Apple Columbia — Local services in Columbia

TL; DR: This is the worst support experience I’ve ever had. Almost a month after I dropped my computer off at the Genius Bar, it’s still being repaired. I’m a lifetime buyer of Apple computers, but this experience will make me think twice about getting another one:

Saturday, Nov. 6: I bring my computer into an Apple store for a Genius Bar appointment. The computer can't be fixed on the spot, so I leave it. I'm told the store will contact me by Monday or Tuesday at the latest.

Tuesday, Nov. 9: I call the store because I haven’t received an update. I’m transferred automatically to Apple Support, and the representative says the repair is in progress. They advise me to wait 1-2 more business days.

Wednesday, Nov. 10: I check the status of my repair online and see a notification dated Sunday, Nov. 7 asking me to contact the store. I call the store and am transferred to Apple Support (the automated system makes it difficult to reach the store directly). Support puts me in touch with the store, and an employee tells me that my computer needs to be sent out for repairs. When I ask what’s wrong, the employee tells me that the Genius Bar says it’s a hard drive issue. I authorize the repair. I tell my boyfriend, who is knowledgeable in this area, about my call. He says the description of the problem is vague and doesn't match the issues with my computer. I call the store back with him on the line, and the employee says again that it’s a hard drive issue. My boyfriend replies that it sounds like the store doesn't know what’s wrong with the computer. The employee confirms that’s true: the Genius Bar hasn’t diagnosed my computer, and the repair charge is actually a flat fee. The employee tells me that the store will send my computer out to the depot ASAP and fix whatever is wrong. I am told it will take 3-5 days.

Monday, Nov. 15: I check the status of my repair online and see no change since Nov. 7. I call Apple Support to make sure the repair is in progress. They contact the store on my behalf and tell me that my computer left the store on Thursday, Nov. 11. It is currently being repaired and should be ready by Friday, Nov. 19.

Saturday, Nov. 20: I’ve received no communication from the store, and there is no change to the status online. I call to see if my computer is ready for pickup. I’m transferred to Apple Support, who calls the store on my behalf. An employee tells Support the exact same thing they said on Wednesday, Nov. 10: my computer needs to be sent out to the depot. I explain that I already authorized the repair. Support relays this to the store employee, who checks the records and sees that I did approve it. The employee then tells Support that the store dropped the ball, and my computer is still there!!! Support tells me that it will take an estimated 3-5 business days from whenever the store ships my computer for it to arrive at the depot. The repair will take a few days, and it will take another 3-5 business days to ship my computer back to the store. I explain that my computer has already been gone for 2 weeks and conclude that it will probably be a month from the time I originally dropped it off to the time I finally get it back. Support offers me half off the repair price, which is definitely not enough for having my computer gone for a month, receiving no updates, and being given multiple pieces of incorrect information about my repair. Support asks for my account of events and sends me a link so I can submit brief feedback to Apple. I submit my feedback and never get a response.

Tuesday, Nov. 23: I get an email saying my computer has arrived at the depot.

Wednesday, Nov. 24: I get an email saying Apple needs to order a part. I haven’t heard from them since (today is December 1).

Apple laptops cost a premium. I had thought reliable, helpful support would be part of the price. This has been a truly disappointing experience all around, and I still don’t know when I will have my...

