Re: Apple Discriminates against Australians Article
I have been busy following up the problems with the latest battery exchange program with Apple HQ here in Sydney. I initially spoke to John Marx who promised to pass on my concerns to those in charge of Apple Australia and promised to get back to me. Well about half an hour ago Fiona Martin the Public Relations Manager rang me up. This is where it gets strange! Fiona Martin insists that it is not Apple Australia's policy to force customers affected to have to send in their old faulty batteries first before being able to receive a new replacement. She also insists that Apple Australia has not threatened resellers to be charged for these batteries if the faulty ones aren't returned within 10 days and also claims all country customers will be sent the new battery along with a return postage paid package to return the old battery. She claims they do not have to drop off their faulty units to a reseller in person first. She claims Apple Australia has gone out of its way to inform every reseller of this. The only trouble is that 95% of posts I have read on various forums mailing lists claim the exact opposite is indeed the case. Fiona has asked me to contact the various groups I deal with and to ask that anyone who has been told by resellers that they must provide their old battery first before being eligible for a new replacement battery contact her providing details of those resellers making these claims along with any relevant details/problems with the process. Her contact details are below. Fiona Martin Public Relations Manager Tel: (02) 9641 8230/Mobile: 0421 052 769 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- All the best Greg Sharp President/Webmaster [EMAIL PROTECTED] Australian Mac Users Group (AUSMUG) http://www.australian.macusersgroup.org On 6/9/06 5:31 PM, Rod [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I have to say that is pretty disgraceful from Apple Australia. The only reason I think they are doing it this way is to stall for time. I'd say there are not enough batteries to go round for the whole world, so we get dealt a rough deal so everyone else can get their batteries ASAP. I wouldn't mind betting that the batteries that are being sent back are sent to Sony, refitted with new cells, then sent back to Australia. That would explain the 4-6 week turnaround :-) I could really imagine an executive going 6 weeks without a battery in his or her laptop. I can't imagine there will be a turn around on the policy. There would be a number of very ticked off people that have given up their battery and are waiting for a new one, only to find Apple have had a change of heart and now will send out a new one Next Day for all new replacement orders.
Re: Apple Discriminates against Australians Article
Hi Greg, my Apple reseller (Joondalup WA) did not require me to return my old battery. I just sent my details to him via email, and he has ordered the new one for me. He said that I would be sent return packaging to send in my old battery. That was a couple of weeks ago. So, it does appear that some resellers are giving their customers the wrong information - perhaps it was difficult to know what was happening just at first. cheers, Susan. On 11/09/2006, at 11:11 AM, Greg Sharp wrote: I have been busy following up the problems with the latest battery exchange program with Apple HQ here in Sydney. I initially spoke to John Marx who promised to pass on my concerns to those in charge of Apple Australia and promised to get back to me. Well about half an hour ago Fiona Martin the Public Relations Manager rang me up. This is where it gets strange! Fiona Martin insists that it is not Apple Australia's policy to force customers affected to have to send in their old faulty batteries first before being able to receive a new replacement. She also insists that Apple Australia has not threatened resellers to be charged for these batteries if the faulty ones aren't returned within 10 days and also claims all country customers will be sent the new battery along with a return postage paid package to return the old battery. She claims they do not have to drop off their faulty units to a reseller in person first. She claims Apple Australia has gone out of its way to inform every reseller of this. The only trouble is that 95% of posts I have read on various forums mailing lists claim the exact opposite is indeed the case. Fiona has asked me to contact the various groups I deal with and to ask that anyone who has been told by resellers that they must provide their old battery first before being eligible for a new replacement battery contact her providing details of those resellers making these claims along with any relevant details/problems with the process. Her contact details are below. Fiona Martin Public Relations Manager Tel: (02) 9641 8230/Mobile: 0421 052 769 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- All the best Greg Sharp President/Webmaster [EMAIL PROTECTED] Australian Mac Users Group (AUSMUG) http://www.australian.macusersgroup.org On 6/9/06 5:31 PM, Rod [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I have to say that is pretty disgraceful from Apple Australia. The only reason I think they are doing it this way is to stall for time. I'd say there are not enough batteries to go round for the whole world, so we get dealt a rough deal so everyone else can get their batteries ASAP. I wouldn't mind betting that the batteries that are being sent back are sent to Sony, refitted with new cells, then sent back to Australia. That would explain the 4-6 week turnaround :-) I could really imagine an executive going 6 weeks without a battery in his or her laptop. I can't imagine there will be a turn around on the policy. There would be a number of very ticked off people that have given up their battery and are waiting for a new one, only to find Apple have had a change of heart and now will send out a new one Next Day for all new replacement orders. -- The WA Macintosh User Group Mailing List -- Archives - http://www.wamug.org.au/mailinglist/archives.shtml Guidelines - http://www.wamug.org.au/mailinglist/guidelines.shtml Unsubscribe - mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: Apple Discriminates against Australians Article
