Ford Customer Seeks Part of $1. 3 Billion Tariff Refund Payment - EUROPE SAYS
A California man has filed a class-action lawsuit against Ford, alleging the automaker owes him a refund for passing tariff-related costs on to him. The suit, filed in Michigan federal court last week, claims. . .
A California man has filed a class-action lawsuit against Ford, alleging the automaker owes him a refund for passing tariff-related costs on to him. The suit, filed in Michigan federal court last week, claims that Ford passed extra costs onto customers through higher base prices and elevated destination charges. The suit hinges on a decision made by the U. S. Supreme Court, which struck down Trump’s broad tariff policy created under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. One FordMustang Mach-Ecustomer is hoping for a bit of a refund from the Blue Oval. A California man filed a class-action lawsuit against Ford last week over claims that the automaker charged him extra money for his Mustang Mach-E due to the Trump’s administration’s automotive tariffs. The plaintiff alleges that Ford owes customers a refund, now that the federal government has agreed to repay previously paid import duties. The suit, filed July 9, specifically calls out Ford for passing its extra costs from the new tariffs onto customers through higher destination charges and increased pricing on vehicles built in Mexico. While those costs came at a time when Ford was indeed paying more to import the Mach-E from Mexico, the U. S. Supreme Court has since struck down the sweeping tariffs. Jessica Lynn Walker|Car and DriverThe federal government agreed to refund any duties paid by companies that have since been deemed illegal by the Supreme Court’s decision that the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) does not give the president the authority to blindly tax imports. In Ford’s case, that refund should total around $1. 3 billion, the company announced earlier this year. Jason Bullock, the San Diego man named as the plaintiff in the suit, believes that a portion of that $1. 3 billion belongs to the customers who bore the brunt of those tariffs. “If Ford retains the [tariff refunds] while also retaining the tariff-related price increases paid by consumers, Ford will receive a double recovery and unjust windfall,” the lawsuit reads. The suit is not unique to the Dearborn automaker. According toa report byRoad & Track, Nike, Amazon, and Costco are all facing similar lawsuits from customers. Whichever suit makes its way through the legal system first could serve as precedent for the others, lending a sense of seriousness to the Ford situation. ➡️ Skip the lot. Let Car and Driver help you find your next car. Jack Fitzgerald’s love for cars stems from his as yet unshakable addiction to Formula 1. After a brief stint as a detailer for a local dealership group in college, he knew he needed a more permanent way to drive all the new cars he couldn’t afford and decided to pursue a career in auto writing. By hounding his college professors at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, he was able to travel Wisconsin seeking out stories in the auto world before landing his dream job at Car and Driver. His new goal is to delay the inevitable demise of his 2010 Volkswagen Golf.