A Brazilian court fined Apple $R100 million (USD$19 million, AUD$30.1 million, £10.5 million) after ruling that the tech company must include chargers with new iPhones sold in the South American company.
In a lawsuit filed in Sao Paulo, a state court slammed Apple for its tactics against Brazilian customers, alleging that the tech giant treats customers abusively by selling their product without an essential accessory.
According to Reuters, that accessory was the phone’s charger.
Customers in Brazil were trotting down to their local Apple store to unbox their new whiz-bang phones, only to discover that they needed to pay more to use their device.
According to Reuters, Apple will appeal the decision and the fine imposed on the company.
Apple claimed that by not including chargers in the new phone kits, they were reducing carbon emissions.
According to Reuters, the Sao Paulo court rejected that claim, ruling that: “It is evident that, under the justification of a ‘green initiative,’ the defendant imposes on the consumer a required purchase of charger adaptors that were previously supplied along with the product.”
This is the latest in a string of legal problems for Apple in Brazil.
Back in September, the Brazilian Ministry of Justice prohibited the sale of iPhones in the country until Apple agreed to reintroduce chargers into the boxes.
The order was issued on September 6th, along with a fine for the tech company, which has been selling smartphones without a charger since the release of the iPhone 12.
It comes as Apple prepares to release the iPhone 14, but the Ministry of Justice and Public Security (MJSP) claims that selling the phones without charges amounts to selling a ‘incomplete product.’
The MJSP then went on to prohibit the sale of the new phones in the South American country.
The MJSP stated on its website, “The sale of iPhone cell phones without battery chargers has been suspended throughout the national territory.”
“The Ministry of Justice and Public Security (MJSP) also imposed a fine on the manufacturer Apple Computer Brazil in the amount of R$12.2 million ($USD2.3 million, $AUD3.6 million, £1.9 million) and ordered the cancellation of the registration with Anatel of the brand’s smartphones from the iPhone12 model.”
