European Consumer Org. Files Lawsuit Against Apple Over iPhone Battery Throttling

A small group of European consumer organizations in Belgium and Spain have filed a lawsuit against Apple. The lawsuit claims Apple has misled consumers on the battery life of the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6S, and iPhone 6S. The organizations are seeking 180 million euros ($217 million).

As reported by Bloomberg, the European rights organization Euroconsumers released a statement regarding the lawsuit filing. The multinational organization claims that “Consumers are increasingly upset by products wearing out too quickly, the iPhone 6 models being a very concrete example of that,” according to Els Bruggeman, head of policy and enforcement of Euroconsumers.

A press release issued by Euroconsumers also states that “Apple engaged in unfair and misleading commercial practices”. This all stems from what has been alleged as iPhone battery throttling upon the introduction of iOS 10.2.1. In 2017, Apple released the software update which brought power management features to the iPhone. However, unbeknownst to users of older models, the power management features ended up throttling the battery of their phones, thus affecting the overall performance of the iPhone. Apple later instituted a low-cost battery replacement policy for iPhone 6 and other models.

Eurconsumers is asking that Apple compensates by paying at least 60 euros to affected users in Belgium and Spain. On July 2, 2020, Euroconsumers claimed they issued a cease and desist to Apple, pleading to the company to stop “planned obsolescence of iPhones”. In March of this year, Apple settled a similar lawsuit in the US over claims that the company misled users on the battery life of iPhones. This resulted in a $500 million settlement. In October, the company settled another lawsuit, which resulted in $113 million paid by Apple.

Euroconsumers has stated that the organization is planning two similarly structured lawsuits in Italy and Portugal as well.