Problem Solved: Apple charged my credit card without authorization -- can you help?

Apple charges Scott Jordan's credit card $592 without his approval. But he doesn't discover the error for several months. Does that mean the company can keep his money?

Q: Apple charged my credit card $592 without notification or consent to repair my iPhone even though I had AppleCare. Apple had assured me the most that my card would be charged would be $99 to replace the screen that had previously broken.

I spoke with multiple people at Apple regarding the situation and all of them admitted that the charge was made without proper authority. But because several months had elapsed since the charge, they said that they can't refund the money. This is the most frustrating experience.

Every person I spoke with at Apple read the comprehensive and copious notes indicating that the charge would not exceed $99. They all felt badly for me, but because I didn’t complain about it sooner they are keeping my money.

I have literally spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on Apple products over the years, if not more. I’ve been a huge Apple fanboy.

What makes it worse is that all of the representatives I’ve talked to are looking at clear notes indicating and backing up everything that I said and Apple's position is simply that I took too long to complain about it. Can you help me get my $592 back? -- Scott Jordan, Ketchum, Idaho

A: Apple shouldn't have charged you $592 if it promised to charge no more than $99. But of course, when you saw the charge, Apple should have fixed it right away. Since when does a credit card charge expire after a few months?

I think this problem could have been avoided by carefully reading your credit card statement. You'd be surprised by how often unauthorized or unrecognized charges show up. I see them on my card all the time.

You did a great job keeping a paper trail and documenting everything. In the end, not a single Apple representative disagreed with your assertion that the company had overcharged you by $592. And as a side note, how the heck can it cost $592 to repair a phone? You probably could have found a used iPhone for less -- or switched to an even less expensive Android phone.

I list the names, numbers, and email addresses of the Apple executives on my consumer advocacy site, Elliott.org. A brief, polite email to one of them might have reversed this silly policy of keeping your money because too much time had passed.

By the way, although there's no law that would allow Apple to pocket your money, you were outside the window for a credit card chargeback. Under the Fair Credit Billing Act, which protects you from fraudulent purchases on your card, you have 90 days to file a credit card dispute. Apple probably could have kept your money if it wanted to.

I contacted Apple on your behalf. The company listened to your recorded phone calls and reviewed its notes. Apple issued a full refund for the overcharge.

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Christopher Elliott's latest book is “How To Be The World’s Smartest Traveler” (National Geographic). Get help by contacting him at http://www.elliott.org/help