Stolen MacBook with registered AppleCare

I am posting this on behalf of my friend who recently got his MacBook stolen. I am helping him because I sold this MacBook to him over a year ago. So....

His macbook was stolen from him and he does not know who stole it. Luckily he has AppleCare that is registered under his name and address. As of a few days ago, AppleCare contacted him about a case that was opened to fix the notebook due to overheating issues. He told the representatives that the MacBook was stolen from him and wished to have the notebook sent back to his house after whatever repairs were done. However, after a converstion with the representative, my friend came to the conclusion that the MacBook could not be sent back to him, but rather to the original address the MacBook was shipped for repairs from. It appears that AppleCare is unsupportive in helping to get my friend's macbook back. The best advice they could give was to file a police report.

My question to everyone here is: What is the best alternative I can give my friend in order for him to get his macbook back?

 

....well where did it get stolen from? Is there any chance he could have known who did it?

 

call apple and ask to talk to a manager, and contact the poliece and have the poliece work with apple, and act fast

 

Yeah do it fast. I hope you reported the theft to the police already.

 

In the quick chat I had with my friend last night, he was in the process of filing a police report.

 

Ask Apple for the address that the MacBook shipped from and tell the police. If they don't tell you, get the police to ask.

 

do what ann310 said

 

^second everything above-tho,i wouldn't be in such a rush-either way apple will keep the address....but HOW STUPID/SICK/FOOL MUST YOU BE TO SEND STOLEN NOTEBOOK FOR REPAIR?

 

If the dude is smart he wont have stolen something in the first place.

 

well said,but still...

 

My friend and I were thinking the same exact thing. He was very excited when AppleCare contacted him. But was very disappointed when he found out there was pretty much nothing they could do for him.

We think the person who stole it, sold it to someone else not knowing it was stolen. Or the person was just extremely stupid. I hope my friend gets the notebook back safe and the person who bought the stolen notebook takes it out on the thief.

 

AppleCare was acting professionally and efficiently in informing you/your friend about the status and whereabout of your comp. They (and many other supports services) are not in the business of implementing the laws.

There is nowhere in the contract mentioning that Apple should hold on to a "stolen" piece of equipment, since they do not know the history behind it, unless, in this case, a police report has been submitted.

You are doing the right thing with good inputs from posters. Let the police and Apple work out the rest.

cheers ...

 

so.. um... why did apple called your friend?
I understand Apple needs to ship back to the original address, but I don't understand why would Apple call your friend in the first place. Shouldn't that mean he already filed a police report and Apple ought to contact him?

 

Why did Apple call him well I can tell you, Go back and read the first post.


If I was him I would of just asked to confirm the address it would be shipping back to. Along with reporting it to the police. But then if they go to the address and they notebook is still in the mail they can do anything because they won't have possession of it.

 

they're probably thinking that you're going to somehow scam a new macbook out of them. Just try and have the police (or yourself) get the adress it was shipped to, and have them do the rest.

 

Wow, this is great news/drama. Please keep us updated with the news of the event. And, I hope your friend gets his laptop or perhaps a new laptop.

 

If he/she is smart enough to stole your macbook, he/she won't even mind fixing it even if it's broken.

 

We (friend and I) do not want apple to break laws or breach any terms of service. However, a simple service applecare can do for my friend is to ship the laptop back to him after the repairs are done. I know that this is a very difficult concept to comprehend, but...........ship the MacBook back to the address that AppleCare is registered to! Or because the return address does not match the registered AppleCare address, verify with that person that he/she is the owner of the notebook!

 

More reason AppleCare == fail.

 

And what if that person bought the laptop off Craigslist or Ebay? Imagine if they were willing to do that, sellers could sell off laptops and when they break get it back to resell again!

 

I'm sorry, you are going to have to elaborate.

 

I want to add that I am not trying to bash AppleCare. I have used it a few times and have had great success and service. If I had the ends, I would purchase AppleCare for all my related devices.

 

There is no reason for them to send you the notebook unless you have a police report etc. You can well have sold your notebook and want to scam the buyer.

 

AppleCare would not help you recover stolen Macbook because that's not their business. What you need to do is contact Apple Support and inquire about helping you and law enforcement into the theft. Make sure you have sales receipts and proof of purchase.

My bet is the person who is asking for support doesn't know it's stolen. The thief probably sold it to this honest person who is just getting it serviced.

Remember, AppleCare simply services the hardware, they have no business in recovering stolen property, that's the police.

Let's say you sold the Macbook to your friend and then got a call from AppleCare and you ask them to return the Macbook to you. Hey, you just stolen the Macbook back from your friend! That's why it's not AppleCare's job to act as law enforcement here.

