Consumer advice center is suing Vodafone: price increase illegal?

Consumer advice center is suing Vodafone: price increase illegal?

Consumer protection has filed a lawsuit against Vodafone over a price increase that gives consumers the opportunity to join for free. According to the Federal Association of Consumer Organizations (VZBZ), customers have had to pay five euros more for their internet and telephone contracts since 2023 without having a sufficient legal basis for this. The price adjustment was viewed as one-sided, which led to a class action lawsuit at the Hamm Higher Regional Court.

Vodafone customers have the option to join the class action lawsuit and, if successful, could receive money back directly. VZBZ board member Ramona Pop emphasizes that this is the aim of the lawsuit. Similar cases with Netflix and Spotify show that the prospects of success are certainly there, according to the Berlin Court of Appeal in a past ruling.

The lawsuit is aimed at customers who are affected by a price increase of five euros in their current internet and/or telephone contracts. Mobile phone contracts with Vodafone are excluded from the lawsuit. Last year, affected customers had the opportunity to make use of a special right of termination if they did not want to pay the increased prices.

Interested customers must check whether they are entitled to join the lawsuit and then register in the lawsuit register. The exact amount of potential repayment from Vodafone is currently unknown. Around ten million customers were affected by the price increase, to which many may not have actively agreed. If successful, customers could potentially receive 60 euros back over a period of twelve months.

In connection with class action lawsuits against companies such as EON due to excessive heating costs, consumer protection emphasizes the importance of dealing with potential cost increases in a timely manner in order to avoid negative financial consequences.