An Australian court has fined Apple A$9 million ($6.65 million) for refusing to honor the warranties of some iPhone and iPad owners who had their devices repaired by a third party.
In response to a filing from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), the court found that Apple violated Australian consumer law by making false representations to customers.
Apple was found to have told at least 275 customers affected by the error 53 bug, which disabled some iPhones and iPads, that they were no longer eligible for remedies if their device had been repaid by a third party.
“If a product is faulty, customers are legally entitled to a repair or a replacement under the Australian Consumer Law, and sometimes even a refund. Apple’s representations led customers to believe they’d be denied a remedy for their faulty device because they used a third party repairer,” ACCC commissioner Sarah Court said.
“The Court declared the mere fact that an iPhone or iPad had been repaired by someone other than Apple did not, and could not, result in the consumer guarantees ceasing to apply, or the consumer’s right to a remedy being extinguished.”
Apple has already agreed to compensate around 5,000 consumers whose devices were made inoperable by error 53. The vendor has also made a court enforceable undertaking to improve its staff training, systems and procedures to ensure future compliance with Australian competition law.
In response to concerns that Apple was providing refurbished rather than new devices as replacements, Apple has also committed to providing new replacements if a customer requests one.