Likewise big brownie points for AppleCentre Joondalup. Lorelei will send the battery to me here in Geraldton when it finally arrives from Apple, unless I'm making one of our seemingly regular trips to Perth, then I mail the old battery back to them, fully discharged so as not to set fire to an Australia Post motorbike! Regards Reg On 11 Sep 2006, at 11:21am, Susan Hastings wrote: Hi Greg, my Apple reseller (Joondalup WA) did not require me to return my old battery. I just sent my details to him via email, and he has ordered the new one for me. He said that I would be sent return packaging to send in my old battery. That was a couple of weeks ago. So, it does appear that some resellers are giving their customers the wrong information - perhaps it was difficult to know what was happening just at first. cheers, Susan. On 11/09/2006, at 11:11 AM, Greg Sharp wrote: I have been busy following up the problems with the latest battery exchange program with Apple HQ here in Sydney. I initially spoke to John Marx who promised to pass on my concerns to those in charge of Apple Australia and promised to get back to me. Well about half an hour ago Fiona Martin the Public Relations Manager rang me up. This is where it gets strange! Fiona Martin insists that it is not Apple Australia's policy to force customers affected to have to send in their old faulty batteries first before being able to receive a new replacement. She also insists that Apple Australia has not threatened resellers to be charged for these batteries if the faulty ones aren't returned within 10 days and also claims all country customers will be sent the new battery along with a return postage paid package to return the old battery. She claims they do not have to drop off their faulty units to a reseller in person first. She claims Apple Australia has gone out of its way to inform every reseller of this. The only trouble is that 95% of posts I have read on various forums mailing lists claim the exact opposite is indeed the case. Fiona has asked me to contact the various groups I deal with and to ask that anyone who has been told by resellers that they must provide their old battery first before being eligible for a new replacement battery contact her providing details of those resellers making these claims along with any relevant details/problems with the process. Her contact details are below. Fiona Martin Public Relations Manager Tel: (02) 9641 8230/Mobile: 0421 052 769 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] -- All the best Greg Sharp President/Webmaster [EMAIL PROTECTED] Australian Mac Users Group (AUSMUG) http://www.australian.macusersgroup.org On 6/9/06 5:31 PM, Rod [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I have to say that is pretty disgraceful from Apple Australia. The only reason I think they are doing it this way is to stall for time. I'd say there are not enough batteries to go round for the whole world, so we get dealt a rough deal so everyone else can get their batteries ASAP. I wouldn't mind betting that the batteries that are being sent back are sent to Sony, refitted with new cells, then sent back to Australia. That would explain the 4-6 week turnaround :-) I could really imagine an executive going 6 weeks without a battery in his or her laptop. I can't imagine there will be a turn around on the policy. There would be a number of very ticked off people that have given up their battery and are waiting for a new one, only to find Apple have had a change of heart and now will send out a new one Next Day for all new replacement orders. -- The WA Macintosh User Group Mailing List -- Archives - http://www.wamug.org.au/mailinglist/archives.shtml Guidelines - http://www.wamug.org.au/mailinglist/guidelines.shtml Unsubscribe - mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] -- The WA Macintosh User Group Mailing List -- Archives - http://www.wamug.org.au/mailinglist/archives.shtml Guidelines - http://www.wamug.org.au/mailinglist/guidelines.shtml Unsubscribe - mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Re: Apple Discriminates against Australians Article
Hi I'm just passing on a correction to my earlier email after talking to Fiona for a second time an hour or so ago. Country customers will be able to use a return paid post pack for returns however people in the city will have to go directly through a Authorised Apple Service Provider (AASP). Also the 10 days return time for faulty batteries is not from when the customer receives the replacement battery but from the time the Authorised Apple Service Provider (AASP) receives the faulty one from the customer. She asked I refer people to Apple's web site FAQ on the problem at http://www.apple.com/au/support/batteryexchange/2006/faq/ Mind you this wasn't 100% clear to me but maybe others won't have the same problems interpreting what it says in relation to this problem. I've also discovered I had an old 12 inch G3 iBook which had a replacement battery installed about a year ago which is in the range of affected batteries so I guess I'll have a chance to see first hand if there are problems with the exchange process. -- All the best Greg Sharp President/Webmaster [EMAIL PROTECTED] Australian Mac Users Group (AUSMUG) http://www.australian.macusersgroup.org