Apple to replace faulty power buttons iPhone 5 for free

Apple has finally admitted to the existence of a problem with the sleep/wake button on the iPhone 5.

Two years after customer complaints began appearing online, the Cupertino-based company has launched a free replacement scheme for any users affected by the power button issues.

The group claims a ‘small percentage’ of iPhone 5 handsets - typically manufactured after March 2013 - have faulty mechanisms that can lead to problems with the switch.

The fault prevents the device from being turned on and off, or locked in the usual way.

This has caused some iPhone models to stop working intermittently.

While Apple hasn’t placed a number on the amount of handsets affected, the term for ‘iPhone 5’ on Google has the query ‘iPhone 5 sleep button not working’ as one of the top searches.

Forums are also filled with complaints dating back two years - before the time Apple claims the manufacturing error occurred. ‘The sleep/wake button is very unresponsive,’ one user wrote on the Apple forum in April 2012.

‘It’s fine when pushing on the left most side of the button, but the right is completely unresponsive.’

Apple has now launched a dedicated website where users in the U.S. and Canada can submit their serial number to see if they qualify for the replacement scheme.

Affected users can then send in their iPhone for inspection through the post, call in at an Apple Store or visit another authorised service provider listed on the site.

If affected users decide to take their handset to an Apple store, they will receive a 16GB iPhone 5 on loan while theirs is fixed.

Those who have paid for an outof-warranty replacement to fix the problem may also be eligible for receiving a refund from Apple.

Broken iPhones, such as those with cracked screens, do not qualify until other issues are addressed.