Parking Heaters Antitrust Litigation

A Court authorized notice about the proposed Settlements of a class action lawsuit known as In re: Parking Heaters Antitrust Litigation, No. 1:15-MC-0940 (DLI) (JO), in the United States District Court Eastern District of New York, and about all of the options before the Court decides whether to give final approval to the Settlements. The Notice explains the lawsuit, the Settlements, and affected legal rights.

Chief Judge Dora Lizette Irizarry of the United States District Court Eastern District of New York is overseeing this case. The people who sued are called the “Plaintiffs.” Webasto Products North America, Inc., Webasto Thermo & Comfort North America, Inc. and Webasto Thermo & Comfort SE (collectively, “Webasto”) and Eberspaecher Climate Control Systems GmbH & Co. KG, Espar, Inc., and Espar Products Inc. (collectively, “Espar”) are the “Defendants.”

The lawsuit alleges that Webasto and Espar participated in an unlawful conspiracy to raise, fix, maintain, and/or stabilize the price of aftermarket Parking Heaters at artificially high levels in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act (15 U.S.C. § 1). Webasto and Espar have each agreed to settle the claims in the case.

The Plaintiffs’ Class Action Complaint and Jury Demand, both Settlement Agreements, and other case-related documents are posted here. The Settlements resolve the lawsuit with both Webasto and Espar. The Court has not decided who is right.

Under the Settlements, “Parking Heaters” are defined as “parking heaters for commercial vehicles sold in the aftermarket, including the heaters themselves, accessories sold for use with the heaters, and parking heater kits containing heaters and selected accessories.” Parking Heaters produce heat without the need to run a vehicle’s engine or idling. They include two primary types: (1) air heaters, which work by heating interior or outside air drawn into the heater unit, and (2) water or “coolant” heaters, which are integrated into the engine coolant circuit and heat the engine as well as the interior compartment.

In a class action, one or more people here called “Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs” sue on behalf of themselves and other people with similar claims. Together, all the people with similar claims (except those who exclude themselves) are members of a “Settlement Class.” The Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs here are Triple Cities Acquisition LLC d/b/a Cook Brothers Truck Parts, National Trucking Financial Reclamation Services, TrailerCraft Inc., and Myers Equipment Corporation.

The Court has not decided in favor of the Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs, Webasto, or Espar. Instead, the Parties have agreed to the Settlements. By agreeing to the Settlements, the Parties avoid the costs and uncertainty of a trial, and if the Settlements are approved by the Court, Settlement Class Members will receive the benefits described in this notice. The proposed Settlements do not mean that any law was broken or that either Webasto or Espar did anything wrong. Both Webasto and Espar deny all legal claims in this case. Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs and their lawyers think the proposed Settlements are best for everyone who is affected.

The Settlements include all persons or entities (but excluding federal and state government entities and Defendants, their officers, directors, and employees, as well as Defendants’ parents, predecessors, successors, subsidiaries, affiliates) that purchased aftermarket Parking Heaters in the United States, its territories or possessions, directly from any Defendant (Webasto or Espar), or from any of their parents, predecessors, successors, subsidiaries, or affiliates, at any time during the period from and including October 1, 2007 up to and including December 31, 2012.

The Settlement Administrator is no longer accepting claim form submissions, as the deadline to submit a claim form has passed as of February 1, 2019.

If you were mailed a Notice and were assigned a unique ID number, then Defendants’ records show that you are member of the Settlement Class under at least one of the Settlements or are otherwise eligible for a payment. If you were not mailed a Notice or if you are still not sure whether you are in the Settlement Class or have any other questions about the Settlements, review this Settlements website carefully or call the toll-free number, 1-888-396-9582. You also may send questions to the Settlement Administrator at Parking Heaters Settlement Administrator, P.O. Box 3560, Portland, OR 97208-3560.

The Webasto Settlement establishes a $7 million Settlement Fund and the Espar Settlement establishes an $8 million Settlement Fund. Each Settlement may be reduced by up to 35% depending on certain developments. The Webasto Settlement may be reduced by up to 35%, depending on the number of potential Settlement Class Members who opt out of the Webasto Settlement. In no event shall the Webasto Settlement be less than $4.55 million. The Espar Settlement may be reduced by up to 35%, depending on the number of potential Settlement Class Members Espar reached a private settlement with prior to September 20, 2017. In no event shall the Espar Settlement be less than $5.2 million.

