Design defect, wrong material used. I warned Apple for years. I replaced a few. No other USB cables in my drawer has such problem in 10 years, except Apple’s. Apple has years of opportunity to improve it, if they wish. No action still.
I have had the complete opposite experience. I can't grasp what folks do to these Apple branded cables that makes them claim they are defective and unable to stand up to normal use. I have a cable in my desk here at work that is around 4 years old, still working. I have a little electrical tape around the end where there was a some nibbling by the cat a while back, but it's still working perfectly fine.
I still have original cable and brick for iphone 4 and still working. I discontinued used one cable because the insulation part in the end getting flared....no overheating or sign there off. Make sure to buy MADE FOR IDEVICE non Apple cable... Be careful in whom you trust to buy....small amount for original apples is worth a thousand peace of mind
Whilst I am sorry for your property loss, your tactic of attempting to extort funds from Apple under your completely, as of yet, unsubstantiated claims, as no official report is complete or available, is completely inappropriate. If I was Apple, or your insurer, I too wouldn't want to pay a cent until I've had a chance to examine the evidence myself, to verify if this was indeed a Genuine Apple charger and cable, as MANY people in the community are cheap and buy knock-offs (I'm from the area and speak from experience), and until an official police / fire investigation report was made available for review along with the evidence.
You're trying to blame others for your lack of insight and having sufficient insurance coverage, and as you're also impatient, are now turning to the court of social media and public opinion to garner favour to your unjustified cause.
There is a process in place, and if it has not yet been completed, SHUT UP and wait. And lesson to be learned, next time, don't go cheap on insurance, and don't go blaming others for your mistakes.
Design defect, wrong material used. I warned Apple for years. I replaced a few. No other USB cables in my drawer has such problem in 10 years, except Apple’s. Apple has years of opportunity to improve it, if they wish. No action still.
If what you said had an ounce of truth, there would be thousands of fires caused buy these "faulty" cables used by billions around the world.
The insulating material on Apple USB-to-Lightning cables frequently cracks just beyond the Lightning connector. I've taken three or four back to my local Apple Store over the years and complained about my fear that it will eventually short out and cause a fire. Each cable has been cheerfully replaced without a quibble...clearly the Apple Genius Bar employees have been instructed to replace the cables upon presentation, no matter whether AppleCare is in effect or not. Corporate Apple is leery of cord-failure litigation.
Interestingly, the new USB-C to Lightning cord is heavier and seems less likely to crack; albeit, is also less flexible.
This may be harsh but I have no sympathy for this family at all. They gambled by not getting insurance for their business and it didn't pay off. What's funny with their change.org petition is they are leaving one huge piece of evidence out. Where is the report from the fire department that says the iPhone and/or charger was the cause of the fire? This family posted all the correspondence but didn't include the report about the fire? I have no sympathy for a family that is publicly shaming a company to get money for their stupidity in not having coverage for their business.
Design defect, wrong material used. I warned Apple for years. I replaced a few. No other USB cables in my drawer has such problem in 10 years, except Apple’s. Apple has years of opportunity to improve it, if they wish. No action still.
Troll account. No evidence the cable or plug is Apple's. Plus if these calls were dangerous, they would have been recalled already. I've had no issues with any calbles since the iPod with the touch buttons. That includes a couple more iPods and 3 iPhones.
The insulating material on Apple USB-to-Lightning cables frequently cracks just beyond the Lightning connector. I've taken three or four back to my local Apple Store over the years and complained about my fear that it will eventually short out and cause a fire. Each cable has been cheerfully replaced without a quibble...clearly the Apple Genius Bar employees have been instructed to replace the cables upon presentation, no matter whether AppleCare is in effect or not. Corporate Apple is leery of cord-failure litigation.
Interestingly, the new USB-C to Lightning cord is heavier and seems less likely to crack; albeit, is also less flexible.
Darn, didn't even think of doing that. I have 2 original cables that are frayed and used that sugru putty on them to sure them up.
ah, I suppose the theory is that the charger sent too much power to the phone and the phone overheated not that the charger itself overheated. That seems plausible.
