I sympathise wholeheartedly. Not only are you a loyal customer, but you’re an unpaid Apple salesman too. Who did I turn to when I had iPod problems? Why my old mate Rob GT of course. Your gadget karma is playing up my friend.

I have to ask, given the nature of the damage to said phone, whether “….everything was going swimmingly….” was a deliberate pun! I’m sure you’ll find the cash for a replacement – if you and Jo ‘pool’ your resources you should be able to ensure you’re not ‘in at the deep end’ financially!

And as for your last question, “What other company actively stops their customers from expanding their revenue spend?” – have you forgotten what NTL was like?

Hope you get it all sorted mate. You deserve it after being my personal unpaid tech support department ever since we met (and I just know I’m not your only ‘client’!).

Still, all’s well that ends well really because Mal was alright because he has a top man for a Dad!

Rob W