No idea but can’t you call and change the date of the direct debit?
I can, but I wondered if the upgrade would circumvent this anyway.
Ahh, probably then. I think the DD is set to the date you take out the new agreement.
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Sorry to revive this but hoping the people here may be able to help! I’ve just joined the iPhone Upgrade Programme and don’t quite understand how the upgrade works. It says after 11 payments I’ll be eligible to upgrade.
My 11th payment is on 25th August 2022, so if the new iPhone is released on e.g. 26th September would I have to make a 12th payment (on 25th September) as well as paying the deposit for the new iPhone and effectively have to make two payments in one month, a couple of days apart?
You’d pay your 12th payment, but it’s all coming off the total that you owe.
So your payment to settle would be less and then just the £69 to rejoin but this is always applicable.
Thanks! I was planning to hand in my old iPhone to write off the remaining loan balance rather than settle and keep it and rejoin. But it sounds like I’d be a month’s payment worse off if I’ve just made the extra 12th payment when I do that…
When you hand it back that’s what happens, it’s settled and you start fresh.
You won’t be worse off. If your phone is worth more than you owe, you benefit. If your phone is worth less than you owe, Apple takes the hit.
My friend was given effectively a refund for his last year as trade in was worth more than what he owed.
Yup, on iUP.
No such luck for me. I think you were right about what you said about the direct debit, they didn’t mention it today so do wonder if they count it as taken already.
This is how I thought it worked. As long as I’ve made at least 11 monthly payments and hand the iPhone in then I can start a new plan without having to pay to settle anything.
Hence my question, if I upgrade on 24th September (the day before my 12th payment), then I’ve paid a whole month less than if I upgrade on 26th. That seems odd to me 
But that isn’t how it works.
Keep it and cash out yourself if you really want to max the amount.
Yup, mine came out this morning too.
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There’s no refund if you paid more than 11 payments. That just fundamentally isn’t what the product is.
It’s a loan with an option to upgrade after 11 payments and wipe off any remaining debt. It isn’t to wipe off a fixed amount of debt.
The optimal time to upgrade is after 11 months, any subsequent payment after that is lost, and effectively a “tax” for you having, and wearing the phone down longer before giving it back.
Source: I used to work at Apple Retail and I’ve sold these plans.
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I wouldn’t say any reason in particular (as in, Apple hasn’t deliberately made a choice there).
I’d probably just put it down to retail employees have to hold an insane amount of information at a given time. There is just so much news, plans, features, and store policies that you need to know really well.
When the upgrade programme launched in the UK, training was based really around the fundamentals of the scheme. E.g new phone each year, includes AppleCare+, finance via Barclays, upfront fee, 11 payments etc.
Teaching employees in-depth about how credit/financing works, interest rates work, the nitty-gritty T&C’s didn’t happen. So the sort of circumstances/questions that may be fielded like: “so i made 13 payments, and i’m thinking it might be better to sell my phone privately, pay off the loan and then take out iUP again, what do you think?” will make some employees scratch their head. Some others may be more financially savvy generally and know the answer/be able to give some advice.
Edit: re why it’s so hidden, if you mean marketing, I’m not sure. I’d only be able to offer complete speculation. It’s likely that their focus is just elsewhere. It might get pushed in the future.
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Is it common/popular?
The 3 different people I spoke to yesterday when I did mine, all thought I was doing the Barclays pay it off over 20 months finance option and I had to correct them each time and they seemed surprised.
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Hmm that’s interesting - I have no explanation for that personally.
I left in 2017, and at that time it was hot potatoes - everyone had an excellent understanding of it. There’s no way you couldn’t know of the plans existence.
To be honest I’d be very surprised if that wasn’t the case today. My only (feeble) guess would be the employee you spoke to was very new and is undergoing training still.
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I couldn’t say how well it does today, but when I worked there, it did well for sure.
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My personal opinion is that it’s excessive. Nobody needs to upgrade from a 12 Pro to a 13 Pro.
I think the costs per month and the need to get another phone so soon is making people pick the other plans.
Saying that, I did it anyway and if rumours of a redesign come around for iPhone 14, I’ll do it again 
Without sounding smug, that’s why I did it. Because I can afford to and I like shiny new things. Like a tech magpie.
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I was asked whether I wanted the standard included AppleCare+ or the one with Theft & Loss for £2.50 per month extra. Those options were listed on the rep’s iPhone when they were going over my details.
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