[Question] Apple Genius Bar called me a fraud, damaged my phone, and said I need a logic board replacement.
Apple Genius Bar called me a fraud, damaged my phone, and said I need a logic board replacement.
Long story short, I took my phone to the Apple Store because the screen had gone black. I could still hear notifications, but the display was not working. I completed a software update, and after that, the phone stopped responding altogether.
I was told to bring the phone to Apple. I also brought my receipt because I could not access iCloud, as this phone is my only device connected to my iCloud account. Even after resetting my Apple ID using my email and phone number, Apple required a five-day waiting period.
When I arrived at the Apple Store, they diagnosed the device and told me that everything appeared to be fine except for the screen. They then said they could not repair the phone unless Find My iPhone was disabled. That is why I had brought the receipt with me.
I provided the receipt, but they told me it was fraudulent. That was not true. I tried to explain for about 30 minutes that I had received the receipt directly from Apple and that it had been sent by a senior advisor. After going back and forth and showing them my email as proof that the phone belonged to me, they finally disabled Activation Lock so they could begin the repair.
About an hour later, they came back and told me that they had tried two different screens and the phone still was not working. They then said the logic board would need to be replaced. This made me pause because they had originally told me my data should be fine since it appeared to be only a screen issue. Everything up to that point seemed to indicate a screen problem.
They told me they did not have the logic board available, so I could either wait a few days and bring the phone back for repair, or they could give me a loaner phone and send mine to the depot. They returned my phone to me in a white pouch sealed with an Apple repair ID sticker and my name on it.
When I got to my car, I briefly took the phone out and looked at it. Once I got home, I removed it from the pouch again and inspected the edges more closely. I noticed several scratches, a nick in the top-left corner, and what appeared to be separation between the frame and the screen.
My concern is that the phone may have been damaged during the attempted screen repair, and that the issue is now being presented as a logic board failure instead. My data is extremely important to me, and I feel like the focus shifted from a routine screen repair to a major internal repair without a clear explanation.
Given that three employees also argued with me and accused me of providing a fraudulent receipt, even though I had proof that the receipt came from Apple, I feel uneasy about the entire situation.
Do I have a valid reason to be suspicious or concerned that the phone may have been damaged during the repair attempt? Especially after the 30 minute argument of them calling my receipt fraudulent.