Quebecers who purchased a new or used car from the dealership during a four-year period can claim a $75 coupon today.
“It’s a good settlement,” says attorney Jimmy Lambert. He was suing 220 Quebec dealerships for charging their customers nearly $300 million in hidden fees between November 2017 and January 2022.
List of hidden fees
• Administration fees
• Carproof Fees
• Concession/dealer fees
• Documentation fees
• Application fees
• Financing costs
• Inspection fees
• Delivery costs
• Start-up costs
• Preparation costs
• Cash payment fees
• Reconditioning fees
• Costs for various accessories, including the “anti-theft” security system
• Transportation costs
• Starter kit fees
• Service fees
The four class actions brought by Lambert Avocats were finally settled on Tuesday when a judge signed and approved an out-of-court settlement with 150 dealers for a maximum of $35 million.
To do this, each of the 474,000 affected customers will have to claim their $75 discount coupon. A 100% rate has never occurred in the history of class actions.
The agreement is criticized from everywhere. In June, the president of the Office of Consumer Protection (OPC), Denis Marsolais, even argued against its approval, a first in Quebec, in front of a packed room at the Montreal courthouse.
The OPC does not like discount coupons because they must be spent at the defendant’s home. Denis Marsolais also deplored, in June, that neither a follow-up on the effectiveness of the coupon nor a balance of the $35 million was planned when we know that discount coupons are not popular.
The 474,000 people affected can claim their $75 coupon now on the appeal website, underlines Jimmy Lambert. No proof of purchase is required and the discount is applicable to a good or service.
“You just have to show the email and an ID to the dealership,” says the lawyer.
The coupon is transferable to a loved one in the event of moving outside Quebec and has no expiration date.
Not enough!
Hubert Lamontagne also pleaded against the agreement in June before a judge in Montreal. The Quebecer said he obtained $500 in small claims punitive damages for costs of $1,518 on his car.
Not only is $75 not $2018, argues the one who is also legal advisor to the Association for the Protection of Motorists (APA), but the coupon encourages people to return to dealerships, which is almost free advertising .
On this subject, the 220 dealers and used vehicle dealers at the start only account for a fraction of the 850 members of the Corporation of Automobile Dealers of Quebec (CCAQ).
The APA has been leading the fight for years against these fees with various names. Each of the dealers on Quebec soil makes hundreds of thousands of dollars per year with this illegal practice, argues the organization.
Beware of dishonest dealers, Beware of illegal additional charges Or Outsmart Dealer Tactics even became magazine article titles Protect yourself.
Jimmy Lambert’s four appeals were based on article 224 c) of the Consumer Protection Actwhich prohibits traders from “demanding a price higher than that announced for a good or service”.
But two collective actions based on 224 c) have just been rejected, which, the lawyer argues, has sealed the case law against him.
Air Canada was accused of adding hidden fees when paying for a ticket, but the Court of Appeal did not authorize the appeal last August. Just before, in February, the Superior Court dismissed a similar class action against Expedia.
“You are the one responsible if you pay too much. That’s the jurisprudence now,” notes Jimmy Lambert.