Strangely, it was previously possible to repair an iPhone reported as lost in the Apple Store.
Losing your smartphone is probably everyone’s biggest fear. When you see the price that some can reach, a theft or loss is the worst situation. In this case, the first reflex for the aggrieved customer is to contact his mobile operator and tell him the IMEI number of his iPhone so that he can block the phone. A reflex that seems obvious and that should make the iPhone unusable … a priori.
In some cases, the iPhone thief may need to take the phone to an Apple Store for repair. While one might think that the declaration of loss to the operator made any repair impossible, it would seem that this is in fact not the case.
According to MacRumours, the Apple Stores only come to receive a note from the parent company indicating that they could no longer repair iPhones declared lost. Now Apple and Apple Authorized Service Centers will also receive information when an iPhone is lost. When a person shows up with a smartphone declared as such, the employee will be asked to refuse the repair.
With this policy, Apple is serious about fighting theft worldwide. All Apple Stores will be affected by the measure, whether they are located in the United States, Europe or Asia. Indeed, Apple and its authorized repairers all have access to the GSMA, a global organization that lists the declarations of loss of a large majority of operators in the world.
It is certain that this new policy will cause a serious shortfall for Apple, since it will refuse repairs, whether the device is under warranty or not. If you luckily find your iPhone and it requires repair, know that you can do so by bringing the purchase invoice for your phone.