Apple Refusing To Repair Macs Belonging to Smokers?

[Michael Essany]

It's no secret that smoking is bad for you.

But did you also know that it's bad for your Mac? With news emerging that Apple may not touch your machine if you touch a cigarette, perhaps smokers will find twice the incentive to kick the habit, which could very well kill their Mac long before it kills them. And what is life really worth anyway if it has to be endured with a busted Mac?

According to a new report from Tech Radar, several smokers have reported being refused repair service for their Macs by Apple.

Why? It's all about the evidence. Upon opening the machine, if "evidence" of tobacco use is apparent (smoke residue in the Mac), Apple may effectively pronounce your Mac dead on arrival, void the warranty, and not repair your machine.

Quote:

According to reports from Mac owners seeking repairs under warranty, the company claimed evidence of cigarette smoke inside the machines in question constitutes a "biohazard."

One smoker quoted in the story was allegedly informed that "Apple would not require an employee to repair anything deemed hazardous to their health."

For sure, its a controversial policy that will leave some Mac fans jumping for joy and others outraged that a company of Apple's size would "discriminate" against their "right" to smoke and live as they please within the private confines of their home or office. So how does Apple get away with this?

As the company's Applecare warranty does not specifically exclude machines showing the presence of smoke or nicotine from repair, it's likely that Apple will fall back on its 'extreme environment' clause that lets it off the hook.

While Apple is largely correct that a potential biohazard could emerge for their Apple Store employees working on a machine infested with tobacco smoke, this policy, which is bound to seem polarizing to many, also sets an important precedent for the company. In essence, if you are responsible for damaging your machine as a direct result of tobacco smoke seeping into the Mac, why should Apple be on the hook for free repair service or replacement even if your machine remains under warranty?

If Apple does indeed begin refusing to service the machines of smokers on a widespread scale, we're bound to hear plenty more about this topic in the days and weeks ahead. So let the debate begin now. Is Apple right or wrong to implement this policy?

Image via GameSpot

[Zeal]

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1st.

[mawells787]

apple is losing their mind their fu**ing crazy!!

what happens if i bring my laptop out of my house and sit at a cafe or something and someone close to me is smoking. which is completely out of my control. then i take my mac book to apple and they say sorry we smell tabacco we can't touch it.

unless they can prove that the defect or problem with the machine was directly caused by the smoke, i think they need to honor their warranties.

[matthew1111]

Asking me? I think thery're right. People have the "right" to smoke in someplaces, and Apple has the "right" to protect its employees...

[Blowfish64]

What a load of horsesh!t. You're worried about your employees getting tobacco residue on them while they repair a laptop? Have them wear gloves. End of story. I don't think smoking is a good thing for people, but Apple needs to honor their warranties. I'm praying this brings on the class-action lawsuits.

[hitman10]

Yuup.... apple is really starting to get a good name. Fuc*ing idiots. Biohazard my as* what about the radiation from the iphones and computers let off?? is that not biohazard? Or what about standing infront of a microwave or working at a gas station isnt that biohazard or what about lifeguards isnt chlorine hazardous? OMG people we need to be much more careful with all this hazardous stuff. Should i get into my car or is that to hazardous also.. i guess im calling in sick again.. but wait i can't because ill get brain cancer from my phone.. hm.. idk what to do.

[shahab86]

that is jokes

[mattiasdk]

what happens if i bring my laptop out of my house and sit at a cafe or something and someone close to me is smoking. which is completely out of my control. then i take my mac book to apple and they say sorry we smell tabacco we can't touch it.

Don't take everything so litterally!

Apparently you haven't worked with a computer that's been standing in a smokers house for let's say one or two years. The dust and nicotine is combined into a yellowish mass which is present on every surface of the computer internals. The sight and smell is utterly discusting!

It doesn't surprise me that Apple would rate this as "an abuse" and therefore do some slack on the warranty. If you bring your laptop to a café one or two times a week for a total of 1 hour and somebody beside you smoke, it will have little or no effect on the computer.

This "rule" is in rare cases where a Mac (or a PC for that matter) is placed in a house where someone smokes maybe 20-30 cigarettes a day for a long period of time. Don't be so naive...

[DarkDragonAn]

If you're a Smoker good for you, That what you get for hurting other's with your bad F" habit.

[reposed]

Is it funny that I was reading this while having my morning cigarette?

[symondavis]

Phew, the weed is alright then. Thank goodness for Tobacco taking the hit.

[sr71blackbird92]

If you spend an afternoon in a coffee shop with your macbook, it wont really hurt you or your macbook. However, if you have an ashtray sitting next to your MacPro and smoke a cig everytime you sit down and work, its going to suck up quite a bit of that smoke which will be bad for the mac and bad for whomever has to open it...

I agree with Apple here, smoking around your computer cant be good for it so why should they fix it for free when you are deliberately shortening its lifespan.

[GrandMstrBud]

I was thinking about finally getting a MacBook pro but now I'm not so sure. Is this in the terms and conditions of your warranty when you buy it? This is complete BS in my opinion, if your a smoker and paid for your warranty you have just as much of a right to get your computer repaired as a non smoker.

[KartRacer]

Politically motivated. This shows that Apple is in support of the 'secondhand smoke' crowd and makes them look good to the world. They don't support smoking so they get brownie points. You come into contact with materials that are more dangerous than tobacco smoke every time you walk outside the building you live in. To those complaining about cleaning a PC with smoke residue in it, do you clean your toilet? That's much more dangerous to your health than being exposed to that PC for one time to do work on it. You people are grossly overblowing this. Kinda like every other thing you people willingly get force-fed on the nightly news. Sheep.

[awesomeSlayer]

It sounds like a discrimination, but it is a lesson for smokers to stop smoking.

[Melech518]

Is this 4th hand smoke?

[KartRacer]

I was thinking about finally getting a MacBook pro but now I'm not so sure. Is this in the terms and conditions of your warranty when you buy it? This is complete BS in my opinion, if your a smoker and paid for your warranty you have just as much of a right to get your computer repaired as a non smoker.

Not in todays world. If you don't do what the mainstream does you are treated like a second class citizen. The day they ban smoking in public is the day I smoke everywhere I possibly can. Screw idiots that will turn their noses at me smoking 30 feet away from other while they scarf down two double cheeseburgers and large fries at McDonalds, or other fatty s h i t food they eat.

[vedavis]

Leftist wing-nuts. Pull the other one; it plays 'Jingle Bells'.

[KartRacer]

Couldn't have said it better myself. This has politics written all over it.

Just one more reason why I won't ever stoop to the level of a mac.

This has nothing to do with 'stooping' to a Mac level. I never tried to imply that, Macs are quite fantastic. I love mine and want to buy another one, while at the same time I'll NEVER buy another store bought PC. THey're crap.

All I'm saying is this is politically motivated and not caring about the health of their employees. People come into contact with substances that can kill them in a matter of minutes or hours. I wouldn't want to clean a Mac in the condition that some have talked about, and I smoke for cripes sake. But I also have a brain and realize that if I wear gloves and don't succumb to stupidity and my ego, I'll survive a brief encounter with that computer. Some people bit,ch just to hear themselves talk or draw attention to their sad little existance.

Rota, as much as I harp on Apple, I love my Mac. I have zero regrets and I would be so bold as to say if you used one on a daily basis for awhile you'd realize just how awesome Snow Leopard is.

[dale1v]

Couldn't have said it better myself. This has politics written all over it.

Just one more reason why I won't ever stoop to the level of a mac.

It's a frigging computer!!!!! NOTHING MORE...