guess is it won't work.
 
wehaveamacbook said:
thought this might be interesting to anyone reading this

http://forums.whirlpool.net.au/forum-replies-archive.cfm/1165249.html

apparantly apple do not always/have to accept apple care if it wasn't bought from a registered re-seller
Click to expand...




also found this...

More and more Apple is moving to an auto-enroll style of AppleCare, where it is tied to the machine at the time of purchase. That said, retail packs are still made available at authorized retail stores
and other places. Your guess is as good as mine if the trend for more auto-enroll will continue replacing the box version.

It sounds extremely fishy. All Apple products
have basically fixed prices. If anything is sold new at a significantly reduced price, particularly if they're not an authorized retailer, it's most likely at least gray market and could be somehow fraudulent. An incremental discount could be the result of someone abusing the educational or other discount programs offered by Apple. In a case like that, an audit trail will exist, and while purchases like this might work at first the plan could be cancelled later if it's determined that it was activated outside of the Ts and Cs of the discount buying programs.

Not worth the risk IMO, and I have a pretty good vantage point upon which to base this assessment.
 
Hmmm, I wonder how this will turn out. I was planning on buying my AppleCare for my next laptop from eBay.
 
I bought Apple care from Ebay for my Unibody MBP and my 2009 Mac Mini and had no problems at all!!!!! Apple was even kind enough to include my 24" LED cinema display with the Mac Mini even though they weren't purchased together THANKS APPLE!!!!!!

Look up 480sherry on Ebay!!!!!!!
 
Bought my applecare on ebay the day my 1 yr warranty was to expire. I just took my macbook pro in last week for speaker repair. I was not charged a dime for the repair.
 
Heh, because of this thread, I went ahead and bought AppleCare for my iMac. Saved myself $50 - and that's off the educational pricing! Used a 10% Live cashback too (just search for "iPod" on Live.com and you'll get an 10% cashback eBay link)

Now waiting for the seller to email me the code! How long does that usually take?

EDIT: Got the AppleCare code already. It's all registered and set! Easiest transaction ever!

GO FOR IT!
 
I was about to buy AppleCare on eBay and started searching through this forum to see what was a good price for it...then came across this thread:

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/667584/

Down at the bottom of the first page and continuing on to the 2nd page is a discussion of how some eBay sellers scam on AppleCare by cancelling it a few months later. The buyer gets a valid registration code that works fine...so the buyer thinks everything's cool...and it is until the scammer cancels the AC behind the buyer's back a few months down the line. Apparently the key to protecting yourself is to get the box since it has the proof of purchase that's necessary to cancel. But most eBay sellers don't give the box, or they charge extra for it (apparently to help recoup their losses since now they can't scam you).

I know eBay is rife with scams so I'm now a bit leery on buying AC on eBay. Seems more like the slot machine...maybe you're lucky and the AC really works (as some people in this thread are claiming) or maybe it won't.

$170 is a lot of money to be scammed, esp in this economy. Doesn't hurt to be vigilant and thorough in your research...
 
I think it is always beneficial to shop around. I have never attempted to purchase applecare this way though. I'm currently about to buy my first Mac next month, and I plan to get applecare directly through apple a few months after purchasing the Mac. However, I have been burnt a few times buying products and warranties from unauthorized third party sellers. PayPal and your CC company should be good about disputes, but sometimes the claim process is ridiculous. If you are that concerned about the legitimacy of the purchase, then just buy from apple. It's a decision of your comfort zone. If all else fails, just stick to the ebaying motto I use, if it's too good to be true, the most likely it isn't true to begin with. Good luck.
 
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