Apple To Face Refurbished iPhone Class Action Lawsuit

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A federal judge refused to nix certification of a class action lawsuit Apple faces over allegedly using refurbished iPhone and iPad parts to repair new devices.  

Lead plaintiffs, Vicky Maldonado and Joanne McRight, successfully argued for certification of a Class of consumers who purchased Apple’s AppleCare or AppleCare+ extended warranty on or after July 20, 2012, and who received a remanufactured replacement device when using their warranty in 2019. Apple fought the ruling, but lost when U.S. District Judge William H. Orrick ruled that the tech giant was simply rehashing old arguments.  

“Apple’s arguments are either repackaged versions of those it made at certification, misapprehend the plaintiffs’ theory, are for the merits, or are otherwise unconvincing,” said the judge in an order issued Friday.  

Judge Orrick also set an August trial date in the class action lawsuit noting that “both parties’ expert evidence is fit for trial.” 

Maldonado and McRight filed the class action lawsuit in California federal court in 2016. They claimed that Apple used refurbished, rather than new, parts to repair iPhones, iPads, and iPods for consumers who purchased extended warranty options with their devices.  

Each plaintiff claimed that they had purchased new Apple devices, along with an extended warranty that promised new or “equivalent to new” devices in the event of a problem. They said that when they used their warranties to replace broken devices, they were given used or refurbished units.  

The plaintiffs claimed that Apple had duped them and other customers, alleging that refurbished iPhone parts can never be like new because they have already been used.  

The class action lawsuit is seeking an award of reimbursement and damages, including punitive damages, plus court costs and attorneys’ fees. The plaintiffs also want Apple to stop replacing covered devices with used or refurbished units and to cease advertising the contested “equivalent to new” offer for a replacement device under their extended warranties. 

Did you get a refurbished iPhone under an Apple warranty? Tell us about your experience in the comment section below! 

The lead plaintiffs are represented by Steve W. Berman, Robert B. Carey, and Michella A. Kras of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP. 

The Apple Refurbished Repair Parts Class Action Lawsuit is Maldonado, et al. v. Apple Inc., et al., Case No. 3:16-cv-04067, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. 

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