Payments will be made to eligible Class Members automatically, after payment of expenses of notice and administration of the Settlement, taxes and tax expenses, and attorneys’ fees, costs, expenses, interest, and other expenses as may be awarded by the Court. Settlement payment amounts to eligible Class Members will be calculated based on available records of Parking Heater sales provided by Webasto and Espar.

Class Members do not need to file a claim to receive a payment. If you were mailed a Notice, you also received a unique ID number that you can input here to see your estimated payment amount. These estimated amounts will be calculated and available to review after the December 1, 2018 deadline for requesting exclusion from the Settlements passes, and after the Court has determined what other fees need to be paid from the settlement fund (see FAQ 10) and other potential reductions to the Settlements have been calculated.

Settlement Class members who already settled individually with Espar or Webasto are still entitled to a share of the Settlement with the defendant with whom they did not settle (even if they did not purchase any Parking Heaters from that defendant), and Settlement Class members who settled with Espar individually may also be entitled to receive a share in the Espar Settlement amount depending on the terms of their individual Settlement with Espar.

To update your address, please submit a change of address request in writing to:

Parking Heaters Settlement Administrator
P.O. Box 3560
Portland, OR 97208-3560

Your request must include:

• Your full name;
• Your old address;
• Your new address;
• Your signature.

Each Class Member’s estimated payment amount will be calculated based on available Parking Heater sales records provided by Webasto and Espar. If you believe that your payment amount is incorrect, you can call the toll-free number for information on how to file a disputed payment claim. In order to successfully make a disputed payment claim you must be able to demonstrate proof (through receipts or other documentation) of more Parking Heater purchases made directly from Webasto or Espar during the Class Period than were calculated through available records.

To dispute your estimated payment amount, you must send a letter and supporting documentation by mail to:

Parking Heaters Settlement Administrator
P.O. Box 3560
Portland, OR 97208-3560

Your letter and supporting documentation must include:

• Your full name;
• Your address;
• Your phone number;
• A statement explaining the reason(s) you are disputing the estimated payment amount; and
• Receipts or other documentation supporting more eligible purchases with Webasto or Espar than were calculated through available records.

A deadline to dispute payment amounts has not yet been determined. Please check back for updates.

Payments to Class Members will be made only after the Court grants “final approval” to the Settlements, all costs and fees (including attorneys’ fees) have been awarded, and after any appeals are resolved (see “The Court’s Fairness Hearing” below in FAQ 20). If there are appeals, resolving them can take time. Please be patient.

If you do not want benefits from one or both of the Settlements, and you want to keep any right you might have to sue Webasto and/or Espar about the issues in this case, then you must take steps to get out of one or both of the Settlements. This is called excluding yourself or “opting out” of the Settlement Class.

To exclude yourself from the Settlements, you must send a letter or other written document by mail to:

Parking Heaters Settlement Administrator
P.O. Box 3560
Portland, OR 97208-3560

Your request for exclusion must:

• Be in writing;
• Signed by you or an authorized representative of the Class Member;
• State your full personal or business name, address, and telephone number;
• State whether you are opting out of the Espar Settlement, the Webasto Settlement, or both; and
• Include:
  • Proof of membership in the Settlement Class; and
  • A signed statement that “I/we hereby request that I/we be excluded from the Settlement Class in the In Re: Parking Heaters Antitrust Litigation.”

Your exclusion request must be postmarked no later than December 1, 2018 and received by the Settlement Administrator by December 21, 2018.

You cannot ask to be excluded on the phone, by email, or at this website.

No. Unless you exclude yourself, you give up any right you might have to sue Webasto and/or Espar for the legal claims that the Settlement you are opting out of resolves. You must exclude yourself in order to try to continue a separate lawsuit against Webasto and/or Espar. If you start your own lawsuit, you will have to hire your own lawyer, and you will have to prove your claims.

Unless you exclude yourself from the Settlements, you cannot sue or be part of any other lawsuit against Webasto or Espar about the issues in this case, including any existing litigation, arbitration, or proceeding. Unless you exclude yourself, all of the decisions and judgments by the Court will bind you. If you remain in the Settlement Classes, you will be releasing Webasto and Espar from all of the claims described and identified in Paragraph 1(bb) of the Settlement Agreements.

