Apple Agrees to Pay $500 Million to Settle Class-Action Lawsuit Over iPhone Performance Issues
Tech giant Apple has recently reached a settlement in a class-action lawsuit that accused the company of committing what is being called one of the largest consumer frauds in history. The agreed settlement amount is a staggering $500 million.
The lawsuit alleged that Apple had secretly slowed down the performance of certain iPhone models in an attempt to address battery and processor issues. According to the claims made in the lawsuit, instead of fixing the problem, a software update implemented by Apple actually throttled device performance, causing users’ phones to shut off, despite having sufficient battery charge.
A US judge has now given the green light for payments to be made in the lawsuit. Owners of older iPhone models, including the iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6s, 6s Plus, and SE models running iOS 10.2.1 or later, as well as iPhone 7 and 7 Plus models running iOS 11.2 or later, are expected to receive approximately $65 each.
However, the settlement was delayed as Apple was required to provide the names and contact information of all eligible iPhone owners to the claims administrator. This was crucial for ensuring that the compensation reached the rightful recipients. Nonetheless, the delay has now been overcome and the payments are set to be made soon.
Two iPhone owners who had initially objected to the settlement recently lost their appeal in a US court, removing the final obstacle to the deal. This means that the settlement can proceed as planned, with affected users now able to receive their rightful compensation.
It has been reported that around 3 million claims from iPhone owners have already been received, and if all these claims are approved, the estimated total compensation payout would be around $195 million. Apple, however, has denied all the charges brought against them and, as part of the settlement, has agreed to pay $310 million out of the total $500 million settlement amount. The final compensation amount will depend on the number of claims eventually approved.
For consumers who have been affected by this issue, this settlement brings a glimmer of hope and the opportunity to receive some form of compensation for the troubles they have faced with their iPhones. It remains to be seen how the case will conclude and how Apple will address future consumer concerns.
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