Apple Fined $2 Million in Brazil Over the Removal of Charger in iPhone 12 Box

Brazil consumer protection agency Procon-SP, which is based in the São Paulo state, has fined Apple $2 million for the removal of a charger shipped within the iPhone 12 packaging.

The agency states that Apple is guilty of “misleading advertising, selling a device without the charger and unfair terms.” According to 9to5Mac, this resulted in a fine of $2 million (R$ 10,5 million), which was issued on Friday of last week.

Upon the launch of the iPhone 12, Apple disclosed that the device would not ship with a charger included in the box. Apple cited environmental concerns and wished to cut its impact. At the time, the company claimed that there were roughly 700 million Lightning cables and roughly 2 billion iPhone chargers out in the wild across the world. As such, the iPhone 12 only shipped with Apple’s Lightning charging cable.

In the following months, Procon-SP questioned Apple and requested clarification on its decision to remove the power adapter. The agency wished to see factual data showing that the removal would result in a positive impact on the environment. Additionally, Procon-SP questioned Apple if the device’s price was impacted and lowered following the removal of the charger. Apple reportedly did not respond to the inquiry.

When discussing Brazil’s consumer protection laws, Procon-SP Executive Director Fernando Capez has said that Apple must “respect these laws and these institutions”.

On top of concerns regarding the iPhone 12 charger, Procon-SP has raised other concerns regarding the company. The agency states that Apple failed to repair consumer phones with water damage and did not assist some users who faced “problems with some functions” following updates. Plus, Procon believes that Apple has exempted itself from legal and implicit guarantees and against hidden or not apparent defects.