Got a Flaking, Black Apple Watch Series 10? Apple Will Replace It.

The Apple Watch Series 11 might be here and top dog, at least until the inevitable Series 12 comes out next year, but there are plenty of Apple Watch Series 10s out there on the wrists of people who’ve seen no reason to upgrade just a year later. The Series 10 isn’t the latest, but it isn’t out of date, either.

Some owners of the jet-black Series 10 have been reporting chipped paint just a year or less after taking ownership. The good news is that it seems Apple may replace yours for free if it suffers from the same problem, though I wouldn’t count on it if you have paint coming off due to normal wear and tear or negligent bangs into door jambs and furniture.

The sample size of owners who’ve gotten free replacements isn’t large, but it’s encouraging enough to be worth a shot if you’ve got a similar problem with your black Apple Watch Series 10.

Apple’s Replacement Policy Explained

One Reddit user reported that after noticing spots of silvery metal shining through on the case where paint had flaked off, they went to an Apple Store. They didn’t have AppleCare+, the extended warranty that covers incidental damage and loss, but flaking paint due to corrosion wouldn’t fall under either of those cases, anyway.

The user reported that they did have a few days left on the warranty, though. Manufacturing defects fall under that kind of general warranty. Still, the original poster didn’t have a ton of faith that Apple wouldn’t do anything about their flaking Watch.

“I didn’t think they would do it, but the moment the Genius Bar person saw the Watch he (said), ‘Yep. We have seen this a lot with (the) jet black version,” posted the Reddit user. “You will get a free replacement, almost guaranteed.’

“I just had to submit my watch with him for inspection, and they will notify (me) through email (sic). Sure enough, just like he said, I got (a) replacement confirmation next day in my inbox.”

As such, it’s the internet. We take claims with a grain of salt. What we do know is that a fair number of other Reddit users have chimed in to say their black Series 10s have suffered similar issues. I haven’t seen similar claims about flaking paint on the Series 9 or Series 11, or for Series 10 watches in colors other than black.