Swollen battery under warranty APP will not replace?

Question

Grabbed my laptop last night noticed it sitting a little funny on the desk, flipped it over and found the battery protruding from the compartment by 7 or 8 mm.... Lots of hits for "swollen battery" on google, so i called up apple care and guess what. They said i should buy a new battery, because the APP does not cover "consumables" such as the battery. Furthermore the rep also said that it was a chemical reaction related to the end of battery life that causes the swelling, and that the swelling is part of the design so that the battery does not damage the rest of the computer... Seriously? Apple designed their batteries to swell up when they are consumed?
I wrote sJobs a quick email to see if i get anywhere from the top down, but im pretty ****** off that my $250 extended warranty is useless when it comes to "swollen batteries"
Any other suggestions out there?

Answer 1

Not true, not true, not true.
You might be able to throw a fit and convince a rep to replace a battery, but that means they're making an exception, NOT covering something that the warranty is supposed to cover.
Batteries are consumables. They are good for so many charge cycles after which they are considered consumed. AppleCare absolutely covers batteries with defects, but not batteries that are simply used up.
What AppleCare told you is 100% accurate, it is not that batteries are intended to swell, it is simply a possible chemical reaction for that particular model.
If your battery is over 300 cycle counts (check in System Profiler > Power), then your battery is worn out.
AppleCare covers batteries for one year or 300 cycles, whichever comes first, for models before late 2008. After that, the number of cycles before a battery is considered consumed is higher, because the batteries are different models/designs.
When you purchased and registered AppleCare, you accepted the terms and conditions. Whether you took the time to read them before spending the money, I have no idea. You can review them here if you don't believe AppleCare: http://images.apple.com/legal/applecare/docs/NAAPP_Englishv5.3.pdf
The T&C States:
b. Limitations. The Plan does not cover:
[omitted]
(ix) Consumable parts, such as batteries, except in respect of battery coverage under APP for iPod or unless failure has occurred due to a defect in materials and workmanship
{quote:title=Literature at http://apple.com/batteries/notebooks.html also states:}{quote}
Battery Lifespan
For Apple notebooks with removable batteries — such as previous generation MacBook and MacBook Pro computers — a properly maintained battery is designed to retain up to 80% of its original capacity at 300 full charge and discharge cycles. You may choose to replace your battery when it no longer holds sufficient charge to meet your needs.
At any rate, this is common practice across almost every computer manufacturer who sells extended warranties, unless you purchase a plan that explicitly highlights battery coverage as a feature of the warranty. Some, like Best Buy's Black Tie protection, limit battery replacements to one per the duration of the warranty. I am sorry that this was not apparent when you purchased the warranty. Keep in mind you always have the option to call AppleCare and cancel your protection plan for a prorated refund.