The Genius Bar can determine if a disk is failing and will inform you of such. Next comes a fix, which is to say the failed disk goes out with the old parts. That’s why the order of things is more important than anything else here.
A “fix” is determined by whether the Mac functions afterwards. A “recovery”, on the other hand, is based upon whether your files are recovered. When it comes to a failing disk, these two items work in opposing ways, and the order matters.
Service, according to Apple, replaces parts. Service, according to Apple, does not recover data. They state this clearly, along with the fact that you are responsible for having backed up your files prior to receiving service and that data loss could occur.
When a Mac is sent for repair with a failed drive, there are many times when the old drive is thrown away and the customer gets a brand new one. And if the customer's important data was saved on the old drive, that is the worst possible outcome. And this is what happens because the customer reasonably assumed, when they sent their Mac for repairs, that all of their files would be restored once the Mac was repaired.
If saving your important files is more valuable to you than the computer itself, go to a data recovery lab before taking your damaged Mac to Apple.
A failed drive on a pre-2018 Mac. Apple fits a replacement drive. They keep the old one and you lose your data. Try to recover from the old drive first.
A T2 or Apple Silicon machine with a dead board. No recovery labs can recover your files from a dead motherboard like this. Neither can Apple. Since the key is fused into the security chip on the motherboard, this makes it impossible for anyone to recover your files.
A T2 or Apple Silicon machine that still powers on. There is often time to copy your files off this machine before you ship it out for service, as long as it still turns on. So make sure to back up your files yourself before shipping it in for service. We don't work on soldered storage, so it is not something we can do for you.
An iCloud account problem. Apple's support team can assist you with your iCloud account issues; this would be an issue for Apple as opposed to us. A recovery lab cannot help with iCloud account access.
No. They will diagnose the hardware and can then repair or replace the component at fault. As per their policy, data recovery is not part of the services that Apple offers.
Before you let them fix your item, ask them if they will be able to return the broken parts they replace, and get it in writing. Their standard procedure is not to return the replaced part(s).
If the data on the drive is important enough, have the data recovered prior to sending the device in to Apple. Often, doing it in reverse order results in permanent loss of your data.
Prices begin at £300 +VAT if the storage is removable, which covers every Mac up to roughly 2017 and many after.