Man sues Apple for alleged iPhone 6 battery explosion in US

Apple iPhone. Pic/AFP

A man in the US has sued Apple for allegedly selling defective batteries and violating its warranty promises after his iPhone exploded on his face in 2019.

The lawsuit, lodged on Thursday in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, claimed that the iPhone 6's battery "contains a defect which makes it unable to reliably perform its function".

It went on to allege that the defect "creates a danger of explosion and fire", Apple Insider reported. According to the complaint, the iPhone 6 device of plaintiff Robert Franklin of Hopkins County, Texas, had exploded in August 2019.

"Robert Franklin was listening to music on his iPhone 6, when he noticed the music playing on his phone began to skip," the lawsuit read. "As he picked up his iPhone to investigate, it suddenly exploded and caught fire in his face," it added.

The complaint went on to say that the plaintiff suffered injuries to his eyes and wrist as a result of the incident. The latter injury occurred because the fire caused him to fall, during which Franklin used his hand to brace himself.

"With a defective battery, Plaintiff's iPhone 6 was unsafe to operate and was destroyed by the explosion," the complaint said. The plaintiff reportedly suffered economic loss because of the incident. Costs included those to replace the iPhone, plus medical treatment for his injuries.

According to the lawsuit, Apple is in violation of Texas law because it sold an un-merchantable product. It alleges that Apple's warranty, which claims that the iPhone 6 would be free from defects, turned out to be untrue.

The lawsuit sought class-action status and a jury trial. It asked for damages for the allegedly defective iPhone 6 and its battery, incidental damages for replacement devices, and attorneys' fees and court costs.

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