iPhone Upgrade Program w/damage to screen?

[Jay5ive]

Hey everyone,
My question is pretty simple. I've done some searching and I've found a few threads relating to my issue but none of them had any concrete answers.

I bought the 6S Plus last September and I bought it through the upgrade program that Apple offers. This came with AppleCare+ by the way. Well my 6S Plus is in pretty good shape, however there is a somewhat noticible crack right underneath the home button.

Does anyone have any information as to how this will work when I go into the Apple Store to upgrade to a new IPhone 7? Should I send the phone in now to get serviced and pay the $100 for the repair? Wait and hope they don't care/notice? Or can I just trade the phone in at the time of getting an IPhone 7 and just have them tag on the repair costs to my bill?

Thanks for any help you guys and gals can give!

 

[617aircav]

Why would you spend an additional $100 just to trade it in? Take it there, if they reject it then pay.

 

[Pulpdiction]

Why don't you go into an apple store and ask them, they might be able to give you the concrete answers you seek. Also 100 dollars for a repair - I'd have thought it would be a lot more than that.

 

[Applejuiced]

Since you have AppleCare plus it will be $99 to replace the screen of that 6S plus.
You won't be able to utilize the upgrade program and handing in a device with a broken screen without paying for the repair.

 

[kybldmstr]

You should wait until you upgrade to the 7. I've read Apple's terms and conditions and if the phone is considered "damaged" then you will just be asked for pay the $100 for the repair before getting your new phone. However, Apple normally does not consider a single crack to be "damaged". It is considered cosmetic damage. Now if the crack has spidered into more than one crack, then this is considered "damaged" and you will have to pay. But do not do this ahead of time, better to wait until new phone comes out.

 

[Mlrollin91]

Hey everyone,
My question is pretty simple. I've done some searching and I've found a few threads relating to my issue but none of them had any concrete answers.

I bought the 6S Plus last September and I bought it through the upgrade program that Apple offers. This came with AppleCare+ by the way. Well my 6S Plus is in pretty good shape, however there is a somewhat noticible crack right underneath the home button.

Does anyone have any information as to how this will work when I go into the Apple Store to upgrade to a new IPhone 7? Should I send the phone in now to get serviced and pay the $100 for the repair? Wait and hope they don't care/notice? Or can I just trade the phone in at the time of getting an IPhone 7 and just have them tag on the repair costs to my bill?

Thanks for any help you guys and gals can give!

They will make you go through the genius bar first, fix the phone and then you can trade it in. Any damage to the phone, including a crack or chip is required to be fixed before trading in. Its stated in the terms and conditions of the upgrade program.

 

[Applejuiced]

You should wait until you upgrade to the 7. I've read Apple's terms and conditions and if the phone is considered "damaged" then you will just be asked for pay the $100 for the repair before getting your new phone. However, Apple normally does not consider a single crack to be "damaged". It is considered cosmetic damage. Now if the crack has spidered into more than one crack, then this is considered "damaged" and you will have to pay. But do not do this ahead of time, better to wait until new phone comes out.

A cracked screen is not considered damaged but just cosmetic? What are you on?
Good luck with getting laughed at the genius appointment and then most likely send you off.
Try that near the iPhone release date and you don't get an appointment for a week later.
Sure, tell the op not to do it ahead and wait till release day. Lol

 

[kybldmstr]

A cracked screen is not considered damaged but just cosmetic? What are you on?
Good luck with getting laughed at the genius appointment and then most likely send you off.
Try that near the iPhone release date and you don't get an appointment for a week later.
Sure, tell the op not to do it ahead and wait till release day. Lol

I had a single hairline crack on my phone and went in to get it replaced. I expected to have to pay. Genius did not make me pay because it was just one crack, he called it a hairline crack, and it was considered cosmetic damage according to Apple. A few months later I cracked my phone again, this time it spidered into two cracks. This was not covered because it was not hairline. I told the OP if it was just one crack Apple will cover it. I asked the genius for more clarification on what is covered damage and what is accidental damage. He repeated the same things I am telling OP and now you.

 

[Jay5ive]

Why don't you go into an apple store and ask them, they might be able to give you the concrete answers you seek. Also 100 dollars for a repair - I'd have thought it would be a lot more than that.

It's a hundred because the upgrade program comes with AppleCare+. I've ask in three stores and I get different answers. One said I'd need to replace it first, another wasn't sure, and the last said it shouldn't be an issue. So I figured I'd ask here if there were any other opinions and to open this discussion to others as I'm sure my situation is common.

 

[lordofthereef]

If I were you I'd just take it in and see what they say. They may require you to pay the $100 repair fee. Be prepared for that. If they don't, good for you! No sense in paying for a repair now IMO.

 

[Applejuiced]

I had a single hairline crack on my phone and went in to get it replaced. I expected to have to pay. Genius did not make me pay because it was just one crack, he called it a hairline crack, and it was considered cosmetic damage according to Apple. A few months later I cracked my phone again, this time it spidered into two cracks. This was not covered because it was not hairline. I told the OP if it was just one crack Apple will cover it. I asked the genius for more clarification on what is covered damage and what is accidental damage. He repeated the same things I am telling OP and now you.

The op never mentioned or showed how big the broken screen was. But in reality you got lucky and they let you slide.
That doesn't mean they will let everyone go handing in iPhones with cracked screens.

 

[kybldmstr]

The op never mentioned or showed how big the broken screen was. But in reality you got lucky and they let you slide.
That doesn't mean they will let everyone go handing in iPhones with cracked screens.

Two of my friends got lucky too when I told them about the policy and they had their phones replaced for free too. Some of us are just lucky I guess.

