Question about selling an iPhone / Upgrade Program

[tcuprof]

I bought my iPhone 13 using the Apple Upgrade Program. A friend wants to buy my iPhone 13 when I upgrade to the 14. I've paid 12 payments on the 13 and owe 12 more ($600).

1. Rather than the usual process in which I get the 14 and then send the 13 back to Apple, can I get the 14 on the upgrade program, pay off the existing loan, and then sell the 13 to my friend?

2. If I can do what I'm proposing above, what happens to the Apple Care +? Would I need to cancel it? Does paying off the loan also pay for another 12 months of Apple Care+?

These questions should be easy to answer using Apple's iPhone Upgrade Program Terms & Conditions, but LOTS of legalese doesn't address this possibility. Neither does Lori Gil's iPhone Upgrade Program: Everything you need to know article on iMore. And of course a general web search returns lots of conflicting answers.

TIA

 

[Ledsteplin]

I don't know about Apple, but with Verizon, you would have to pay off the 13 before you could upgrade. And with no balance on your account.

 

[tcuprof]

I called Apple today to see if they could answer my questions. As I suppose I should have guessed, they don't know anything about an iPhone 14. :rotfl:

All the service agent could definitively tell me was that if I wanted to sell my phone, I would have to pay the remaining payments. As to how that would affect my getting an iPhone 14 on the upgrade program or how it would affect Apple Care, she had no idea.

Since it seems no one here knows or has done this, maybe I'll try Apple customer service again after there is officially an iPhone 14.

 

[Travons]

I called Apple today to see if they could answer my questions. As I suppose I should have guessed, they don't know anything about an iPhone 14. :rotfl:

All the service agent could definitively tell me was that if I wanted to sell my phone, I would have to pay the remaining payments. As to how that would affect my getting an iPhone 14 on the upgrade program or how it would affect Apple Care, she had no idea.

Since it seems no one here knows or has done this, maybe I'll try Apple customer service again after there is officially an iPhone 14.

How did it go ?

 

[Up_And_Away]

How did it go ?

I’m also curious how it went. As OP mentioned the legalese can make it difficult to know for certain. In general Apple (and almost every company) wants you on their newest product and will hold your hand while they get you there (Someone buying the 14 will be considered highly likely to remain an iPhone user an additional year). But not just the legalese but how that translates down to the sales/order system. If there isn’t a menu on that system to make the transaction, then it becomes a much more difficult thing to make happen (even if it makes sense for both the customer and Apple).

 

[tcuprof]

How did it go ?

I haven't asked yet. I always wait until I have a week with the new iPhone just to make sure there aren't any problems (which could be with the new iPhone or because I need to see something on the old one). The new iPhone comes with a free 30 minute session with an Apple Specialist. I'll ask him/her my questions and report back here with the answers.

 

[tcuprof]

Sometimes trying to get answers from Apple can be really frustrating.

You CAN payoff your iPhone that is in the upgrade program and then keep/sell/give it way.

All I had to do to get an answer was:
1. During my free 30 minute session with an Apple specialist, I asked about this. The "specialist" had no idea what I was even talking about. Of course, that was just one of several things he had no idea about.
2. Next, I called Citizens Bank (they manage the finance side of Apple's upgrade program). The bank rep said, you can pay off the phone and keep it, but you have to call Apple and get them to "lift the hold." Whatever that means.
3. After trying several Apple support phone numbers (there isn't one dedicated to the upgrade program), I finally found someone who was able to find out (because she had no idea) what needed to be done. According to her, the solution is to pay off the phone and then simply don't return it to Apple. Apple will contact Citizens Bank, learn the phone is paid for, and lift the hold.

All of the above took HOURS. I find it incredibly difficult to imagine that deciding not to trade in your phone is an unusual occurrence. Apple has a page describing the upgrade program in detail. Wouldn't it make sense to add to that page: "Want to keep your phone instead of trading it in? Click here!"

 

[Travons]

Sometimes trying to get answers from Apple can be really frustrating.

You CAN payoff your iPhone that is in the upgrade program and then keep/sell/give it way.

All I had to do to get an answer was:
1. During my free 30 minute session with an Apple specialist, I asked about this. The "specialist" had no idea what I was even talking about. Of course, that was just one of several things he had no idea about.
2. Next, I called Citizens Bank (they manage the finance side of Apple's upgrade program). The bank rep said, you can pay off the phone and keep it, but you have to call Apple and get them to "lift the hold." Whatever that means.
3. After trying several Apple support phone numbers (there isn't one dedicated to the upgrade program), I finally found someone who was able to find out (because she had no idea) what needed to be done. According to her, the solution is to pay off the phone and then simply don't return it to Apple. Apple will contact Citizens Bank, learn the phone is paid for, and lift the hold.

All of the above took HOURS. I find it incredibly difficult to imagine that deciding not to trade in your phone is an unusual occurrence. Apple has a page describing the upgrade program in detail. Wouldn't it make sense to add to that page: "Want to keep your phone instead of trading it in? Click here!"

Thanks for going this deep to find this amusing fact...
Lots of unknown when deciding not to return the phone.