On 11/9/06 1:11 PM, Greg Sharp [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I have been busy following up the problems with the latest battery exchange program with Apple HQ here in Sydney. I initially spoke to John Marx who promised to pass on my concerns to those in charge of Apple Australia and promised to get back to me. Well about half an hour ago Fiona Martin the Public Relations Manager rang me up. This is where it gets strange! Fiona Martin insists that it is not Apple Australia's policy to force customers affected to have to send in their old faulty batteries first before being able to receive a new replacement. She also insists that Apple Australia has not threatened resellers to be charged for these batteries if the faulty ones aren't returned within 10 days and also claims all country customers will be sent the new battery along with a return postage paid package to return the old battery. She claims they do not have to drop off their faulty units to a reseller in person first. She claims Apple Australia has gone out of its way to inform every reseller of this. The only trouble is that 95% of posts I have read on various forums mailing lists claim the exact opposite is indeed the case. Fiona has asked me to contact the various groups I deal with and to ask that anyone who has been told by resellers that they must provide their old battery first before being eligible for a new replacement battery contact her providing details of those resellers making these claims along with any relevant details/problems with the process. Her contact details are below. Fiona Martin Public Relations Manager Tel: (02) 9641 8230/Mobile: 0421 052 769 email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Apple Discriminates against Australians Article
Well, it looks like news of how Apple is handling the battery recall here in Australia is making the news. It will be interesting to see if the bad publicity results in a change to Apple Australia's Battery Recall policy. -Mart --- http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=34153 Apple discriminates against Australians Neglignet recall behaviour down under By Charlie Demerjian Tuesday 05 September 2006, 15:29 APPLE APPEARS TO BE DISCRIMINATING against customers in Australia over the battery recall http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=33926 . There is no excuse for the behavior it is showing, it sold them defective products, and now will not fix the problems in the same way as they do US customers. If you live in the US, they will mail you a new battery ASAP, Australia, find a dealer, bring it in, wait a few weeks, and have a g'day mate, hope it doesn't explode before you get it here. Take a look at these screenshots, taken just before midnight PST on Monday September 4th. The first shows where the battery recall screen takes you if you are in the US, the second if you have the misfortune of being Australian, and possibly a resident of several other countries. US Australia If you are in the US, you\re asked for your shipping info, and send you a new one with a mailer for the old one in short order. From what I understand it now pretty efficient about it, even after a few early teething problems http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=33934 . Either way, you get the new one before you have to return the old. That is the US though, in Australia, you appear to have big problems. The same screen takes you to a service centre locater where you are supposed to find your nearest dealer and bring the batteries there. According to the FAQ http://www.apple.com/support/batteryexchange/2006/faq/apac.html , you will get a new one in four to six weeks, maybe, with no battery to use in the mean time. Our source in Australia called Apple to confirm this was indeed the case, and was told he would have to make two trips to an Apple service centre to resolve the problem, presumably one to drop the battery off, another to pick up the replacement a month later. Considering the geography of Australia, this can be a less than appealing proposition for many Apple customers down under, and to add insult to injury, our intrepid correspondent does not have a car available. Does it get worse? Of course. The same person has a wife who unfortunately had a recalled MacPro battery in the last round. Guess what they did then? No points if you say they mailed out a battery, that is indeed the case. Apple was notified of this problem by the affected person on August 25, and more than a week later, there is no resolution. The local Apple dealer has indicated that he will help our correspondent, but that is just the kindness of a local dealer, not company policy. What we have here is a large company that sold a dangerous defective product, and will not take appropriate action to resolve these problems. The fact that Apple do take the appropriate action in the US, and they did it before in Australia says it has the capabilities, the infrastructure, and the ability to do so again. For some reason, Apple is abdicating responsibility this time. If they make it easy, like they do in the US, people will be much more likely to exchange these hazardous batteries. If they make the cost of doing so 3/4s the cost of a new battery, the two taxi trips will cost the letter writer $150AU, a new battery is $199AU, then what are the odds that it will happen? Much as I hate to say it, this is the reason class action lawsuits are born, and while lawyers are icky, they do serve a purpose on occasion. Apple has shown the capability to fix the problem, was warned over a week ago, and has made other changes to the site in the mean time. Complex web sites do not get set up on their own, nor do dealers get informed of company policy. This needs to change, and change now. As always, my email is at the top of the page, if you are serious about fixing the problems you caused Apple, I can put you in touch with one of the affected individuals. That said, you could just respond to the emails he sent you notifying you of the problem, it would be much easier and less embarrassing. Better yet, Apple could have acted responsibly from day one -- Martin Hill email: mart at ozmac.com homepages: http://mart.ozmac.com Mb: 0417-967-969 hm: (08)9314-5242
