The plaintiff’s iPhone stopped working immediately after coming into contact with water near a pool
The case, which attorney Joey Zukran would like to turn into a class action suit, revolves around a 19-year-old student who was in Mexico when her iPhone got wet near a pool. Zukran said that the iPhone she purchased brand new eight months ago stopped working immediately. His client took the damaged handset to the Genius Bar inside an Apple Store and was told that it could not be repaired because the device came in contact with water.
Apple’s iPhone warranty does not cover water damage. | Image credit-Apple
“So the warranty says that it does not apply the data liquid contact, which is completely ridiculous when you look at the marketing that Apple uses. How can you exclude liquid when you advertise that it can fall in a pool and be fine?…In the case of my clients, and many people who contact their office, they’re not fine. Apple refuses to fix it, and the only remedy is to buy a brand new phone.” Joey Zukran, attorney for the iPhone owner
Zukran, who plies his trade for the LPC Avocats firm, wants Apple to void the part of its warranty that prevents water damage from being covered. He also wants Apple to reimburse those who had to pay to repair their iPhone damaged by water or purchase a new unit, and pay the members of the class an additional $500 each.
“So you essentially have a contract that says your phone is ‘Oops resistant’, you can drop it in the pool, and you’ll be fine, only to come a few paragraphs later and say liquid contact voids your warranty. So you have two contradictory clauses in a consumer contract, which, again, according to the law, has to be interpreted in favour of the consumer or the adherent.” Joey Zukran, attorney for the iPhone owner
The attorney previously racked up a victory against Apple and the iPhone back in 2018. Zukran and another attorney successfully sued Apple over a warranty issue involving the iPhone battery. The original ruling against Apple was upheld by the Quebec Court of Appeal in 2021.
In 2022, a U.S. district judge dismissed a suit charging Apple with misrepresenting iPhone water resistance
It might take a landmark legal defeat against Apple or another major smartphone manufacturer to get them to cover water damage in the warranty offered with the purchase of a new phone. Such a ruling could have major reverberations throughout the industry since for the most part, consumers are blamed for any water that makes its way into their phones regardless of what the manufacturer says about water resistance in advertisements.