Apple lost its bid to block Britain’s $2 billion lawsuit accusing the tech giant of knowingly installing defective batteries in several iPhone models. Justin Gutmann, a resident of Great Britain, has filed a lawsuit against Apple on behalf of 25 million iPhone owners for installing defective, unsuitable batteries in three successive generations of older iPhones. The lawsuit was filed last year and in November 2023, London’s Competition Appeal Tribunal denied Apple’s request to dismiss the legal action.
Accusations of iPhone battery “throttling.”
In 2022, Justin Gutmann filed a lawsuit against Apple claiming that the batteries installed in the iPhone 6, 6 Plus, 6s, SE, 7 and 7 Plus could not meet the operating system and processor requirements of the device. The lawsuit alleges that Apple also pushed automatic iOS updates, bundling a “power management tool” that slowed or throttled the processor, resulting in sluggish performance. As a result, many owners had to choose expensive Replace iPhone battery or upgrade to a new iPhone model.
In May 2023, Apple attempted to block the lawsuit, calling all allegations baseless. Furthermore, with the exception of some iPhone 6s models, Apple completely denied the claim that the batteries had problems. The giant said it would never do anything to deliberately shorten the lifespan of its Apple products or degrade the user experience.
Despite all attempts and explanations, Apple was unable to block the British iPhone battery lawsuit. It’s worth knowing that Apple has often been in the news for ‘throttling’ allegations and faced several similar ‘batterygate’ lawsuits in the US. France also fined the Cupertino tech giant $27 million over battery throttling issues in 2020.
iPhones eligible for compensation in Apple battery lawsuit
The UK iPhone battery lawsuit includes iPhones that were launched between 2014 and 2016. The list includes seven models, ranging from the Apple flagship of the era to the first generation of Apple’s most affordable iPhone SE model. Let’s take a look at the iPhone models that are eligible for Apple’s Battery Lawsuit compensation.
- iPhone 6
- iPhone 6 Plus
- iPhone 6s
- iPhone 6s Plus
- iPhone 7
- iPhone 7 Plus
- iPhone SE (1st generation)
If you own one of these iPhone models, you don’t have to register anywhere join the case to receive compensation. Instead, you are invited to claim any damages you receive at a later date.
The original ‘batterygate’ saga broke out in the US in 2017, claiming that Apple had deliberately slowed down older iPhones, including iPhone 6, 7 and SE models. Until earlier this year, the lawsuit had not been resolved. However, by mid-2023, Apple had no choice but to settle the lawsuit. As a settlement, Apple agreed to pay $500 million and payments will begin in August 2023. Additionally, the company settled for a fine of more than $100 million for a separate lawsuit in Arizona.