Re: Apple Discriminates against Australians Article
On Wed, 2006-09-06 at 14:44 +0800, Martin Hill wrote: Well, it looks like news of how Apple is handling the battery recall here in Australia is making the news. It will be interesting to see if the bad publicity results in a change to Apple Australia's Battery Recall policy. -Mart --- http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=34153 Apple discriminates against Australians I have to say that is pretty disgraceful from Apple Australia. The only reason I think they are doing it this way is to stall for time. I'd say there are not enough batteries to go round for the whole world, so we get dealt a rough deal so everyone else can get their batteries ASAP. I wouldn't mind betting that the batteries that are being sent back are sent to Sony, refitted with new cells, then sent back to Australia. That would explain the 4-6 week turnaround :-) I could really imagine an executive going 6 weeks without a battery in his or her laptop. I can't imagine there will be a turn around on the policy. There would be a number of very ticked off people that have given up their battery and are waiting for a new one, only to find Apple have had a change of heart and now will send out a new one Next Day for all new replacement orders. Seeya Rod!
Re: Apple Discriminates against Australians Article
To all you diggers, this is now on Digg. Please go and digg it - hopefully it will get some publicity if it hits the main page. http://digg.com/tech_news/Apple_discriminates_against_Australians On 06/09/2006, at 2:44 PM, Martin Hill wrote: Well, it looks like news of how Apple is handling the battery recall here in Australia is making the news. It will be interesting to see if the bad publicity results in a change to Apple Australia's Battery Recall policy. -Mart --- http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=34153 Apple discriminates against Australians Neglignet recall behaviour down under By Charlie Demerjian Tuesday 05 September 2006, 15:29 APPLE APPEARS TO BE DISCRIMINATING against customers in Australia over the battery recall http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx? article=33926 . There is no excuse for the behavior it is showing, it sold them defective products, and now will not fix the problems in the same way as they do US customers. If you live in the US, they will mail you a new battery ASAP, Australia, find a dealer, bring it in, wait a few weeks, and have a g'day mate, hope it doesn't explode before you get it here. Take a look at these screenshots, taken just before midnight PST on Monday September 4th. The first shows where the battery recall screen takes you if you are in the US, the second if you have the misfortune of being Australian, and possibly a resident of several other countries. US Australia If you are in the US, you\re asked for your shipping info, and send you a new one with a mailer for the old one in short order. From what I understand it now pretty efficient about it, even after a few early teething problems http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=33934 . Either way, you get the new one before you have to return the old. That is the US though, in Australia, you appear to have big problems. The same screen takes you to a service centre locater where you are supposed to find your nearest dealer and bring the batteries there. According to the FAQ http://www.apple.com/support/batteryexchange/2006/faq/apac.html , you will get a new one in four to six weeks, maybe, with no battery to use in the mean time. Our source in Australia called Apple to confirm this was indeed the case, and was told he would have to make two trips to an Apple service centre to resolve the problem, presumably one to drop the battery off, another to pick up the replacement a month later. Considering the geography of Australia, this can be a less than appealing proposition for many Apple customers down under, and to add insult to injury, our intrepid correspondent does not have a car available. Does it get worse? Of course. The same person has a wife who unfortunately had a recalled MacPro battery in the last round. Guess what they did then? No points if you say they mailed out a battery, that is indeed the case. Apple was notified of this problem by the affected person on August 25, and more than a week later, there is no resolution. The local Apple dealer has indicated that he will help our correspondent, but that is just the kindness of a local dealer, not company policy. What we have here is a large company that sold a dangerous defective product, and will not take appropriate action to resolve these problems. The fact that Apple do take the appropriate action in the US, and they did it before in Australia says it has the capabilities, the infrastructure, and the ability to do so again. For some reason, Apple is abdicating responsibility this time. If they make it easy, like they do in the US, people will be much more likely to exchange these hazardous batteries. If they make the cost of doing so 3/4s the cost of a new battery, the two taxi trips will cost the letter writer $150AU, a new battery is $199AU, then what are the odds that it will happen? Much as I hate to say it, this is the reason class action lawsuits are born, and while lawyers are icky, they do serve a purpose on occasion. Apple has shown the capability to fix the problem, was warned over a week ago, and has made other changes to the site in the mean time. Complex web sites do not get set up on their own, nor do dealers get informed of company policy. This needs to change, and change now. As always, my email is at the top of the page, if you are serious about fixing the problems you caused Apple, I can put you in touch with one of the affected individuals. That said, you could just respond to the emails he sent you notifying you of the problem, it would be much easier and less embarrassing. Better yet, Apple could have acted responsibly from day one -- Martin Hill email: mart at ozmac.com homepages: http://mart.ozmac.com Mb: 0417-967-969 hm: (08)9314-5242 -- The WA Macintosh User Group Mailing List -- Archives -
