I'll keep this simple. Heck I don't even know if this is the right forum, but I've seen great advice here and I figured I'd try every avenue.
My partner's Macbook Pro smoked up and died. We were both in the room. She was happily typing away with it on her desk doing work and it just went. As the computer was under warranty I thought "Ok, hardware failure, no major drama". I went through the process and contacted Apple. They were super helpful and hooked us up with a local tech who I won't name (I don't think they're doing anything wrong so it wouldn't be fair). The initial check of the computer uncovered no obvious damage which we expected and they agreed to do the job under warranty service.
I got a call today from the tech saying that they had subsequently found water damage to the mainboard. I was incredulous because I saw the computer go up, and I go home every day to the same circumstances. That Macbook is treated better than the effing Mona Lisa. It's kept in a safe when not in use (it's for work), I have to wash and dry my hands before I touch it, and liquid isn't even allowed on the same surface as it.
I couldn't be more certain that no physical liquid touched it when it died, but it's now our word against an authorised tech. My understanding is that Apple's warranty doesn't cover water damage at all, full stop, end of story. But, I also know we didn't harm the computer, so the only thing I can think of might be humidity and condensation, and honestly I'm really struggling not to roll my eyes at myself for saying that, and I'm not even sure Apple would cover that regardless.
Obviously I need the full picture from the technician, who will need to formalise his position so I can go to Apple and talk to someone senior, but does anyone have any advice at all? Has anyone gone through something like this and gotten a positive outcome? If so, who did you talk to and what did you say?
I know I'm clutching at straws but we can't afford a $1000 or more bill, especially when we physically didn't do anything to cause this.
Unfortunately I was in the same situation. Both macbook, and a HTC phone.
Water damage doesn't only mean spills; It can be water damage due to humidity and subsequent corrosion.
If the original inspection included opening up the laptop, and the water indicators haven't been triggered, you'll have grounds for dispute. Otherwise it'll be harder.
You can argue, but it can suck pretty bad as it's a your word vs my word debate.