1. What is a class action lawsuit? Answer:In a class action, one or more people called “class representatives” sue on behalf of people who may have similar claims. One court resolves the issues for all class members, except for class members who exclude themselves from the class.
2. What is the Honda Tire Wear Class Action lawsuit about? Answer:The lawsuit involves 2006-2007 Honda Civics, 2006-2007 Honda Civic Hybrids, and certain 2008 Honda Civic Hybrids (“Class Vehicles”). Plaintiffs say the Settlement Class Vehicles have a suspension that causes premature or uneven rear tire wear. Plaintiffs filed the case on behalf of themselves and other people who bought the same model Civics. Honda denies that there is any defect and denies that it did anything wrong. The parties agree that there no safety concern with the Settlement Class Vehicles, The Court has not decided who would win the lawsuit if it went to trial.
3. Why is the lawsuit being settled? Answer:The parties on both sides decided that a settlement was better than the uncertainty and expense of litigation. The class representatives and their attorneys believe the settlement is best for all settlement class members.
4. Why is this called a “Proposed” Class Action Settlement? Answer:The Settlement is “Proposed” at this point because it has been preliminarily approved by the Court and will be the subject of a later Court hearing called a “Fairness Hearing,” which is currently scheduled for 10:00 a.m. Pacific time on October 28, 2013, in federal court in Los Angeles. At that hearing, the Court will make a final decision about whether the settlement is fair and whether it should be approved.
5. Who is a Settlement Class Member? Answer:You are a class member if you are a resident of the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, or Guam and you currently own or lease, or previously owned or leased, a Honda Civic, model years 2006-2007, a Honda Civic Hybrid, model years 2006-2007, or a Honda Civic Hybrid, model year 2008 with a vehicle identification number that starts with JHMFA3 and ends with a number between 00001 and 10456. You are not in the class if you work for Honda or one of its affiliated companies. However, Honda has decided to provide similar relief to Honda associates who own, or owned, one of the affected vehicles and experience, or experienced, uneven or rapid tire wear. Claims procedures for Honda associates will be shared via Hondaweb and internal TV/news services.
6. What is offered under the Proposed Settlement? Answer:Under the Proposed Settlement, Settlement Class Members may receive two kinds of benefits.
- Current owners/lessees of Settlement Class Vehicles
The first benefit is replacement of a “control arm” on your Civic, which you may be eligible to receive if you have experienced uneven or rapid tire wear on your Civic. To find out whether you are eligible for this benefit, you need to bring your Civic to an authorized Honda dealer for inspection or, alternatively, bring written proof (such as receipts) that your Civic has experienced uneven or rapid tire wear to an authorized Honda dealer.
- Current and former owners/lessees of Settlement Class Vehicles
- Reimbursement for Control Arm Replacement
If you have already paid to replace a control arm on your Civic as a result of premature or uneven tire wear (not because of an accident), you may submit a Claim Form for reimbursement. Honda will reimburse you for parts and labor paid for the control arm replacement. A Claim Form that describes the materials to be submitted is available on this website, www.ControlArmSettlement.com.
- Reimbursement for Tire Wear
If you replaced your tires due to uneven or rapid tire wear, you may submit a claim for partial reimbursement. If you provide the required information, Honda will reimburse you on a pro rata basis according to the chart shown in the Class Notice, available on this website, www.ControlArmSettlement.com. A Claim Form that describes the materials to be submitted is also available on that website.
7. If I already paid for a control arm replacement, what information do I need to include
with the Claim Form? Answer:Settlement Class Members seeking reimbursement for control arm replacement must provide (in addition to a completed Claim Form) an original receipt (or other original supporting documentation) that includes: (1) the date the replacement was made and the mileage on the Civic at the time of replacement; (2) the amount paid for the replacement control arm; and (3) information that shows that the tires on the vehicle experienced diagonal or inner edge wear.
8. If I replaced the tires on my Settlement Class Vehicle due to diagonal or inner edge tire
wear, what information do I need to include with the Claim Form? Answer:If you are seeking reimbursement for tires you purchased due to diagonal
or inner edge wear, you must provide (in addition to a completed Claim
Form) an original receipt (or other original supporting documentation)
that shows: (1) the date the replacement tires were purchased and the
vehicle mileage at the time of purchase; (2) the amount paid for the
replacement tires; (3) information showing that the old tires
experienced Reimbursable Tire Wear (including diagonal, inner edge,
uneven or rapid tire wear, a roaring noise from the rear, or vibration
at highway speeds); and (4) if available, the tread depth of each tire
being replaced.