My husband and I (Amina Diarra) walked in to tge Apple Store located at 10300 little patuxent parkway Columbia Maryland 21044 on Friday October 4, 2024 around 2pm. This is the store where my husband initially bought my iPhone 13 pro max in cash 3 years ago. We walked in because we couldn’t book an appointment I had an incident where my phone screen turned completely white and couldn’t do nothing else than walking. We understood walking policy and However decided to walking. We were told that it will take 2 and half hours before we get to see an agent and we agreed and accepted. We were booked for 4:30pm. We took tour to other stores at mall in the meantime and around 4:10 or 4:15 pm we came back in the apple store to do not miss the appointment. I was looking around and got interested in trying the apple vision demo. A black man representative informed that I will need an appointment for that and he booked a 4:30 pm appointment to visualize that. My husband stated “Honey, I prefer that we resolve your phone issue first, I don’t want them to mix the first appointment with this….” And I told my husband no problem. An asian lady walked to us and stated “your appointment is 4:45 and i told her “no it’s 4:30.” As she knew that it was already 4:30pm and apple technicians were available and hanging around with each other…. That Asian lady added again to her statement “… you will not get help until a technician becomes available…” . My husband told him “no problem mam”. In the meantime, my husband was talking to me privately in an other language. The lady states “I want to talk to you both about the walk-in policy but can’t talk while both of are talking at the same time” . We replied and stated “we already know about walk-in policy and accepted to wait still and you can’t prevent us to talk to each other.” She continued and kept to disrespectfully spread sentences. My husband tell her “can I talk to one of the store managers ?” She stated “I am one of the senior store managers “ . I told her “Mam, it’s so unfortunate to see a apple representative, precisely a store senior manager addressing to customers like you are doing…” SHE SAID “YOU HAVE TO WALK OUT OF THE STORE, YOU WILL NOT BE HELDED - IF YOU DONT WALK OUT I WILL CALL THE POLICY TO ESCORT YOU OUT” . My husband and I were so chocked that my husband stated that he wants to know first what we did wrong to get police called on us.

We decided to write apple, as big company like this, to have manager who wrongly treat customers like this is unbelievable. WE HAVE NEVER EVER EVER SEEN ACT LIKE THIS OR TO HAVE THE POLICE CALLED ON US IN THE PAST. MY HUSBAND AND I ARE STILL WONDERING WHAT WE DID TO DESERVE THIS KIND OF SHAMEFUL TREATMENT.

WHEN THEY GET HIRED FOR MANAGER POSITIONS, THEY ALWAYS LIED AND PROVIDE GOOD IMPRESSIONS ABOUT HOW TO DEAL WITH CUSTOMERS. HOWEVER THIS THIS NOT WHAT THEY APPLIED IN REAL PRACTICE UNTIL THEY GET FIRED.

WE DID NOT BELIEVE THAT SHE RESPECTED THE APPLE...

What a rollercoaster of customer service! Truly some of the best and worse service all for one laptop repair.

The gist is the Apple service employees( techs?) were both very kind and helpful. The security guards were all kind and friendly. The customer service agents via chat and on the phone all did their best to solve the issue. The store manager... needs some work. Hopefully the experience with me will remind him to keep up on his customer service skills.

Side note.. when making an appointment here know it isn’t treated as an actual Appointment time as you expect. It is an appointment to stand in line. I was told it is like a doctors appointment when you have an appointment but wait until they are ready. No joke, I was actually told that. Never had that at an Apple store before. I would suggest they add that to the appointment system notices.

After receiving an email my repair had been evaluated and I needed to call and discuss I spent 7 days calling the store with never an answer! I called approximately 50 times, over 20 in just one day from opening to closing. I spoke with customer service 3 times on the phone and once via chat. They were at a loss and did all they could to reach the store but no one would answer the phones. They went as far as calling the closest other store to see if they had the managers cell number! Why Apple doesn’t have a messaging system is beyond me. With 4 kids at home running up to the mall just to find out what needed to be repaired and answer if I wanted to have it done was unreasonable to me. There was no other way available to find out what needed repair except from the store.

On the 8th day I gave in, got a babysitter and went to the store. Ironically I called on the way there and they actually ANSWERED! Of course they said the manager was not available though so... I arrived and had a “chat” With Chip the store manager. I will say this, he started off completely wrong but did try to turn it around. His demeanor, words, approach was opposite of every customer service protocols I’ve ever known. He was combative and rude. He initially made no attempt to remedy the situation or address my concerns. He was defensive and treated me as if I was the problem not their lack of answering the phone. You would think he was a new employee, a teen,with no experience. He did however redeem himself as best as he could after I called him out on it and he took a “break” to go check costs. By the end, while he couldn’t make up for the service failures, even his own, he did make amends the best he could. He took ownership of the service failures, offered acceptable compensation and followed through on next steps as he had said he would. I hope future customers are treated with the respect they deserve. Time is our most...