If your Apple hardware was affected by the LA wildfires, you’ll have better luck replacing it via a standard insurance policy than AppleCare.
Per AppleInsider, AppleCare Repair Agreement policies for Mac dictate what is and what isn’t covered for repair. In the plans, the list, section 4 under “What is not Covered?,” lists specific scenarios. While some are items that don’t really apply to a fire, such as “preventative maintenance”or consumable parts, some certainly do.
The second part lists damaged caused by “accident, abuse, misuse, liquid contact, fire, earthquake or other external causes.” The terms “accident,” fire,” and “liquid contact” are the main elements at issue here, with the latter caused by fighting the fire. Therefore, submitting for a repair or replacement on a Mac salvaged from a housefire will end up in failure. If you were evacuated as a precautionary measure and your house remained untouched by the fire, your home may also become an undefended target of theft. Again, this moves into the “not covered” list, which explains how it cannot deal with “lost or stolen” hardware. “This Plan only covers Covered Equipment that is returned to Apple in its entirety,” it states.
In most cases, the better route is to go through an up-to-date homeowner’s insurance, or renter’s insurance policy, in which people can claim their hardware as well as other personal belongings. This is also applicable for business purposes, and so long as there is insurance against property owned by the business, the insurance should process the claim for the business asset. If you happen to be traveling in the area and travel insurance was taken out for the journey, there will usually be terms dictating what happens in the case of property damage or loss. As handy as AppleCare can be at times, it’s not a full-blown insurance plan and is intended to ensure that if there’s a problem with your Mac, it’ll be covered in most typical situations.
While Apple isn’t going out of its way to replace every Mac and MacBook lost to the fires, it’s still working to help out. Apple Card users in areas deemed a natural disaster zone by FEMA can apply for delayed payments. After contacting Apple Card Support, a payment can be skipped and no interest will accumulate for the affected user.
Apple is also donating to “support the victims and recovery efforts on the ground” under its usual emergency measures, CEO Tim Cook said on January 9.
If you’re in and around the Los Angeles area, please stay safe, take care of each other, and we’ll have additional details as they become available.
Via AppleInsider
