TK Holdings, a Takata subsidiary has agreed to resolve claims it conspired with other manufacturers to increase the price of vehicle safety systems by allocating $84 million in its bankruptcy reorganization plan. The settlement terms will benefit direct buyers of occupant safety systems like airbags, seat belts, steering systems, steering wheels, safety electronic systems, and related components who bought parts from Tokai Rika, Autoliv, TRW, Toyoda Gosei, and/or Takata between 1st January 2003 and 25th June 2017.
Settlement Website: AutoPartsAntitrustLitigation.com/OSS
Exclusion Deadline: 08/08/2022
Claim Form: https://www.autopartsantitrustlitigation.com/oss/Content/Documents/Claim%20Form.pdf
Deadline for Submitting Claim Form: 09/23/2022
Final Hearing Date: 09/15/2022
Settlement Amount: $84 million
Potential Claim Amount: Variable
Proof of Purchase: Invoices, accounts payable journals, purchase journals, etc in support of the claim.
TK Holdings manufactures and distributes automotive safety systems. The company declared bankruptcy in 2017 after recalling millions of airbags due to a faulty inflator. Several other companies apart from TK Holdings have been included in antitrust multidistrict litigation. The plaintiffs in the case have complained that TK Holdings and other manufacturers breached federal antitrust laws by conspiring together to price-fixing auto safety systems.
The defendants allegedly raised and stabilized prices of life safety occupant systems like seat belts and airbags through an anti-competitive agreement and other actions. This helped the companies in selling these products at a higher price compared to the fair market rate. Previously settlements were reached in the antitrust litigation with Tokai Rika, Autoliv, TRW, and Toyoda Gosei which offered class members a fund worth $62 million. Now an additional $84 million shall be made available from TK Holdings’ Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings and released as part of the company’s bankruptcy reorganization plan.
Under the settlement terms, direct purchasers are eligible to receive cash payments depending on the number of qualified items purchased. Naturally, class members who bought a greater number of eligible occupant safety systems will get a bigger share of the settlement fund. If a class member excludes themselves from the settlement, then they won’t get the option of recovering payment from the settlement but will retain their legal rights against the defendants. Class members won’t be required to submit a new form if they had submitted one already in the past related settlements.