Mike Peterson
Apple is starting to send out payments in its $95 million settlement of a class-action lawsuit over refurbished devices used as replacements for AppleCare repairs.
Hagans Berman, the law firm handling the case, began sending out emails to members of the class on Thursday. According to an email seen by AppleInsider, a payment notification email will be sent by Aug. 30 that will allow class members to claim their payments electronically.
Those who are eligible to receive a payment in the settlement will have until Nov. 28, 2022 to claim their payment.
Payments will be sent out to any customer that purchased AppleCare or AppleCare+ coverage for an iPhone or iPad after July 20, 2012 and who received a refurbished device as a replacement.
The original lawsuit, which was first filed in 2016, alleged that Apple was misleading customers about its AppleCare terms. More specifically, it said that refurbished devices were not "new or equivalent to new in performance and reliability" as the term outlines.
Although the iPhone maker argued that refurbished devices were still "equivalent to new," Apple's efforts to have the lawsuit tossed largely failed. In September 2019, a U.S. District Court judge certified the class.
Apple has admitted no wrongdoing on its part. It still agreed to pay out $95 million to settle the lawsuit back in October 2021.
Hagens Berman is getting about half of the settlement. Users shouldn't expect big cash from this settlement — the email that we received shows a $14.45 payout.
More information about the settlement can be found here. A full text of the email sent to AppleInsider is available below.
According to our records, you are eligible to receive a payment of $14.45 in the settlement for the matter entitled Maldonado, et al. v. Apple Inc., et al., Case No. 3:16-CV-04067-WHO.
As Settlement Administrator for the matter, we're sending you this courtesy email to inform you that by August 30, 2022, you will receive a payment notification email that contains a link to claim your payment electronically. Once you receive that email, you will have until November 28, 2022 to claim your payment.
William Gallagher
Christine McKee
AppleInsider Staff
Chip Loder
Malcolm Owen
17 Comments
as a frequent purchaser of refurbished Apple products I would say they are better than new…they look new, have the requisite Apple clear panel wrapping. But they have performed better than the products that I have purchased new. I suspect that is because they undergo more stringent QC testing. The only thing you don’t get is the box.
At a time when we should be cutting down with the disposal of e-waste this is bad news.
"Hagens Berman is getting about half of the settlement."
Wow. What a world we live in.
Once again, only the lawyers win!