Tens of thousands of people are already taking part in a class action lawsuit against the telecommunications provider Vodafone. Within a week, 40,445 consumers registered with the Federal Office of Justice’s lawsuit register, as the Federal Association of Consumer Organizations (vzbv) announced. The number is from April 30th, a week after the register was opened. Registrations are still possible, so the number is likely to increase.
The association filed a lawsuit with the Hamm Higher Regional Court (OLG) last fall because it considers certain price increases by Vodafone to be unlawful. Around ten million customers were affected by the price increases. You pay five euros more per month for your landline internet than before. Vodafone justified the increase with higher costs, but the company rejected the accusation of illegality.
The proceedings at the Hamm Higher Regional Court are one of the first cases to refer to a new federal law – for consumers it is a sharper sword. At the end of the legal dispute, Vodafone customers could get money back directly without having to go to court again.