The chances of that happening with a charger made specifically for that particular iPhone are pretty much nil. I’d b looking @ the type of charger used.
I live nearby and have seen this in the local news. A few things:
Note: I've worked with Transport Canada in the past doing vehicle fire investigations, so have some experience in this and also in the language fire department officials use and what it means.
The iPhone is in the possession of an "independent forensics company" and Apple has indeed not had a chance to examine it yet. If they refuse to hand over the iPhone it's probably because they know it wasn't the cause. If they had determined the iPhone was in fact faulty, then I'm quite sure they would have released that information. For now the cause is "undetermined". I wonder if this company even has the engineering expertise to examine something as complex as an iPhone and even come up with a cause.
When we finished an investigation (which would be very well documented since we know we might not get another chance to examine the vehicle) we never prevented others from looking at it. In fact, at times there might be more than one investigation. I've been at an insurance facility looking at a vehicle when another investigator from a different firm showed up to also do their own investigation. We weren't allowed to talk to each other to avoid influence, but at no time did I ever come across a situation where access would be denied.
This forensics company could allow Apple to send an engineer to examine it in their presence if they wanted. This is also a common practice I've witnessed before when dealing with independent insurance companies. Bottom line: There's absolutely no excuse to prevent Apple from also having a look at this device.
There was also a notebook involved, "it would appear that the phone or charger generated enough heatto ignite the leather chair and notebook and start the fire." This comment was followed up by "The cellphone was on a combustible surface while charging. It was in the area of origin but was not ruled out or determined to be the igniting object or direct cause of the fire,". They like to focus on the first part of the comment while ignoring the clarification made later. I can't find further details on exactly how the notebook was involved, but it's an interesting fact many people are leaving out. Were the iPhone and notebook stacked on top of each other?
Product liability is typically only limited to the value of the product itself. Exceptions to this would include product defects. In the automotive trade a vehicle fire would be paid out by the insurance company. They may (depending on circumstances) ask for a detailed analysis of the fire and if there's a defect (perhaps a precursor to a full recall), then the insurance company may go after the manufacturer for their costs. The majority of the time insurance just pays out the claim for the fire and leaves it at that. That said, if the iPhone did in fact cause the fire, Apple would not be responsible unless it can be proven that there's a known defect with the iPhone that makes them more dangerous than similar products. This will be practically impossible to prove given the very low incidents of fires and the hundreds of millions of iPhones out there.
This will go nowhere for this family. While I feel bad for what happened, they should have had additional insurance coverage to cover their business. Now they're just lashing out trying to shame Apple into helping them out.
This is spot on. There are way too many questions in this story to even start assigning blame, and even if the cable was actually the source of the fire, they will probably be out of luck anyway unless they can show that the fire was caused by a known design defect.
This really sucks for the family, but going after Apple as a source of deep pockets without any evidence is hardly justified. Then again, it may all be a shot in the dark by their lawyer
Design defect, wrong material used. I warned Apple for years. I replaced a few. No other USB cables in my drawer has such problem in 10 years, except Apple’s. Apple has years of opportunity to improve it, if they wish. No action still.
The insulating material on Apple USB-to-Lightning cables frequently cracks just beyond the Lightning connector. I've taken three or four back to my local Apple Store over the years and complained about my fear that it will eventually short out and cause a fire. Each cable has been cheerfully replaced without a quibble...clearly the Apple Genius Bar employees have been instructed to replace the cables upon presentation, no matter whether AppleCare is in effect or not. Corporate Apple is leery of cord-failure litigation.
Interestingly, the new USB-C to Lightning cord is heavier and seems less likely to crack; albeit, is also less flexible.
Apple no longer just replaces them... you have to complain and get a manager. They've been told now that cables are not part of the guarantee of the phone and are considered expendables like an ink cartridge for a printer.
Design defect, wrong material used. I warned Apple for years. I replaced a few. No other USB cables in my drawer has such problem in 10 years, except Apple’s. Apple has years of opportunity to improve it, if they wish. No action still.
Dude.Their cables are fine. Its people that bend that thing out of shape. I have been using them for years. You have to take care of your cables. Or get a 3rd party one that is super thick.