If you only exclude yourself from one of the Settlements, you may only pursue a future lawsuit against that Defendant.

The Settlement Agreements are both available here. The Settlement Agreements each provide more detail regarding the releases and describe the released claims with specific descriptions in necessary, accurate legal terminology, so read them carefully. You can talk to the law firms representing the Class listed below in FAQ 18 for free, or you can, at your own expense, talk to your own lawyer if you have any questions about the released claims or what they mean.

No. You will not get a payment from the Settlement Fund if you exclude yourself from the Settlement. If you only exclude yourself from one of the Settlements, however, you may still receive payment related to the other Settlement.

The Court has appointed the following law firms as “Co-Lead Counsel” to represent all members of the Settlement Class: Hausfeld, LLP and Roberts Law Firm, P.A. You will not be charged for these lawyers. If you want to be represented by another lawyer, you may hire one to appear in Court for you at your own expense.

Co-Lead Counsel intend to request (i) attorneys’ fees not to exceed 33-1/3% of the Settlement Amount; (ii) reimbursement of litigation expenses incurred in connection with the prosecution of the lawsuit, including any costs associated with notice and administration of the Settlements; and/or (iii) potential incentive awards for the Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs in conjunction with their representation of the Settlement Class. The Court will decide the amount of fees and expenses to award.

If you are a Settlement Class Member (and do not exclude yourself from the Settlement Class), you can appear in person or through your own counsel, at your own expense, at the Fairness Hearing (see FAQ 20) to present any evidence or argument that the Court deems proper and relevant. To object, you must submit a letter or other written document that includes the following:

• A notice of intention to appear;
• Proof of membership in the Settlement Class; and
• The specific grounds for the objection and any reasons why you desire to appear and be heard, as well as all documents or writings that you desire the Court to consider.

You must file your objection with the Court and mail copies to Co-Lead Counsel and counsel for Webasto and Espar by December 1, 2018. The addresses are listed below.

Objecting is simply telling the Court that you do not like something about one or both of the Settlements. You can object to one or both of the Settlements only if you do not exclude yourself from the Settlement to which you are objecting. Excluding yourself is telling the Court that you do not want to be part of one or both of the Settlements. If you exclude yourself, you have no basis to object to the Settlements for which you are excluded because it no longer affects you.

The Court will hold a hearing to decide whether to approve the Settlements and any requests for fees and expenses (“Fairness Hearing”).

The Court has scheduled a Fairness Hearing on January 9, 2019 at 9:30 a.m., at the United States District Court District of Eastern District of New York, 225 Cadman Plaza East, Brooklyn, NY 11201. The Hearing may be moved to a different date or time without additional notice, so it is a good idea to check this website for updates. At this hearing, the Court will consider whether the Settlements are fair, reasonable, and adequate. The Court will also consider the requests by Co-Lead Counsel for attorneys’ fees and expenses and for incentive awards to the Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs. If there are objections, the Court will consider them at that time. After the Hearing, the Court will decide whether to approve the Settlements. It is unknown how long these decisions will take

No. Co-Lead Counsel will answer any questions the Court may have. But, you are welcome to attend the hearing at your own expense. You also may pay your own lawyer to attend the hearing, but it is not necessary.

You may ask the Court for permission to speak at the Fairness Hearing only by following the procedures for objecting to the Settlement outlined in FAQ 18.

You cannot ask to speak at the hearing if you exclude yourself from both Settlements.

If you are a Class Member or are otherwise entitled to a payment under the Settlements and do nothing, you will receive an automatic payment if you are eligible. Unless you exclude yourself, you will be bound by the judgment entered by the Court. This means you will not be able to start a lawsuit, continue with a lawsuit, or be part of any other lawsuit or proceeding against Webasto or Espar about the claims at issue in this case.

For a complete, definitive statement of the Settlement terms, refer to the Settlement Agreements here. You may also write with questions to the Settlement Administrator at Parking Heaters Settlement Administrator, P.O. Box 3560, Portland, OR 97208-3560, or call the toll-free number, 1-888-396-9582.