Back in July, Apple agreed to pay $50 million to settle a class-action lawsuit over the faulty butterfly keyboards that were used in MacBook machines between 2015 and 2019, and now emails about the settlement are going out to MacBook Pro owners eligible for a payment.
Dear MacBook Owner,
You are receiving this email because you previously reached out to our firm regarding your MacBook laptop. On November 28, 2022, the Court granted preliminary approval of $50 million nationwide settlement that would benefit MacBook purchasers who had their "Butterfly" keyboard repaired. You can find more information about the settlement, eligibility, the approval process, and your options at www.KeyboardSettlement.com.
MacBook Pro owners who had at least two topcase replacements from Apple within four years of purchase are considered Group 1 Settlement Class Members and will be receiving an automatic payment as well as an email about the settlement.
MacBook Pro owners who had a single topcase replacement will need to submit a claim form to get compensation, and they are considered Group 2 Settlement Class Members. Those who had a keycap replacement can also submit a claim form to get a small settlement as part of the third group of Settlement Class Members.
Monetary awards will be based on the number of repairs required, with amounts up to $395 provided to those who had two or more topcase replacements. Mac owners who fall in to this category will be receiving their class notices this month. Claims will be accepted through March 6, 2023, and a final approval hearing will take place on March 16, 2023.
The lawsuit dates back to 2018, when a group of customers sued Apple over the butterfly keyboard, claiming that the company concealed the defect from consumers in order to continue to sell Macs.
Butterfly keyboards were used in Macs between 2015 and 2019, and while Apple iterated on the design several times to try to improve durability, a design flaw made the butterfly mechanism prone to failure. Throughout those four years, thousands of customers had problems with repeating keys, sticky keys, and full keyboard failures.
Apple launched a keyboard repair program in June 2018, covering MacBook, MacBook Pro, and MacBook Air models for four years after purchase. Apple was only replacing butterfly keyboards with another butterfly keyboard, so there was no real fix.
Apple ultimately did away with the butterfly mechanism and swapped back to a scissor switch mechanism, and today, all Macs use a scissor switch keyboard that is much more durable and able to stand up to small crumbs and dust.
