Apple, despite being aware of the damage IOS operating system update could have produced on the iPhones 6 series, deliberately failed to inform consumers who, on the contrary, were pushed to proceed with the update. This lack of information and loyalty from Apple forced consumers to replace a product that they otherwise would not have replaced, voluntarily creating a loss of performance.
Batterygate: slowed down to sell more
When your phone suddenly slows down, you assume it is getting old. For millions of iPhone 6 owners, that was not the case. A software update affected the performance of their batteries and devices, making phones that still worked perfectly well seem outdated.
What this means in practice for consumers?
Believing their iPhones were past their best, many consumers replaced their batteries or bought a new phone earlier than they needed to. Apple profited from this premature renewal, while consumers bore the cost. In Spain alone, the economic loss for consumers is estimated at between €40 million and €80 million.
The damage goes beyond consumers’ wallets. Planned obsolescence means perfectly good devices are thrown away, driving overconsumption, resource depletion and the energy used to make new products. Shortening the useful life of devices is not only unfair and costly today, it also adds to long-term environmental harm.
OCU takes Apple to court
After filing preliminary proceedings in December 2020 to identify affected consumers, OCU has officially launched a class action against Apple on behalf of around 400,000 iPhone 6 users in Spain. OCU argues that Apple’s conduct amounts to unfair, deceptive and aggressive commercial practices under Spain’s Unfair Competition Law and General Law for the Defence of Consumers and Users.
Because it is a collective action, OCU bears the costs of the proceedings and affected consumers pay nothing. If successful, each consumer could receive between €99 and €189, covering both material damages, such as the cost of a new battery or phone, and moral damages, such as frustration and loss of trust.
A cross-border fight for equal treatment
Spain is not alone. After Euroconsumers’ attempts to resolve the issue without going to court failed, its members in Italy, Belgium and Portugal also filed class actions in their national courts. In the UK, a separate opt-out class action has been launched on behalf of 25 million iPhone users, covering further models in the iPhone 7, 8 and X ranges and seeking damages of up to £768 million.
Meanwhile, Apple already settled the same allegations in the United States, agreeing to pay $113 million. Global companies create global problems, and consumers who suffer the same loss deserve the same treatment, no matter where they live.
Our call
Euroconsumers calls on Apple to stop delaying and compensate all affected consumers, not just in the United States but wherever they are in the world, and to put an end to practices that shorten the life of the devices people rely on.
Letters, complaints and collective actions, with the documents that back them.
