Canadian class action against Apple has opt out deadline today

VANCOUVER Canadians have until later today to opt out of a class action lawsuit that could see Apple pay up to $14 million collectively to some iPhone users. The class action filed in 2018 against defendants Apple Inc. and Apple Canada Inc. accuses the tech giant of having performance mitigation features in its iOS software and defects in some iPhones.

In documents filed in a B.C. court, the plaintiffs claim the defects caused some phones to prematurely age, degrade or shut down unexpectedly and sparked performance issues in iPhone batteries. They say Apple also misrepresented or intentionally concealed such issues. As part of the proceedings, court documents say Apple has agreed to pay between $11.1 million and $14.4 million to settle the matter.

Should the settlement be approved at a hearing scheduled for the end of January, Canadians with some iPhone 6 and iPhone 7 models who installed iOS versions 10.2.1 or later or iOS 11.2 or later before Dec. 21, 2017 could be eligible for money. The settlement will end their ability to sue Apple over the issues, but Canadians who want to hang onto their right to pursue legal action against the tech giant have until today at 5 p.m.

PST to opt out of the class action. An Apple Canada spokeswoman along with a lawyer for the plaintiffs pursuing the action did not immediately respond to a request for comment. This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 10, 2024..