Heather Peters, a Honda Civic hybrid owner in Southern California, could have joined a class action lawsuit against Honda (NYSE:HMC) that is challenging the company’s fuel economy claims for the vehicle.
Both Peters and the plaintiffs in the class share the same frustration with the car, which Peters said gets no more than 30 miles per gallon, well under the advertised 50 mpg. But Peters, a former lawyer, decided to go it alone in small-claims court, where the odds of winning aren’t as great but the payout, up to $10,000 in this case, can be greater.
Peters won. On Wednesday, the Associated Press reported, Los Angeles Superior Court Commissioner Douglas Carnahan awarded Peters $9,867, saying Honda did mislead her about the expected mileage. “At a bare minimum,” Carnahan declared, “Honda was aware … that by the time Peters bought her car there were problems with its living up to its advertised mileage.”
At a hearing held earlier, Honda technical expert had testified that the company was required by federal law to post a sticker estimating the highest mileage the car could get, and added that actual mileage would depend on how the car was driven.
Meanwhile, Honda has made a settlement offer in the class action suit. Members of the class have until Feb. 11 to accept or decline the deal, and a judge in San Diego County is due to rule in March on whether to approve it.
Peters, by the way, still drives the Civic.
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