The reason Apple cables are so crappy is because they don't use PVC or phthalates, instead using safer thermoplastic elastomers for environmental responsibility. Of course if they catch a house on fire they are not really safer or environmentally responsible. That said you should inspect your cables often and replace any that have damaged or frayed insulation.
Design defect, wrong material used. I warned Apple for years. I replaced a few. No other USB cables in my drawer has such problem in 10 years, except Apple’s. Apple has years of opportunity to improve it, if they wish. No action still.
Dude.Their cables are fine. Its people that bend that thing out of shape. I have been using them for years. You have to take care of your cables. Or get a 3rd party one that is super thick.
The reason Apple cables are so crappy is because they don't use PVC or phthalates, instead using safer thermoplastic elastomers for environmental responsibility. Of course if they catch a house on fire they are not really safer or environmentally responsible. That said you should inspect your cables often and replace any that have damaged or frayed insulation.
I've had plenty of Apple and non-Apple cables fray - no way of knowing which ones used PVC or not, but the manufacturer can't be held liable for a fire caused by a damaged cable. Regardless, the USB adaptor should have limited the current in the event of a short. Like I said above, they need to figure out the actual cause of the fire first before you can assign blame.
Design defect, wrong material used. I warned Apple for years. I replaced a few. No other USB cables in my drawer has such problem in 10 years, except Apple’s. Apple has years of opportunity to improve it, if they wish. No action still.
Dude.Their cables are fine. Its people that bend that thing out of shape. I have been using them for years. You have to take care of your cables. Or get a 3rd party one that is super thick.
Ya, all my Apple cables since the iPhone 4 have been 100% perfect and are still that way to this day. Some people just abuse the crap out of their stuff.
The only Apple cables in this house that have been killed have been by young children. The rest are fine.
Most of the people who complain about the durability of lightning cables don't understand the difference between those cables and the older 30 pin cables. The older cables were more durable due to using pvc instead of what they use now.
PVC is more durable, but Apple was harassed by Greenpeace and other environmental groups to stop making materials out of them. When the iPhone 5 came out, Apple created the lightning cable and phased out PVC.
One problem is repeated bending below the boot connected to the lightning connector will cause the cable to bulge and eventually fail. The other is the cable doesn't have hardly and UV protection compared to PVC, so leaving it in the sun will cause it to become brittle and can start to crack.
Most of the fires that have involved iPhones that I have read about usually have been caused by a cheap knockoff USB power brick, a non MFI lightning cable with a counterfeit lightning connector, a bent iPhone that has ruptured the battery or a 3rd party battery. This is why if you ever have your iPhone battery replaced by a 3rd party or yourself, Apple won't touch your device or even replace it out of warranty.
Design defect, wrong material used. I warned Apple for years. I replaced a few. No other USB cables in my drawer has such problem in 10 years, except Apple’s. Apple has years of opportunity to improve it, if they wish. No action still.
Russian troll?
Open him up and find another smaller troll inside.
The insulating material on Apple USB-to-Lightning cables frequently cracks just beyond the Lightning connector. I've taken three or four back to my local Apple Store over the years and complained about my fear that it will eventually short out and cause a fire. Each cable has been cheerfully replaced without a quibble...clearly the Apple Genius Bar employees have been instructed to replace the cables upon presentation, no matter whether AppleCare is in effect or not. Corporate Apple is leery of cord-failure litigation.
Interestingly, the new USB-C to Lightning cord is heavier and seems less likely to crack; albeit, is also less flexible.
Apple no longer just replaces them... you have to complain and get a manager. They've been told now that cables are not part of the guarantee of the phone and are considered expendables like an ink cartridge for a printer.
It depends on the circumstances. If you have a cable that came with your iPhone, they will look up the serial number of your device and if it's out of warranty then so is the cable. If it's one you bought, bring your receipt and again if it's more than a year old, you have to pay for a replacement.
They also look look at what kind of damage the cable has sustained. If your lightning connector broke off, too bad, that's accidental damage, so is waiting until the cable has disintegrated and just the metal sheath is left before you take it to them.
