Lawsuit charges Apple with ignoring swelling Apple Watch batteries
A lawsuit launched this week accuses the company of knowingly ignoring a problem with Apple Watch batteries causing them to swell and break the screen.
Priano-Keyser's broken Apple Watch Series 3.
Filed on behalf of plaintiff Gina Priano-Keyser through the U.S. District Court for New Jersey, the suit argues Apple is committing fraud and breach of warranty, often choosing to label incidents accidents and deny discounted warranty repairs. The company has offered free repairs in the past.
In the complaint, lawyers for Priano-Keyser say she bought a Series 3 Watch in Oct. 2017, and that in July the next year its screen suddenly detached and cracked during charging. Her daughter tried to push the screen back in, but the Watch has reportedly been "unusable" since.
As evidence of a broader trend the complaint points to more than a dozen similar anecdotes on Apple's support forums over a matter of years. It also suggests that the situation is a potential safety hazard, as some people have already suffered "cuts and burns."
Attorneys are pursuing class action status, the defined class being any New Jersey resident who's a present or former owner of a Series 1, 2, or 3 bought in the state.
A similar suit by the same lawfirm -- Shepherd, Finkelman, Miller & Shah -- was launched in California last summer, but dismissed in large part because it didn't identify a responsible defect. That issue is addressed here, specifically pointing to "aging or otherwise faulty" lithium-ion batteries, or else other defective components that might impact them.
Priano-Keyser's broken Apple Watch Series 3.
Filed on behalf of plaintiff Gina Priano-Keyser through the U.S. District Court for New Jersey, the suit argues Apple is committing fraud and breach of warranty, often choosing to label incidents accidents and deny discounted warranty repairs. The company has offered free repairs in the past.
In the complaint, lawyers for Priano-Keyser say she bought a Series 3 Watch in Oct. 2017, and that in July the next year its screen suddenly detached and cracked during charging. Her daughter tried to push the screen back in, but the Watch has reportedly been "unusable" since.
As evidence of a broader trend the complaint points to more than a dozen similar anecdotes on Apple's support forums over a matter of years. It also suggests that the situation is a potential safety hazard, as some people have already suffered "cuts and burns."
Attorneys are pursuing class action status, the defined class being any New Jersey resident who's a present or former owner of a Series 1, 2, or 3 bought in the state.
A similar suit by the same lawfirm -- Shepherd, Finkelman, Miller & Shah -- was launched in California last summer, but dismissed in large part because it didn't identify a responsible defect. That issue is addressed here, specifically pointing to "aging or otherwise faulty" lithium-ion batteries, or else other defective components that might impact them.
Comments
"After booking an appointment at an Apple Genius Bar in August 2018, she says Apple denied the repair under warranty for free, and quoted her the out-of-warranty charge of US$229. She seeks damages “in an amount to be proven at trial for herself and all others similarly situated.” - MacObserver
"The plaintiff booked a Genius Bar appointment in August 2018, but upon inspection, she alleges that Apple denied to repair the Apple Watch free of charge under warranty and instead quoted her an out-of-warranty fee of $229 for service." - MacRumors
Luckily here in the EU you can get your device fixed under warranty when it is under 2 years old. It’s the law. Apple does not advertise it but they are required to fix it. So I took it back to the carrier I got it from and Apple replaced it with a brand new one. So even all of my scratches on the screen are gone. I was pretty delighted.
It all original. Even the battery. Just sayin’...
Imagine my surprise that the watch actually charged and switched on. For a few days it was a bit flaky but after a while it settled down and worked as normal.
I know that sometimes products do fail, but for Apple to build a watch that could get washed and put through over a hour of high temp and moisture is truly amazing.
The glass on the pictured watch looks like it has received plenty of abuse (lots of dents and scratches) - while a swollen battery might have been the "straw that broke the camels back", it seems more likely that this wasn't what cracked the screen.
Yes, I encouraged her to use her womanly wiles on unsuspected Genius Bar geeks. And yes, I explained to her why it worked, though she'd already figured most of it out.
Doesn't work much anymore; apparently they've tightened things up a bit.