 

[Applejuiced]

Two of my friends got lucky too when I told them about the policy and they had their phones replaced for free too. Some of us are just lucky I guess.

There is no such policy with a screen a little bit cracked it's ok but not cracked a lot or spiderweb like you claim.
It's a possibility for Apple to give you a break but that's the exception to the rule.
Telling the op that they will let him slide because you and a friend got lucky and didn't have to pay is a different story.
Apple has great customer service and many times go the extra mile to keep their customers happy.
Replacing iPhones for free out of warranty or when it's user damage and many other circumstances like that does happen.
But going in and expecting them to fix for free something you broke yourself is not the way to go.

 

[kybldmstr]

There is no such policy with a screen a little bit cracked it's ok but not cracked a lot or spiderweb like you claim.
It's a possibility for Apple to give you a break but that's the exception to the rule.
Telling the op that they will let him slide because you and a friend got lucky and didn't have to pay is a different story.
Apple has great customer service and many times go the extra mile to keep their customers happy.
Replacing iPhones for free out of warranty or when it's user damage and many other circumstances like that does happen.
But going in and expecting them to fix for free something you broke yourself is not the way to go.

Should we all just stop believing what the Genius' say? I asked point blank if this was the policy. Answer: yes

 

[Applejuiced]

Should we all just stop believing what the Genius' say? I asked point blank if this was the policy. Answer: yes

Show me a policy or somewhere that it says a small crack on the screen is ok and that they will repair or replace it for free.
I can't go to any Apple rep and say, hey so and so and his 2 friends didn't get charged for similar repairs so I shouldn't either.

 

[Trin813]

Hello everyone, I had the same issue as the OP, single hairline crack and was wondering the same about upgrading next month to the 7plus (thru Verizon not Apple). I have a 6s plus with 24 days of remaining warranty. As I read this post yday, I felt the need to go to the Apple Store myself as we will all have different answers as we all deal with different Apple Store employees. With that being said, I told the genius flat out, I dropped my phone and the result was the hairline crack. He began to explain that "single hairline cracks" are covered under your one year Apple warranty and gladly began a ticket to swap it out. There was no talk of paying any fees and I do not have Apple Care. Ymmv, but this was my experience. Best of luck to you OP!

 

[Bbqthis]

There is no such policy with a screen a little bit cracked it's ok but not cracked a lot or spiderweb like you claim.

You're wrong. There is a policy. A single hairline crack is viewed as a glass defect and is replaced for free. A compound crack is seen as cosmetic damage. It's well documented across the internet as being the policy at the Genius Bar and have personally had several displays replaced for free as per this policy.

 

[Applejuiced]

You're wrong. There is a policy. A single hairline crack is viewed as a glass defect and is replaced for free. A compound crack is seen as cosmetic damage. It's well documented across the internet as being the policy at the Genius Bar and have personally had several displays replaced for free as per this policy.

It's pretty much up to the particular Apple reps discretion and depends on the particular crack, condition of the device, point of impact dents or dings etc.

 

[Bbqthis]

It's pretty much up to the particular Apple reps discretion and depends on the particular crack, condition of the device, point of impact dents or dings etc.

The policy is a hairline crack with no obvious points of impact gets a free replacement. That's the policy clear and simple. Whether an individual Genius decides to be lenient or more strict is irrelevant. If a device comes in with a clean hairline crack and no obvious point of impact, it's a warranty replacement. If the OP meets that requirement, they should go in expecting a free replacement, no questions asked.

 

[lordofthereef]

I don't think there needs be much argument over policy. There is no such officially documented policy that is available to the general public officially sanctioned by Apple, this much is certain. They are intentionally vague even when it comes to repair/replacement policies.

Apple will frequently replace single hair line cracks at no charge. Should they stop doing that tonight, they could. They really aren;t under any obligations.

 

[Applejuiced]

The policy is a hairline crack with no obvious points of impact gets a free replacement. That's the policy clear and simple. Whether an individual Genius decides to be lenient or more strict is irrelevant. If a device comes in with a clean hairline crack and no obvious point of impact, it's a warranty replacement. If the OP meets that requirement, they should go in expecting a free replacement, no questions asked.

No such policy exists.

 

[Mlrollin91]

No such policy exists.

You are correct. No such policy actually exists on paper for the general public to see, just as lordthereef pointed out. With that being said, as of today. 99% of Apple Stores will offer a replacement for a single hairline crack across the screen where there is no impact point. The OP's situation would not qualify.

 

[Trin813]

You are correct. No such policy actually exists on paper for the general public to see, just as lordthereef pointed out. With that being said, as of today. 99% of Apple Stores will offer a replacement for a single hairline crack across the screen where there is no impact point. The OP's situation would not qualify.

Not contesting your statement or anyone else's but my replacement mentioned earlier had a very small impact point in the corner where the hairline crack was present on my display. Op should really just go in an try his/her own experience and possibly report back?

 

[Applejuiced]

You are correct. No such policy actually exists on paper for the general public to see, just as lordthereef pointed out. With that being said, as of today. 99% of Apple Stores will offer a replacement for a single hairline crack across the screen where there is no impact point. The OP's situation would not qualify.

99% huh?
You guys post all these made up things and trying to pass them up as actual company policies

 

[Mlrollin91]

99% huh?
You guys post all these made up things and trying to pass them up as actual company policies

Okay, fair. 90% of my local Apple Stores, which there are 10 within 100 miles. 9/10 have replaced for a hairline crack with no impact point for myself, friends and family.

Only one didn't want to do it because it looked too 'suspicious' wherever the hell that means.