TORRANCE, CALIFORNIA- A Los Angeles woman bought her hybrid Honda Civic expecting it to be a high-mileage machine. After it did not achieve the 50 mpg it promised she decided to take Honda to court. However, rather than being one of thousands in a pending class-action lawsuit, she chose to make the unusual move of taking her case to small claims court.
Heather Peters, a state employee and former lawyer, argued that her car never came close to getting the 50 miles per gallon that were promised, and stated that as its battery deteriorated, it was getting only 30 mpg.
Peters argues that Honda knew her car would never be able to get 50 miles per gallon and wants Honda to pay for the extra money she had to spend on gas.
Instead of joining a series of class-action lawsuits that were filed on behalf of Honda hybrid owners over its fuel economy, she decided to file a small claims suit that would cost Honda up to $10,000 (Peters decided to opt out of the class-action suit when she saw that the proposed settlement would give plaintiffs no more than $200 cash and a rebate of $500 or $1,000 to purchase a new Honda).
Experts said Heather Peters’ unusual move to the small claims court actually gave her a better chance of winning her case. Small claims courts generally handle private disputes that do not involve large amounts of money. In many states that means small debts, such as contract disagreements.
Small claims courts also have more relaxed standards which can get Peters, not only a win, but also a better shot at a payout that is many times higher than the few hundred dollars offered to class-action plaintiffs.
Neil Schmidt, a technical expert for Honda, argued that Peters’ $10,000 claim for her 2006 Civic Hybrid was extreme. He stated that Honda was required by the federal government to post the highest mileage the vehicle could get, but said the miles per gallon depends on how the car is driven , for example, if the gets stuck often in stop-and-go traffic or if the passenger drives it faster than the recommended speeds then it would get worse mileage than the advertised 50 mpg.
Peters responded by saying that had she known that, she would of never bought the vehicle.
"The sales force said 50 miles per gallon, but they didn't say if you run your air conditioning and you remain in stop-and-go traffic, you're going to get 29 to 30 miles per gallon," she said. "If they did, I would have gotten the regular Civic."
Superior Court Commissioner Douglas Carnahan did not issue an immediate ruling in Peters' case on Tuesday, but he would make a ruling this week, according to his staff.
Peters launched a website, DontSettleWithHonda.org, where she urges other hybrid owners to take their complaints against the auto maker to small-claims court. She said Tuesday that over 500 other Honda owners had contacted her and want to follow her example.
It will be interesting to see how this case is ruled, and we will update you as soon as we know the results so keep your eyes peeled.
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