UK Court Approves Billion-Dollar Lawsuit Against Apple Over iPhone 'Batterygate' Issue

Court action led by market researcher Justin Gutmann represents approximately 24 million UK consumers seeking up to £853 million ($1.03 billion) in damages, alleging Apple intentionally slowed iPhones through software updates to conceal battery issues.

The UK's Competition Appeal Tribunal has permitted a lawsuit against Apple, accussing it of deceptive practices with its iPhone batteries, possibly exposing the company to a billion-dollar payout. The claim suggests that Apple misled consumers by issuing updates that slowed down iPhones to extend their battery life, causing consumers to believe their phones were slow and that their batteries were in good condition.
The lawsuit, led by market researcher Justin Gutmann, alleges that roughly 24 million UK iPhone users were affected by this issue. The potential damages could reach £853 million ($1.03 billion) if Apple loses the collective action case.
This is not the first time Apple faces such accusations. In 2020, Apple agreed to settle for up to $500 million in a class-action lawsuit in the US. Additionally, Apple agreed to pay $113 million to 34 US States for slowing down iPhone 6 and 7 models. France and Italy have also fined the company for similar issues.
Despite the possible progression to a full trial, the Tribunal noted a lack of clarity and specificity in the proposed class representative's case. It states that the methodology being advanced needs to prove a realistic prospect of establishing loss on a class-wide basis.
Apple continued to deny these allegations, stating it would never intentionally degrade the user experience or shorten the life of any of its products. Despite the denials, Apple previously admitted to slowing down older iPhones to protect their components.