Does Applecare expire if unused?

[7709876]

I have come across an unopened Applecare package.

It is about 3 years old and I believe unused. Is it still possible to open it up and register it to a Mac - or do they "expire"

 

[maflynn]

They only expire after you register them. btw it can't hurt to register it because if indeed they do expire you're non worse for wear

 

[DeltaMac]

You won't be able to register any Applecare, if the product (the Mac, not the Applecare) is more than 12 months old.
And, the Applecare has to match up to the Mac. You can't register an iMac, using Applecare that is sold for a MacBook or an iPad, for example.

 

[7709876]

It is currently with an iMac listed on EBAY.

The seller has an unopened Applecare pack with it. Trying to figure out of the unopened Applecare is worth anything when judging how much to bid on the iMac.

 

[DeltaMac]

If the iMac is more than 12 months old, then it doesn't matter how many unopened AppleCare packs are included. Unless the iMac has ALREADY been registered with AppleCare, and is less than 3 years old, then an AppleCare box is not relevant to the purchase of a used iMac.
And, if you have a serial number for the eBay iMac, you can find out about the warranty status very quickly: https://selfsolve.apple.com/agreementWarrantyDynamic.do

 

[maflynn]

You won't be able to register any Applecare, if the product (the Mac, not the Applecare) is more than 12 months old.
And, the Applecare has to match up to the Mac. You can't register an iMac, using Applecare that is sold for a MacBook or an iPad, for example.

She's not asking that, but rather if the age of the applecare product will be an issue.

OP, you may be better off calling apple just in case.

 

[7709876]

If the iMac is more than 12 months old, then it doesn't matter how many unopened AppleCare packs are included. Unless the iMac has ALREADY been registered with AppleCare, and is less than 3 years old, then an AppleCare box is not relevant to the purchase of a used iMac.
And, if you have a serial number for the eBay iMac, you can find out about the warranty status very quickly: https://selfsolve.apple.com/agreementWarrantyDynamic.do

The Mac is more than 3 years old. If the Applecare box is unused it has a value - it just can't be used with the Mac being sold on EBAY.

If the Applecare was scanned in at the time of purchase in an Apple Store - it appears it will have been applied to the Mac in question. In this scenario the unopened box is worthless.

I have checked the warranty status with the serial of the Mac on Apple's website. It is asking me for the date of purchase which I don't have - I didn't buy it originally.

If I call Apple will they tell me if Applecare has ever been applied to the Mac in question?

 

[talmy]

More likely than not that AppleCare was applied to the iMac and has now expired. I've bought AppleCare, applied it, and never opened the box (no reason to). I'd expect this is the same.

 

[GGJstudios]

If I call Apple will they tell me if Applecare has ever been applied to the Mac in question?

You can find that out yourself if you have the serial number of the Mac in question. You can verify remaining warranty/AppleCare coverage for any Mac by entering the serial number here.

 

[7709876]

You can find that out yourself if you have the serial number of the Mac in question. You can verify remaining warranty/AppleCare coverage for any Mac by entering the serial number here.

As I mentioned I have done that already. It says it can't verify the warranty status and asks for the date of purchase.

 

[GGJstudios]

As I mentioned I have done that already. It says it can't verify the warranty status and asks for the date of purchase.

I missed that. If you have the serial number, call Apple and explain the situation. They should be able to confirm whether AppleCare was activated for that device, even if you don't have the original purchase date.

 

[7709876]

I missed that. If you have the serial number, call Apple and explain the situation. They should be able to confirm whether AppleCare was activated for that device, even if you don't have the original purchase date.

Cool, will do that.