Apple announced that they would be offering trade-ins for any knockoff iPhone chargers that may have been purchased from a third-party. The company’s announcement follows a recent report about a Chinese woman who had been electrocuted and died after using a charging iPhone. Upon further investigation Apple found that the woman had been using a knockoff iPhone charger.
On Tuesday, the company announced that it would offer customers an option to swap their third-party chargers starting August 16th. The program will run until October 18th and is an attempt by Apple to dispose any third-party chargers that may have safety issues. Although not all chargers may have a safety issue, Apple announced their USB Power Adapter Takeback Program is an attempt to enable customers to acquire properly designed adapters.
In order to participate in the program, customers must bring in at least one USB power adapter and their iPhone, iPad or iPod to an Apple retail store. The chargers will cost $10, which is a discount from the original price of $19. Chargers can be traded in to any Apple retail store or authorized service provider.
Apple does not have a list of companies that may sell unsafe chargers, but is allowing their customers to make the call based on whether they feel comfortable using their chargers. The company states that they will dispose third-party chargers that are traded-in, in an environmentally friendly way.