With Halloween over and done with, Apple is turning its attention to one of its busiest shopping seasons of the year: the holidays.
With a new banner on the Apple.com homepage and a message in the Apple Store app, customers are now encouraged to start their holiday shopping early, likely due to the industry-wide chip shortages that Apple CEO Tim Cook recently revealed contributed to the company loosing $6 billion in Q4 2021.
Customers shopping for the holidays now have an extended returns window, allowing them extra time to return purchases made as gifts.
Items purchased at the Apple Online Store that are received between November 1, 2021 and December 25, 2021, may be returned through January 8, 2022. Please note that all other terms and conditions provided in the Apple Online Store Sales and Refunds Policy are still applicable with respect to such items purchased. All purchases made after December 25, 2021 are subject to the Standard Return Policy.
The extended returns window applies to customers in the United States, the UK, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Germany, the Netherlands, plus a handful of other countries around Europe.
Apple is facing supply chain issues caused by the global chip shortage and COVID-related manufacturing disruptions in Southeast Asia. It’s recommended to order in advance to avoid missing pre-Christmas delivery windows.