 

I have not thought about it this way, interesting. This is why it is important to transfer ownership of AppleCare.

 

I bought my Macbook from someone on ebay and the person didn't transfer ownership to me.

I bought in the Macbook Pro to Applecare to fix a dead disc drive and the Geniusbar guy just went in and editted the ownership info with mine and that's how easy a thief can transfer ownership.

The most important thing is have proof of purchase that has the serial number listed then call law enforcement and explain to them the situation then they can have someone contact AppleCare and bring a warrant to have the macbook recovered, they probably will contact the person who currently owns the macbook to see where it was purchased and from whom.

 

Apple most likely can't officially help him out unless he gets the Police involved, so as mentioned that is the most important step.

 

i hope he kissed it goodbye, he'll never see it no matter what he does.

no company is responsible for stolen goods stolen from a consumer, nor is it their job to help you out.

My advice, watch it better next time, your not getting anything but a hard time from both police and Apple.

 

Exactly, Apple is just trying to be professional with this, and they might not be able to give you the address because of privacy policy.....have the police handle it.....that's their job.

 

Fixed.
It has nothing to do with Apple Care failing. It's them being smart.

 

Pessimistic, aren't you?
I believe that the lawful owner will get the good back, after going through the correct ways with the police and Apple Care

While the 1st part might be true, the 2nd part (their job to help you out) changes when the law is being involved.

If one can provide the proof of ownership and be truthful, one would never get a hard time from either the police and/or Apple. One must be patient, that's about it. "Hard time" here only equates to "waiting for result"

cheers ...

 

If/when your friend get's it back or get's a new Mac check out http://www.orbicule.com/undercover/ There's been stories where this programed has actually helped recovered the computer.

 

That's lame and not true. Although I generally don't buy extended service contracts (and don't have AppleCare now) I am seriously considering getting it if I keep my lappy for more than a year because of how good they are.

 

Does AppleCare offer on site service? No.
Does AppleCare offer accidental warranty? No.
Does AppleCare offer extension of warranty more than 3 years? No.
...

These alone make it a huge failure as any kind of serious warranty service.

 

* I don't care as the local store is just 10 minutes away.
* Accidental damage warranties generally cost more and I would probably not get it any way.
* I rarely keep a computer past 1 year let alone 3.
If this doesn't work for you thats fine, don't get it. Service at the Apple store and over the phone is light years ahead of what I am used to getting elsewhere. So I might get AppleCare if I keep this MB for more than a year.

 

If you believe that, thats totally your right But in the end, I bet the police, and apple to JACK squat. Its a shame, next time maybe insure it, and fight with the insurance company instead.

And there is a difference between being pessimistic, and a realist. (playfully of course)

 

i dunno man, that guy in "catch me if you can" was pretty smart.....

not to mention ocean's 11/12/13 whatever

 

It's obvious that the guy who took the computer to the apple store is not the one who stole it... He did just sell it I think...

 

Actually I should correct myself. Apple customer support == fail. You only have 30 to 90 days of telephone support when buying Apple products. Otherwise, the only way Apple will help you requires AppleCare because they will not talk to you on the phone.

Let's see, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Toshiba, Acer, junky Emachines, [insert any computer company other than Apple] will actually honor your manufacturer warranty for at least 1 year and have telephone support for the duration of the manufacturer warranty. What Apple does not tell you is there is no other way to get warranty support unless you get AppleCare. The only alternatives is visiting an Apple store. That is totally a problem if you live in an area without an Apple store, or you bought the item at a non-Apple store (i.e. online).

Add to the fact, Apple does not provide Accidental Damage Warranty or on-site support makes it totally lacking. Business users look elsewhere it seems.

 

Stop bring hate to the section every post from you is just negativity towards Apple. Just leave...

 

^I second that!

 

I'm not quite sure how your post was helpful, while his actually had some valid points.

 

Lots of invalid points too. You do not have to bring it to an Apple store. Any Apple certified repair center can do the job. If you bought it online you can still get parts replaced in store or in a certified repair center. I bought a used CTO MBP and get perfectly good service.

 

em,well,actually,no-if you take a look at his posts in apple forum,99% of them is bashing apple...

 

Agreed, Pacmandelight, Would you please stop trolling the Apple Forums and stop bashing Apple, because you can take your non-sense bashing somewhere else. Thank you.

 

Bet is on. Rightful owner will get the machine back, might take a while, but she/he will have it back. Minding the word "rightful"!

this part can be taken further in off-topics

cheers ...

 

I phoned in with my macbook with more than 3 months in (without Apple care) and they didn't care - I still got serviced.

 

Yeah, my MB was about a month over it's warranty, and they happily repaired my RAM module that had died.

 

Don't forget to let us know how it turns out.