If you are seeking reimbursement for the replacement of an original
tire, you must verify the number of miles on the vehicle (and thus on
the tire), when the tire was replaced. If you are seeking reimbursement
for the replacement of a non-original tire (in other words, a tire that
was not on the vehicle when it was sold as new), you must verify the
number of miles on the non-original tire. You can verify the mileage on
a non-original tire by providing an original receipt (or other original
supporting documentation) that shows: the date and vehicle mileage when
the non-original tire was installed on the vehicle.
In other words, you must demonstrate the vehicle mileage (1) when the
non-original tire was installed and (2) when it was replaced due to
Reimbursable Tire Wear. The difference between the two will be the
mileage on the tires. For example, if you installed a new tire when
your vehicle had 20,000 miles, then replaced it due to diagonal or inner
edge wear when your vehicle had 35,000 miles, the mileage on the tire
would be 15,000 miles.
9. How do I participate in the Proposed Settlement? Answer:If you currently own or lease a Settlement Class Vehicle and seek control arm replacement, you may bring your Civic to an authorized Honda dealer for an inspection as soon as you receive the Notice of Class Action Settlement. If this is the only benefit you seek, you do not need to submit a Claim Form. Your authorized Honda dealer will help determine whether you are eligible for a control arm replacement.
If you currently or previously owned or leased a Settlement Class Vehicle and are seeking reimbursement for control arm replacement or tires, you must submit a valid and complete Claim Form, with appropriate supporting materials (described in questions 7 and 8 above), to Honda by January 16, 2014.
12. Do I have to participate in the Proposed Settlement? Answer:No. If you would like to exclude yourself as a Settlement Class Member, you must submit a request for exclusion to Honda at P.O. Box 2722, Torrance, CA 90509. If you exclude yourself, you will not receive any benefits from the settlement. To exclude yourself from the settlement, you must submit a written request for exclusion that includes: (a) your name, address, and telephone number; and (b) the approximate date of acquisition and vehicle identification number (VIN) of your Civic. All requests for exclusion must also contain a signed statement that: “I hereby request that I be excluded from the proposed settlement class in Keegan v. American Honda Motor Co., Inc., 10-cv-09508.” Please note that all requests for exclusion must be postmarked no later than September 23, 2013.
13. Can I tell the judge what I think about the Proposed Settlement? Answer:Yes. If you would like to comment on or object to any portion of the proposed settlement, and you have not opted out, you may file your comment or objection with the Court. The procedure for doing that is outlined on page 7, paragraph 11 of the Notice. Your written comments must be postmarked no later than September 23, 2013.
17. When can I expect to receive my benefit? Answer:If you currently own or lease a Settlement Class Vehicle and seek control arm replacement, you can bring your Civic to an authorized Honda dealer for an inspection as soon as you receive the Notice of Class Action Settlement. Once you obtain the benefits you can no longer opt out of the settlement.
If you seek reimbursement for control arm replacement or tires, you can expect to
have your claim processed and receive reimbursement by late March, 2014,
assuming that the Court promptly approves the proposed settlement and no one
files an appeal. Updated information regarding the payment of settlement
benefits will be provided on this website.
*UPDATE
Class Members who timely submitted valid claim forms were mailed their respective reimbursement checks on May 29, 2014. Please allow sufficient time for delivery.
18. Do I have to go to the Fairness Hearing? Answer:No. Unless you object to the proposed settlement, or unless you exclude yourself from the proposed settlement, you will be represented at the fairness hearing by Class Counsel approved by the Court. But you can attend if you wish.
20. What if I am not satisfied with Honda’s decision on my claim? Answer:You may address any dispute about your claim to the Honda Claims Center. You may also submit it to the Better Business Bureau’s dispute resolution process. All decisions by the BBB will be final. This process is free to you, although you will be responsible for your own attorneys’ fees and expenses if you hire a lawyer.
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