Apple refused to compensate an Australian woman whose Beats headphones exploded in her face while she dozed on a long-haul flight in February. The tech giant, which bought Beats in 2014, said it has investigated the incident and found that third-party batteries were to blame, according to Australian site Adelaide Now.
Third-party batteries blamed for Beats headphones explosion
According to Adelaide Now, in a statement issued by lawyers to the unnamed woman, an Apple representative said, “Our investigation indicated the issue was caused by a third-party battery.”
Though the name of the battery used in that particular set of Beats headphones has not been disclosed, the women reportedly used AAA batteries.
The woman, who has asked to remain anonymous, said that she was disappointed with Apple’s decision because it wasn’t specified on the headphones or the packaging what brands of batteries should be used. The woman had several burns on her hands and face, but she was seeking reimbursement to replace only her headphones and items of clothing that she was wearing, notes Engadget.
According to reports, the Beats headphones in question were an older model purchased in 2014, and they required additional batteries to function. This is not the first time Beats has been in the news for a battery-related problem. In 2015, the iPhone maker recalled the Beats Pill XL speaker because it had a tendency to overheat and even risk starting a fire in some cases.
Apple does not want to be linked with battery-related issues
The headphones exploded two hours into a flight from Beijing to Melbourne as the woman dozed with them on.
In a statement to the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB), the woman described what happened: “As I went to turn around I felt burning on my face. I just grabbed my face which caused the headphones to go around my neck. I continued to feel burning so I grabbed them off and threw them on the floor. They were sparking and had small amounts of fire.”
Australian regulators even issued a warning after the incident to leave battery-powered devices stowed unless they are in use. But we are not completely sure that this policy would have prevented the explosion in the given case.
At the time, the ATSB said that both the battery and its cover melted and stuck to the floor of the aircraft. Further, regulators stated that the passengers had to endure the smell of melted plastic, burned hair and burned electronics for the rest of the flight. The woman said people were choking and coughing the entire way home.
It is not known if the woman will continue her action against the U.S. firm, but the tech giant is adamant that the Beats device was not the cause of this unfortunate explosion. What we cannot ignore here is the way Apple is pushing back instead of regretting the explosion of the headphones. With exploding batteries being a common phenomenon nowadays, it is clear that the Cupertino-based company does not even want to be linked to such an incident.