Re: Apple Discriminates against Australians Article
Similar story to when I had a dodgy shift key on my iBook keyboard. The Apple Centre agreed that it was a warranty issue and that a replacement keyboard was the answer. However, the keyboard had to be ordered, and that would take a few days. But could I take the iBook away with me, and return it within half an hour of being notified that the keyboard had arrived? No. Why? Apple policy apparently. So I had to go without the iBook for a week or so. Don't know where the logic and customer-focus lies in that little arrangement. Steven On 6/9/06 4:44 PM, Martin Hill [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Well, it looks like news of how Apple is handling the battery recall here in Australia is making the news. It will be interesting to see if the bad publicity results in a change to Apple Australia's Battery Recall policy. -Mart --- http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=34153 Apple discriminates against Australians Neglignet recall behaviour down under By Charlie Demerjian Tuesday 05 September 2006, 15:29 APPLE APPEARS TO BE DISCRIMINATING against customers in Australia over the battery recall http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=33926 . There is no excuse for the behavior it is showing, it sold them defective products, and now will not fix the problems in the same way as they do US customers. If you live in the US, they will mail you a new battery ASAP, Australia, find a dealer, bring it in, wait a few weeks, and have a g'day mate, hope it doesn't explode before you get it here. Take a look at these screenshots, taken just before midnight PST on Monday September 4th. The first shows where the battery recall screen takes you if you are in the US, the second if you have the misfortune of being Australian, and possibly a resident of several other countries. US Australia If you are in the US, you\re asked for your shipping info, and send you a new one with a mailer for the old one in short order. From what I understand it now pretty efficient about it, even after a few early teething problems http://www.theinquirer.net/default.aspx?article=33934 . Either way, you get the new one before you have to return the old. That is the US though, in Australia, you appear to have big problems. The same screen takes you to a service centre locater where you are supposed to find your nearest dealer and bring the batteries there. According to the FAQ http://www.apple.com/support/batteryexchange/2006/faq/apac.html , you will get a new one in four to six weeks, maybe, with no battery to use in the mean time. Our source in Australia called Apple to confirm this was indeed the case, and was told he would have to make two trips to an Apple service centre to resolve the problem, presumably one to drop the battery off, another to pick up the replacement a month later. Considering the geography of Australia, this can be a less than appealing proposition for many Apple customers down under, and to add insult to injury, our intrepid correspondent does not have a car available. Does it get worse? Of course. The same person has a wife who unfortunately had a recalled MacPro battery in the last round. Guess what they did then? No points if you say they mailed out a battery, that is indeed the case. Apple was notified of this problem by the affected person on August 25, and more than a week later, there is no resolution. The local Apple dealer has indicated that he will help our correspondent, but that is just the kindness of a local dealer, not company policy. What we have here is a large company that sold a dangerous defective product, and will not take appropriate action to resolve these problems. The fact that Apple do take the appropriate action in the US, and they did it before in Australia says it has the capabilities, the infrastructure, and the ability to do so again. For some reason, Apple is abdicating responsibility this time. If they make it easy, like they do in the US, people will be much more likely to exchange these hazardous batteries. If they make the cost of doing so 3/4s the cost of a new battery, the two taxi trips will cost the letter writer $150AU, a new battery is $199AU, then what are the odds that it will happen? Much as I hate to say it, this is the reason class action lawsuits are born, and while lawyers are icky, they do serve a purpose on occasion. Apple has shown the capability to fix the problem, was warned over a week ago, and has made other changes to the site in the mean time. Complex web sites do not get set up on their own, nor do dealers get informed of company policy. This needs to change, and change now. As always, my email is at the top of the page, if you are serious about fixing the problems you caused Apple, I can put you in touch with one of the affected individuals. That said, you could just respond to the emails he sent you notifying you of the
