By Saira Asghar 
A Brazilian court today levied a $19 million “social damages” fine $19M against Apple for selling iPhones without a charger. The Sao Paulo state court said that Apple must offer battery chargers with iPhones that are sold in the country, providing a decision in a lawsuit brought about by the Brazilian association of borrowers, consumers, and taxpayers (AMBCC).
Back in September, Apple was ordered by the Brazilian Ministry of Justice to stop selling iPhones if the package did not include a power adapter and was slapped with a fine of BRL 12.275 million – the equivalent of $2.34 million.
Now Cupertino was again fined for the same by the Sao Paulo civil court. The lawsuit, filed by the Brazilian Consumers’ Organization, claimed that a second purchase must be made for the product to work, and Apple has to pay BRL 100 million (about $19 million) in damages.
According to Judge Caramuru Afonso Francisco, Apple must provide chargers to all consumers in Brazil who purchased iPhone 12 or iPhone 13 devices in the past two years and must include the adapters in future purchases. The decision is not final and can be appealed.
Apple quotes environmental reasons for shipping just the Lighting to USB-C cable and not the adapter in the iPhones since 2020. Several other makers followed its example since, particularly in the premium segment.