Between 2004 and 2013, various vehicle manufacturers, including brands such as Fiat, Ford, Opel, Citroën, Peugeot, Renault or Toyota, among many others, exchanged information with the intention of setting management criteria at their dealerships. sales and after sales. In total, almost 30 car brands, 130 dealers and 21 manufacturers were involved in this case, which consisted of raising prices in an agreed and predetermined manner.
These practices turned out to be irregular and the brands were penalized for this because the customers paid more money than they owed for their vehicle, since the sale price was not the real one, but one agreed with the competition. Something that has resulted in compensation ranging from 2,000 to 9,000 euros, depending on the sale price and the model of the vehicle. Thus, it is essential to know the requirements to know if you can be one of those affected by this car cartel and, above all, how to claim the corresponding compensation.
On November 19, 2021, the class action lawsuit filed by the Association of People Affected by the Car Cartel (AACC) was made public. In total, more than 49,000 affected people joined forces to claim the companies involved the return of that money paid in excess and that must be returned, if the Justice so deems, since no company is returning the corresponding compensation if there is no ruling that so indicates.
Class action lawsuits are those filed by a law firm on behalf of a broad group of people who are affected by a specific situation, as in this case with what happened with the so-called car cartel. So, to join a class action you have to follow certain steps.
The first of all is to know if you really are one of those affected by the car cartel and, therefore, can claim money that was overcharged. If you finally verify that you are one of the victims and that you can join the lawsuit, then the second step remains, which is to contact the group or law firm that has filed the claim.
In order to join the lawsuit, it is necessary to keep the documentation that was signed at that time or received in the form of an invoice when the car was purchased. But, in addition, it is also necessary to have an expert report that guarantees that we are one of those affected by the aforementioned car cartel. In the case of the AACC, they are in charge of making the aforementioned report.
Justice is usually quite demanding in terms of expert reports, therefore, if you have doubts, you should go to an expert with experience in these fields. Once the expert prepares the aforementioned report and certifies the overpayment, then the following steps can be taken to complete the claim.
Once that’s done, joining the class action lawsuit is free. Something that is a considerable plus, since we will not have to start it individually if we do not want to. In this way, we will leave our case in the hands of the lawyers who are managing the lawsuit that they have filed on behalf of a group of people.
Later, we can only wait. The specific time it will take to receive the money, if the Justice considers and understands it, is difficult to quantify. But, the compensation is usually higher than 1,500 euros, although a part must be paid to the organizers of the class action.
Thus, joining a collective lawsuit against the cartel is free, but first you have to present all the documentation that proves that you are one of those affected by these illegal practices that were carried out between 2004 and 2013. Then, We will only have to wait for the judicial resolution to receive our money.
