Battery swelling on my iPhone 5 and disappointed on the return service

Question

Here's, the story. I found out my screen being expanded out of the phone frame, my screen got water ripple in it. I was afraid it was the battery been swelled, so I took it to the apple store in MI. The people from apple store saw my situation and said that it's because of the manufacture defect so I could get a new one. But after they checked out my phone's serial number, they found out it was bought from the UK. Therefore, they told me they couldn't do anything about it because it's from the UK.
They gave the 800-APLCARE hotline to ask them what to do. I got a really nice guy called Andrew getting my problem fixed. He was well known as what my situations are, but somehow he said his system crashed and has to call me back. But when he called me back, he said he still couldn't fix the problem, so he transferred me to a senior representative which I see the phone number was in SAC, CA.
The senior representative continued the process, NOTED: He noticed my phone was from the UK, as he saw my profile where he thought my phone was from France. He checked which kind of shipment I want to choose, normal or express, and then said that HE CHECKED THE STOCKING in the store I just been to, I can PICK IT UP THERE.
Well in the end of the story is I got back to the store where I went earlier today to pick up the phone, where HE set it up and made a reservation. But in the end is to go through all the things back to where it started. HE (the Senior representative) DIDN'T SET-UP anything but made a reservation. NOT EVEN THE WHOLE CONVERSATION was recorded.
So, In the end. I spend the whole afternoon, went to the apple store ( which is 17 miles away) TWICE in TWO HOURS!!, also looking like an guy picking on the nice clerks in the store.
If the UK-Phone can only be dealt in the UK, WHY does the senior representative told me to go pick it up at the local apple store? Making me wasting my time and effort going back and forth. I'm hoping to get a decent explanation and a phone that works as soon as possible.

Answer 1

Yes the iPhone can only be serviced by Apple in the UK as that is the original place of purchase, as to why you were misinformed about the procedure is unknown unless you were to get an explanatuon from that advisor.
See if you can send the iPhone to a friend or family member in the UK and get them to take it to an Apple Store to get it replaced.