Will Apple Repair a Used iPhone 7 (A1660) Under Recall?

[iSearch]

A family member bought a "new" 32GB iPhone 7 for work on eBay for about a hundred dollars less than what Apple offers. Based on past experiences buying bootleg DVDs on eBay, I was skeptical.

The phone arrives and once turned on, it starts bootlooping. It looked a little worn for being new so I immediately knew this was a scam, not to mention the shrink-wrap on the box and the old plastic EarPods case. I told them that they should request a refund on eBay.

I put it into recovery mode and attempted to restore it via iTunes. I ended up with an error that tells me I need to update the iPhone's software. Turns out, this is an A1660 that Apple recalled a while back. It's free to repair, but will Apple take the phone and how long will it take to repair?

 

[jpn]

it sounds like the phone was at one time locked and the attempt to force an unlock did not work, or, some kind of failed jailbreak.
in which case apple would detect either and not repair it.

 

[bodonnell202]

Contact the seller on Ebay and ask for a refund with return of the phone since it was not as advertised. There are protections for buyers on Ebay.

 

[BugeyeSTI]

Send it back to the seller. Highly unlikely Apple will repair or replace the phone..

 

[dictoresno]

Ebay usually sides with the buyer, especially if the items aren't as described. go that route if the seller refuses to accept the return. Ebay and paypal will force them to accept it even if they don't.