Apple Inc AAPL is being sued in New York over allegations of overstating the water-resistive capabilities of its smartphones.
What Happened: The lawsuit filed Saturday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York alleges that the Tim Cook-led company’s claims of water resistance are “insufficiently qualified by fine print disclaimers.”
The lawsuit — listed as a class action suit named Antoinette Smith as the plaintiff.
The filed document stated that Apple labeled its iPhone 11 Pro and Pro Max devices as IP 68, which promise water resistance to a depth of 4 meters for up to 30 minutes.
Subsequent iPhone 12 models are rated IP68 and promise water resistance to a depth of 6 meters for up to 30 minutes, as per the lawsuit.
Why It Matters: The plaintiff alleged that the IP certification levels are based “on highly controlled laboratory conditions, with static and pure water.”
However, the water devices encounter in daily usage is neither static nor purified, as per the suit.
“This means that consumers who stand at the edge of a pool or ocean and whose devices are splashed or temporarily immersed, will be denied coverage, because the water contained chlorine or salt.”
Further, the suit said that Apple’s disclaimers limit the smartphone’s one-year warrant to exclude damage caused by liquid.
When a user seeks coverage under the warranty the first step is to verify if the liquid contact indicator has turned red, which is a sign that liquid has entered the device.
See Also: Butterflies In Apple's Stomach? Judge Allows Macbook Owners To File Class Action Lawsuit
Smith, a resident of Bronx County, purchased an iPhone 8, which experienced contact or immersion with water, purportedly consistent with the IP rating of her device.
She was denied warranty coverage by Apple, which forced her to incur financial loss through repair costs among other damages, the lawsuit claimed.
Smith is seeking injunctive relief along with restitution and disgorgement for members of the class along with an award of monetary and statutory damages.
This month the Cupertino, California-based tech giant was hit with a class-action suit that accused the company of running an “unlicensed casino.”
Price Action: Apple shares closed 1.8% higher at $134.32 on Friday.
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