Man orders iPhone at Best Buy. Then he sees what the Instacart shopper delivered: ‘guy he swapped out your phone’

A Best Buy customer says he ordered an iPhone Air, which was delivered by Instacart, only to open it and realize it was a fake.

In his video, which got over 355,400 views, TikTok creator Manny Michael (@itsmannymichael) recalls what happened while also showing all the red flags that made him think the phone was counterfeit.

Best Buy Customer Shows Fake iPhone He Received

“I ordered an iPhone from Instacart last night through Best Buy, and I received a fake phone,” Michael says at the start of the video. “So let me show you this because it’s absolutely insane.”

First, he points to the protective cover. “There was some air bubbles in it, and I was like, that just seems weird,” he says.

He says he removed the cover and initially ignored it. Then he tried to turn the phone on.

“I tried to turn this button on, and it doesn’t click,” he says.

According to Michael, when he did get the button to click, the device vibrated and showed a dead-battery symbol that did not look like Apple’s normal one.

Then he tried to charge it. “If you put the charger in, it literally just falls right out,” he says. “There’s nothing that it’s connecting to.”

Michael demonstrates the charger falling out of the phone’s charging port.

Then he notices another issue.

“You can bend this,” he says, flexing the phone. “And the iPhone Air is supposed to be made of titanium. This is literally made of, like, plastic. It’s extremely light, too.”

According to Michael, the questionable details kept adding up.

“There are extra speaker buttons on the bottom,” he says. “It just gets worse.”

Michael says he does not know how he ended up with a fake iPhone, especially because the box appeared to be sealed and included a charger and paperwork.

He says he tried to return the phone to Best Buy, but staff wasn’t able to turn on the device so they could check the serial number.

“Apple, Best Buy, Instacart. One of y’all better help me, because this is freaking ridiculous,” he says. “I paid, like, $1,000 for this… No one knows what to do.”

He Shared An Update

After some frustrating back-and-forth with Instacart and Best Buy, Michael says he received a full refund for the phone.

He says he plans to drive to Apple and purchase the phone in-store to avoid anything similar happening again.

What Can Customers Do If They Receive A Counterfeit Device From Best Buy?

If Best Buy delivers a counterfeit product, it is best to deal directly with the company to report it and request a refund or replacement.

Best Buy’s return policy says that if a customer receives a product that is damaged in shipping, defective, or not the product they ordered, they should return it during the return and exchange period, and Best Buy will arrange for a replacement.

Since there was a third party involved here, Instacart is also part of the issue. That is more likely the first point of contact a customer would go through if the order was placed or delivered through Instacart.

For electronics specifically, Instacart says retailer return policies vary and that certain exceptions may apply, including electronics. Its returns page also says that for damaged or missing items, customers should contact Instacart Customer Experience.

Commenters Blamed The Delivery Setup

In the comments, several viewers said they would not use Instacart for a high-value electronics purchase.

“Apple has free delivery why on earth would you instacart an iPhone,” one commenter wrote.

Another viewer guessed the shopper may have switched the phone before delivery.

“So likely the intstacart guy kept your real one and swapped it,” they wrote.

A third person said retailers also need to be more careful with returns.

“best buy needs to start checking their returns,” they wrote. “couple yrs ago, i bought a ps4 and switched it out with my broken one and the lady aint check it or nothing”

@itsmannymichael The fake phone I received. One of yall need to fix this because this is ridiculous! @Instacart @apple @Best Buy ♬ original sound – Manny Michael

The Mary Sue has reached out to Best Buy, Instacart, and Michael via email for comment.

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