The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) filed a lawsuit against Apple in a federal court alleging the smartphone giant disabled some Apple devices which had been repaired by a third party.

Australia’s consumer watchdog said it started an investigation following reports relating to ‘error 53’ – an error which disabled or ‘bricked’ some consumers’ iPhones or iPads after downloading an update to Apple’s iOS. Many consumers who experienced the problem between September 2014 and February 2016 previously had their Apple device repaired by a third party, usually replacing a cracked screen.

The ACCC alleges Apple: “made false, misleading or deceptive representations about consumers’ rights”. Its investigation found Apple appears to have routinely refused to look at or service consumers’ defective devices if the user previously had the device fixed by a third-party repairer, even when the work in question was unrelated to the fault.

“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,” said ACCC chairman Rod Sims. “As consumer goods become increasingly complex, businesses also need to remember that consumer rights extend to any software or software updates loaded onto those goods.”

The ACCC is seeking penalties, injunctions, declarations, compliance programme orders, corrective notices and costs.