Apple is soon expected to pay eligible iPhone users in Canada due to the company’s iPhone battery throttling controversy in 2017. The Cupertino-based tech giant has reportedly agreed to pay up to $14.4 million CAD (nearly $10 million USD) to settle a class action lawsuit in the country. The lawsuit alleges the company of secretly throttling the performance of some iPhone models.According to the case website (spotted by MacRumors), the British Columbia Supreme Court is expected to decide whether to approve the proposed settlement on January 29.
Who will be able to make a claim for the settlement
If the settlement is approved, eligible users will be able to submit a claim for a payment of up to $150 (CAD) for each affected iPhones from Apple. The report notes that the exact payout amount will depend on the total number of claims that are submitted.
The class action lawsuit includes any current or former resident of Canada (excluding Quebec) who owned or purchased an iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, or iPhone SE with iOS 10.2.1 or later installed or downloaded, and an iPhone 7 or iPhone 7 Plus with iOS 11.2 or later installed or downloaded, before December 21, 2017.

If the settlement is approved, more information about submitting a claim will be provided on the website. However, to pursue this claim, users won’t need to take any action at this time. Eligible users who wish to opt out of the class action and retain their rights to sue Apple over these allegations later have to do so before January 10.
What Apple has to say about the lawsuit
Apple has denied the allegations that were described in the lawsuit. The company also noted that the settlement does not represent an admission of fault.
In 2018, Apple was sued in multiple Canadian provinces over iPhone battery throttling. This includes Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario and Saskatchewan. Apple revealed that it had started throttling the maximum performance of some iPhone models with “chemically aged” batteries. The company noted that it was done to prevent the devices from unexpectedly shutting down. The cases were filed shortly after this revelation.
Apple introduced this new power management system in iOS 10.2.1. However, the company initially failed to mention the change in the update’s release notes. This led to the public outcry.
The company eventually apologised about its lack of transparency, and temporarily lowered the price of iPhone battery replacements to $29 until the end of 2018.
Similarly, Apple has agreed to pay up to $500 million (USD) to settle a similar class action lawsuit in the US. The company has also started sending the payments of $92.17 per claim to those who submitted claims in that case. These payments marked the end of the so-called “batterygate” saga.