Lawsuit alleges Apple should have to pay damages to consumers for suspending Apple Pay in Russia

A law firm in Russia has filed a lawsuit against Apple, seeking 90 million roubles ($1.28 million) in damages. The firm claims the tech giant has negatively affected consumers by withdrawing Apple Pay from the country. 

Reuters reports the lawsuit was filed in a Moscow court. The $1.28 million in damages includes compensation for “moral damage” to Russians by not having the service. It’s also seeking the return of Apple Pay in the country. The amount of total damages will likely go up as the firm is still inviting others to join the suit. 

Law firm Chernyshov, Lukoyanov & Partners said Apple had violated Russian consumers’ rights after the company restricted the use of its built-in Apple Pay service on March 1 in response to Moscow sending troops into Ukraine.

Chernyshov, Lukoyanov & Partners are also pursuing a lawsuit against Netflix for also suspending its service in Russia. It’s not only Apple Pay that was removed from Russia, so why hasn’t the firm added more claims? Apple has also suspended its sales in its online store in Russia due to the war.

As my colleague states in a previous article on the topic, the firm isn’t likely to win the case. As the suspension of Apple Pay in Russia comes from US government sanctions, Apple has no way of bringing the service back to the country.