Apple fined $12 billion for making incomplete claims about iPhone water resistance
As serious as the above seems to be, Apple was accused of a second and more serious issue by the Italian regulatory agency. With this complaint, Apple would use its water resistance claims to sell iPhone models but would refuse to extend warranty coverage to those phones that suffered water damage. While Apple does include a disclaimer that says, “The guarantee does not cover damage caused by liquids,” the disclaimer would most likely deceive most consumers. Why? The Italian agency says that Apple does not make it clear what type of guarantee is being discussed and the conditions and limitations of the water resistance protection that Apple promotes.
Apple determines whether one of its devices has suffered water damage through the use of internal indicators that show when water has made its way inside an iPhone. When this indicator is positive, Apple will not honor its warranty which means that device owners will not get a free repair or replacement unit.
In addition, the 2018, 2019, and 2020 iPhones (along with the second-gen iPhone SE) are protected from liquids that spill on the handsets such as soda, beer, juice, coffee, and tea. If you spill one of these liquids on your iPhone, rise the affected area with tap water and wipe it off.
Apple’s support site lists some hints on how to protect your iPhone from water damage. According to the company:
- Swimming or bathing with your iPhone.
- Exposing your iPhone to pressurized water or high velocity water, such as when showering, water skiing, wake boarding, surfing, jet skiing, and so on.
- Using your iPhone in a sauna or steam room.
- Intentionally submerging your iPhone in water.
- Operating your iPhone outside the suggested temperature ranges or in extremely humid conditions.
- Dropping your iPhone or subjecting it to other impacts.
- Disassembling your iPhone, including removing screws.
