Annie_M
Moderator
will throw my 2 cents in the hat here.
I got an Apple Watch 4 for Christmas.
I declined AppleCare as I have always done over the years, never needed it.
Replaced a phone screen here or there, but nothing major.
2 weeks after getting the watch, dropped it and shattered the screen.
That was a painful lesson, but in the store they did let me add apple care to the replacement I had to buy. Actually have a few scratches on the glass already, but waiting until it gets worse before I pull the trigger and request a replacement.
Point here being they did let me add Apple Care on the replacement watch in the store.
That's really awesome! I'm sorry you had to go through all of that!