Competition tribunal dismisses £1.3 billion class action claim against BT
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BT has successfully defended a £1.3 billion class action over allegations it “disproportionately overcharged” its landline customers. In a judgment released on Thursday, the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) found the claim against BT failed after deeming that “overall” prices it charged “were not unfair, and therefore there was no abuse of dominant position”.
Collective Action on Land Lines (Call) founder Justin Le Patourel had sought between £300 and £400 in compensation for more than three million customers, depending on the length of their contract. The ruling means BT does not have to pay out any compensation.
In 2017, watchdog Ofcom said that BT had unfairly charged millions of landline customers from 2015 after an investigation. At the time, BT agreed to reduce the price of its landlines. However, Mr Le Patourel took the issue to the CAT as he believed the telecoms provider owed compensation payments, arguing that many customers were vulnerable and were owed refunds.
A BT spokesman said: “Today the Competition Appeal Tribunal handed down its judgment in the case of Justin Le Patourel v BT Group plc in which the CAT has dismissed the claim and found that BT Group’s conduct did not breach competition law. “We take our responsibilities to all of our customers very seriously and welcome today’s ruling.”.
Mr Le Patourel said: “While I am pleased that the Tribunal has recognised BT’s dominant position in the market, and the significant and persistent nature of its excessive pricing, I am disappointed that it did not agree that these prices were unfair.
