The court-enforceable undertaking to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission means all Apple products could be repaired or replaced where necessary within two years of purchase.
It replaces the one-year warranty Apple has traditionally applied to its products globally.
The ACCC had previously sought and received guarantees from Telstra, Optus and Vodafone that they would honour a two-year warranty for Apple iPhones and other devices bought through the mobile carriers under the Australian Consumer Law, introduced in 2011.
However, the undertaking from Apple represents the first time a two-year warranty applies to all Apple products bought in Australia.
It is the second victory for the ACCC over the consumer giant in recent years, after Apple last year agreed to pay $2.25 million for allegedly misleading advertising around its iPad.
The ACCC also said it was concerned Apple had redirected customers who had purchased faulty non-Apple products from the consumer giant to the manufacturer.
“The ACCC was concerned that Apple was applying its own warranties and refund policies effectively to the exclusion of the consumer guarantees contained in the Australian Consumer Law,” said ACCC chairman Rod Sims.“The ACL consumer guarantees have no set expiry date. The guarantees apply for the amount of time that it is reasonable to expect given the cost and quality of the item or any representations made about the item.”
