I recently found out that my sister, who has a learning disability, unwittingly spent more than £1,100 on 83 Apple purchases over four weeks. She enjoys playing word games and colouring on her iPad, but has no understanding of money or how in-app purchases work. Until last year, her husband managed her finances, but he died. Most of the transactions were repeat purchases of items called “bundles”. She has no idea what they are and hasn’t downloaded them, but Apple is refusing a refund.
CS, Binfield, Berkshire
Apple agreed to make a “one-time” exception and refund your sister when I explained her circumstances, as they should have done to you. Many others, usually children, have inadvertently run up huge bills after clicking on in-game items linked to a parent’s bank card without realising that they cost real money. Parental controls, in screen settings, can prevent or flag up transactions, and you have now enabled these on your sister’s devices.
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