Fiat Chrysler Agrees to Pay $110 Million in Lawsuit Over Recall

Fiat Chrysler recently committed to paying $110 million to resolve a class action lawsuit stemming from emissions cheating allegations.

The settlement puts an end to a lawsuit from investors who said Fiat-Chrysler misled them by failing to disclose emissions problems with the company’s cars.

Fiat Chrysler told Bloomberg News that the company reached the settlement to resolve the litigation, which started in 2015. But the company also said it “continues to vigorously deny the allegations of wrongdoing made in this lawsuit.”

The settlement comes just months after the Fiat-Chrysler agreed to pay $800 million in fines in a separate case brought by the Justice Department, a group of states, and some car owners. In that case, the company was accused of rigging on-board electronic systems to cheat emissions tests.

The settlement of both suits doesn’t mean the end of the trouble for Fiat Chrysler. The company announced in March that it recently recalled more than 860,000 cars it said failed to comply with emissions standards. That decision has already prompted a new class action lawsuit.

The car owners in the new lawsuit say they never would have bought Fiat Chrysler vehicles if they knew those cars were at risk of failing emissions tests. Now, they have to wait—perhaps until the end of the year—to get their cars fixed so they’re able to pass inspections tests and legally hit the road.

California Law Protects Car Owners, Lessors

The Fiat-Chrysler fiasco is the latest example of the troubling lengths that at least some car makers will go to in pulling the wool over the eyes of buyers, lessors, and investors.

The problem is that even car owners that are not allegedly trying to cheat often allow cars to hit the dealer lots with serious defects. If those defects are not addressed, they can pose some serious safety hazards for drivers and passengers in the cars, as well as everyone else on the road.

That’s where the California Lemon Law comes in. Officially named the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act, the law forces car makers to perform certain repairs on vehicles while they’re under warranty. If those repair attempts are not successful, the manufacturer has to take the car back and compensate the owner for related costs. That includes the purchase price, financing costs, and rental car expenses, among others.

The manufacturer can also offer to replace the car instead. It’s ultimately the owner or lessor’s decision whether to accept that offer.

How Our California Lemon Law Attorneys Can Help

Getting stuck with a lemon can be a difficult, stressful situation. The California Lemon Law attorneys at the Bickel Law Firm have represented hundreds of clients in defective vehicle cases across the state. Our lawyers work aggressively to resolve these cases for the people that we represent.

Our offices are conveniently located in Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco. Call us at (888) 800-1983 or contact us online to speak with an attorney.