IMPORTANT UPDATE

A settlement has been reached with the Espar defendants.

See below for more information.

Parking Heaters Price Fixing Class Action

Court:
Ontario Superior Court of Justice

Class Members:
If you have purchased a parking heater between September 13, 2001 and December 31, 2012, you may be a member of the class (“Class Member”).

Co-counsel
Foreman & Company is working in concert with CFM Lawyers LLP in British Columbia and Belleau Lapointe, s.e.n.c.r.l. in Québec (collectively, “Class Counsel”) to prosecute these matters on a national basis.

The content of this page has not been approved by the Court nor does it constitute legal advice. It is for the purpose of providing general information only.

Case Contacts

Parking Heaters are used in various types of commercial vehicles, including long-distance trucks and construction equipment to heat the engine and cabin in lieu of idling the vehicle. This class action alleges that the defendants conspired to fix, raise, maintain or stabilize the price of Parking Heaters. As a result, it is alleged that Class Members paid a falsely inflated price for their Parking Heaters between September 13, 2001 and December 31, 2012 (the “Class Period”).

Our lawyers are part of a national consortium with Class Counsel in British Columbia and Québec that are advancing a claim on behalf of all persons in Canada who purchased a Parking Heater manufactured and/or sold by the defendants. The action seeks to recover the alleged anticompetitive pricing overcharge that Class Members paid for Parking Heaters during the Class Period.

Important Notice

New Settlement Reached

A settlement has been reached with the defendants Eberspaecher Climate Control Systems USA Inc. (formerly known as Espar Inc.), Eberspaecher Climate Control Systems Canada Inc. (formerly known as Espar Products Inc.), “Espar Climate Control Systems”, Eberspaecher Climate Control Systems International GmbH (formerly known as Eberspaecher Climate Control Systems International Beteiligungs-GmbH), Eberspaecher Climate Control Systems GmbH (formerly known as J. Eberspaecher GmbH and Co. KG) and Eberspaecher Gruppe GmbH and Co. KG., (“Espar”). This is the second settlement reached in these actions.

Under the terms of its settlement, Espar has agreed to pay CAD $9,400,000.00 for the benefit of Class Members and provide information to the plaintiffs that will help with the ongoing case against the non-settling defendants in exchange for a full release of the claims against them. The settlement is not an admission of liability, fault, or wrongdoing by Espar, but is a compromise of the disputed claims.

Settlement Approval

The settlement with Espar must be approved by the courts in Québec and Ontario before it becomes effective. Hearings in Québec and Ontario are scheduled to take place on December 17, 2024 and January 23, 2025, respectively. At the settlement approval hearings, the courts will determine whether the settlement is fair, reasonable and in the best interest of the Class Members.

At the approval hearings, Class Counsel will also be requesting court approval for fees of up to 30% of the settlement amount plus disbursements and applicable taxes.

If you do not oppose the proposed settlement agreement or the legal fees requested, you do not need to appear at the hearing or take any other action at this time. If you wish to comment on or object to the settlement agreement or Class Counsel’s fees, you must send a written submission to Class Counsel, whose contact information is set out below, by December 16, 2024.

For more information please review the Short- and Long-Form Notices below.

Case History

On March 18, 2015, our lawyers issued a Statement of Claim on behalf of all persons or entities in Canada, except British Columbia or Québec, who purchased a Parking Heater. A second Statement of Claim was issued May 31, 2016 against additional defendants. These actions were consolidated by Order of the Court on November 30, 2016 in a Second Fresh as Amended Statement of Claim (the “Ontario Action”).

Separate actions were commenced in British Columbia (the “BC Actions”). On January 29, 2021 the BC Actions were stayed and the BC class members will now be represented in the Ontario Action.

A separate lawsuit was also initiated in Québec on behalf of Québec residents who purchased a parking heater or purchased, leased or sub-leased a vehicle containing a parking heater during between September 13, 2001 and December 31, 2012 (the “Québec Action”).

Certification

On December 14, 2020, the Court certified the Ontario Action against the Espar and Webasto defendants, meaning the Court has agreed that the lawsuit is suitable to proceed to trial as a class action. Certification is not a ruling on the merits of the case and the Court has not yet made a decision on the allegations made in the class action.

The case has been certified on behalf of Canadians, excluding residents of Québec, who purchased a parking heater or purchased, leased or sub-leased a vehicle containing a parking heater between September 13, 2001 and December 31, 2012 (“Class Members”).

The Québec Action has been authorized (certified) by the Québec Court.

Previous Settlement

A settlement agreement was reached with the defendant Volker Hohensee in 2020 (the “Hohensee Settlement”). Mr. Hohensee is a former executive who worked for one of the Espar defendants. Under the terms of the Hohensee Settlement, Mr. Hohensee agreed to provide early cooperation and assistance to the plaintiffs in Ontario and Québec by providing evidence in respect of the alleged conspiracy by the defendants. In exchange, Mr. Hohensee was released of the claims against him. The Hohensee Settlement is not an admission of liability, fault, or wrongdoing by Mr. Hohensee, but is a compromise of the disputed claims.

The settlement with Mr. Hohensee was approved by the Court on June 16, 2021. A copy of the Hohensee Settlement Approval Order can be found below.

The action remains ongoing against the remaining non-settling defendants.

Opting Out of the Proceedings

The deadline to opt out of the Ontario Action was April 5, 2021. The deadline to opt out of the Québec Action was June 1, 2018. Any Class Member who did not opt out on or before those dates is legally bound by the result of the actions, including the settlement with Espar, if approved by the Court.