Costco Settles Fla. Car Battery Warranty Suit With Customers
Costco Settles Fla. Car Battery Warranty Suit With Customers
Written By: David Minsky; Additional reporting by Nathan Hale; Editing by Patrick Reagan.
Re-posted by Law360 (May 15, 2023, 3:52 PM EDT) — Costco Wholesale Corp. has settled a proposed federal class action in Florida over car batteries in which customers alleged they were charged for replacements that were supposed to be free.
The settlement was announced in a joint notice filed Friday in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida between proposed class representative John Skrandel and Costco, court records show. The initial suit, filed in 2021, accused the Washington state-based wholesaler of breaching warranty and implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, fraudulent concealment, unjust enrichment and violating the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.
“The parties continue to negotiate matters relating to the manner of settlement administration, including distribution of the class benefit, as well as an amount for attorneys’ fees and costs and a service award for plaintiff,” the notice stated.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs and Costco did not immediately return requests for comment on Monday.
Details of the settlement were not provided, although a hearing for class certification on May 16 was canceled and the parties requested that they schedule a June 12 status conference, or the next convenient date for the court, which they say will allow them to continue to negotiate in good faith, according to the notice.
In the complaint, Skrandel said he purchased an Interstate battery for $72.99 at a Costco in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, in December 2017, and the battery included a label that said Costco offered a “36-month free replacement,” adding that he relied on this representation in his decision to purchase that battery.
When Skrandel’s battery failed in November 2020, he returned it to the same Costco store to get a free replacement and a customer service representative told him he’d be issued a refund for the original purchase price, but would be charged for a new replacement battery — which had a price of $78.99. Skrandel said in the complaint that he was inexplicably refunded $76.99, but still ended up paying $3.75 out of pocket for the replacement battery.
Skrandel said he objected to the charge, but was told by a representative that Costco was no longer providing free replacement batteries, according to the complaint. In the complaint, Skrandel attached a photograph of the label, which advertised a 36-month “limited warranty replacement” and included fine print that said: “For complete warranty information, please visit Costco.com/InterstateBatteries.”
“The public understands that a ‘free replacement’ warranty means a consumer will pay nothing to obtain a replacement product when the purchased product is returned within the warranty period,” according to a motion Skrandel filed in February. “‘Free means free,’ says the FTC — it’s that simple.”
The proposed class is represented by Geoffrey Stahl, Steven G. Calamusa, Rachel A. Bentley, Daniel G. Williams and Robert E. Gordon of Gordon & Partners PA and Jeff Ostrow and Kristen L. Cardoso of Kopelowitz Ostrow Ferguson Weiselberg Gilbert.
Costco Wholesale Corp. is represented by Johanna E. Sheehe and Phillip J. Sheehe of Sheehe & Associates PA, Purvi G. Patel and Zachary Maldonado of Morrison Foerster LLP and Wendy J. Ray of The Norton Law Firm.
The case is Skandrel v. Costco Wholesale Corp., case number 9:21-cv-80826, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.