The reason why they changed their policy is because people used to have their cables replaced monthly and those cables didn't fail because of faulty workmanship, they failed because of abuse. I'm sure most posters here take good care of their Apple products and if you want to feel good about how you treat them, just look around the next time you have to visit the Genius Bar. Some people beat the crap out of their Apple products and blame Apple for their failure.
I agree with the majority of posters here -- Apple should have an opportunity to verify that they are at fault, and are perfectly right to not give these folks a dime until that happens. The fire report quoted in the article does not say that the charger caused the fired, only that the charger and cable were recovered from the fire and that it may (that's may) have ignited a chair.
If an analysis shows that Apple is at fault, then and only then can they go to their insurer (Apple of course has insurance for these sorts of things) and negotiate a settlement.
I feel terrible for the folks who lost their farm, but if they'd let Apple study the device a year ago, this would have been settled a year ago. They either don't understand how the real world works, or they don't understand how the procedure goes -- Apple legally cannot "just take their word for it" and write a cheque, even if they believed the couple and wanted to help.
Comments
Be careful in whom you trust to buy....small amount for original apples is worth a thousand peace of mind
Whilst I am sorry for your property loss, your tactic of attempting to extort funds from Apple under your completely, as of yet, unsubstantiated claims, as no official report is complete or available, is completely inappropriate. If I was Apple, or your insurer, I too wouldn't want to pay a cent until I've had a chance to examine the evidence myself, to verify if this was indeed a Genuine Apple charger and cable, as MANY people in the community are cheap and buy knock-offs (I'm from the area and speak from experience), and until an official police / fire investigation report was made available for review along with the evidence.
You're trying to blame others for your lack of insight and having sufficient insurance coverage, and as you're also impatient, are now turning to the court of social media and public opinion to garner favour to your unjustified cause.
There is a process in place, and if it has not yet been completed, SHUT UP and wait. And lesson to be learned, next time, don't go cheap on insurance, and don't go blaming others for your mistakes.
Interestingly, the new USB-C to Lightning cord is heavier and seems less likely to crack; albeit, is also less flexible.
This really sucks for the family, but going after Apple as a source of deep pockets without any evidence is hardly justified. Then again, it may all be a shot in the dark by their lawyer
Troll account.
They've been told now that cables are not part of the guarantee of the phone and are considered expendables like an ink cartridge for a printer.
PVC is more durable, but Apple was harassed by Greenpeace and other environmental groups to stop making materials out of them. When the iPhone 5 came out, Apple created the lightning cable and phased out PVC.
One problem is repeated bending below the boot connected to the lightning connector will cause the cable to bulge and eventually fail.
The other is the cable doesn't have hardly and UV protection compared to PVC, so leaving it in the sun will cause it to become brittle and can start to crack.
Most of the fires that have involved iPhones that I have read about usually have been caused by a cheap knockoff USB power brick, a non MFI lightning cable with a counterfeit lightning connector, a bent iPhone that has ruptured the battery or a 3rd party battery.
This is why if you ever have your iPhone battery replaced by a 3rd party or yourself, Apple won't touch your device or even replace it out of warranty.
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I’ll get my coat. Barry, start the car!
They also look look at what kind of damage the cable has sustained. If your lightning connector broke off, too bad, that's accidental damage, so is waiting until the cable has disintegrated and just the metal sheath is left before you take it to them.
The reason why they changed their policy is because people used to have their cables replaced monthly and those cables didn't fail because of faulty workmanship, they failed because of abuse. I'm sure most posters here take good care of their Apple products and if you want to feel good about how you treat them, just look around the next time you have to visit the Genius Bar. Some people beat the crap out of their Apple products and blame Apple for their failure.
If an analysis shows that Apple is at fault, then and only then can they go to their insurer (Apple of course has insurance for these sorts of things) and negotiate a settlement.
I feel terrible for the folks who lost their farm, but if they'd let Apple study the device a year ago, this would have been settled a year ago. They either don't understand how the real world works, or they don't understand how the procedure goes -- Apple legally cannot "just take their word for it" and write a cheque, even if they believed the couple and wanted to help.