Court Approves Ken Grody Ford Settlement
San Diego Superior Court Approves Kinney v. Ken Grody Ford Carlsbad Class Action Settlement
The Vachon Law Firm announces that on December 23, 2011, the San Diego Superior Court granted final approval for the settlement in the class action lawsuit Kinney v. Vince Dixon Ford, Inc., et al. (San Diego County Superior Court Case No. 37-2010-00059153). The defendant Vince Dixon Ford, Inc. operates the San Diego County car dealership Ken Grody Ford Carlsbad. The representative plaintiff and the class members are represented by the Vachon Law Firm.
The Allegations Against Ken Grody Ford
The lead plaintiff’s complaint alleges that Ken Grody Ford Carlsbad has an illegal practice of “payment packing,” i.e., adding extra optional charges into vehicle contracts without disclosing that are optional. The complaint further alleges that this practice violated California’s Vehicle Leasing Act, the Consumers Legal Remedies Act, and the Unfair Competition Law.
Click here to read the class action complaint against Ken Grody Ford.
Approval of Class Action Settlement
The parties submitted a proposed class action settlement to the San Diego County Superior Court on August 31, 2011. Thereafter, the Court granted preliminary approval on October 5, 2011, and on December 23, 2011 the Court issued its final approval order.
Click here to read the final approval order.
Settlement Terms
In the settlement, Ken Grody Ford Carlsbad stipulated to the Court issuing an injunction forcing it to change its business practices and it also agreed to pay each class member $200. The $200 is approximately eight times the amount of monetary damages incurred by each of the class members.
The final, court-approved settlement applies to all persons who leased vehicles from Ken Grody Ford Carlsbad under leases that ended on or after September 7, 2009 and were charged for optional items that were not included in the lease contract.
