Australia's consumer watchdog is hauling global tech giant Apple before the courts for refusing to fix products that have been repaired by third parties.

Customers say the move is long overdue, frustrated with the high cost of having their smashed screens or minor defects repaired for exorbitant prices at Apple stores.

As it stands, the company's warranty does not apply if any work has been carried out on their products by anyone who is not a representative of Apple.

It is claimed they also routinely refuse to fix iPhones and iPads if they have been repaired by a non-Apple business, even if the fault has nothing to do with that repair.

"They're so big and they have such power they can pretty much just do what they want," iDropped it director Campbell Thompson told A Current Affair .

The ACCC has taken Apple to court over their warranty policies

Mr Thompson's company is one of many that repair cracked phone screens.

He applauds the ACCC for finally taking action against Apple's warranty policy, saying the time it takes to even see an authorised Apple repairer is too long for many.

"First of all, you would have to wait four days to get into the Apple store," Mr Thompson said. "You'd then have to hand them in. It would take about three hours or so for them to repair them and you'd probably have to pay $100 or $150 more than if you came into somewhere like us."

"Basically, as soon as they see one of our screens or another third-party out there in the market screen, they will not touch the device."

Choice spokesperson Erin Turner says consumers should be able to have their devices repaired wherever they want.

"Currently, Apple's policy forces you to wait at the Genius Bar and get a repair that Apple deems suitable. We don't think that's fair. Customers should have a right to treat their products how they want to be treated," she said.

"It's really unclear what Apple's trying to achieve here. They're clearly alienating and frustrating their customers, as well as getting the attention of the ACCC. It's not a good result."

If the ACCC wins the warranty case in full, Apple could face serious fines.