Error 53, does this seem familiar to you? Oh yes, this is the error that invades your phone’s or tablet’s screen once you update its software post getting repaired the broken screen. Did you get your phone fixed by a third party and not some Apple-authorized store?
The Australian consumer watchdog claims to have cracked the mystery. This is why the Australian Competiton and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has sued Apple over the reason that it had bricked or disabled tablets or phones which had broken screens repaired by third parties. The commission has even initiated the proceedings in the Federal Court against Apple Pty Limited and its US-based parent company, Apple Inc.
The commission has even initiated the proceedings in the Federal Court against Apple Pty Limited and its US-based parent company, Apple Inc. It alleges that Apple has made false, misleading, or deceptive representations about consumers’ rights under the Australian Consumer Law. The proceedings were instituted on the behalf of 275 consumers, and according to the Australian Law each breach could result in the penalty of up to A$1.1 million, although the court will determine the exact fine size. ACCC Chairman Rod Sims, in a statement, said,
Consumer guarantee rights under the Australian Consumer Law exist independently of any manufacturer’s warranty and are not extinguished simply because a consumer has goods repaired by a third party.
The authority’s claim goes like this – consumers who got their devices with cracked screens fixed from a third party, received the ‘error 53’ after downloading an update to Apple’s iOS operating system. Also, the document of ACCC mentions that Apple seems to have regularly refused to check or service users’ defective devices if a consumer had previously had the device repaired by a third party repairer, even when that repair was unrelated to the fault. The regulator mentioned,
Denying a consumer their consumer guarantee rights simply because they had chosen a third party repairer not only impacts those consumers but can dissuade other customers from making informed choices about their repair options including where they may be offered at lower cost than the manufacturer.
The ACCC also stated that it is seeking pecuniary penalties, injunctions, declarations, compliance program orders, corrective notices, and costs.
