Mastercard paying £200m compensation to customers

Mastercard paying £200m compensation to customers – could you claim?



Posted by theipaper

6 comments

  1. Millions of consumers could receive up to £70 each after a court approved a [£200m settlement against Mastercard](https://inews.co.uk/news/consumer/mastercard-payout-ruling-class-action-lawsuit-uk-compensation-explained-281446?srsltid=AfmBOopRvZmXJ04Snae_9Cycbp8vRJoQcbU7bmqcu2vh8QPVy6fpO6sn&ico=in-line_link).

    In a landmark legal case, the [payment card](https://inews.co.uk/topic/credit-cards?srsltid=AfmBOopYUElHGisDxYDVCkIPDlc3jCCUxphcYNTe1OCnxaihg2LSlNVN&ico=in-line_link) provider was found to have left shoppers out of pocket by incorrectly levying fees on transactions over a 15-year period.

    The Competition Appeal Tribunal has now given final approval for a settlement to be distributed, with up to 44 million people in line for a payout.

    It marks the end of a nine-year legal battle, which made history as the UK’s largest [group litigation](https://inews.co.uk/news/inside-1-5bn-legal-case-water-companies-sewage-pollution-3087248?srsltid=AfmBOoqIAgaiEaxF0L6P3wh_kdC0GTuz-tACYiv7eSSnenWwK-1-86q_&ico=in-line_link) settlement to date.

    # Who brought the case?

    Walter Merricks, the former financial ombudsman, launched the claim in 2016 after the European Commission ruled in 2007 that Mastercard’s “multilateral interchange fees” charged to businesses had infringed competition law.

    He alleged that millions of shoppers in Britain were ripped off after the fees were wrongly levied on transactions from 1992 to 2008.

    The fees were paid by retailers accepting Mastercard payments, rather than by consumers themselves, but Merricks claimed that shoppers had lost out as the burden had been passed on in the form of higher prices.

    It followed the arrival of the Consumer Rights Act 2015, which allowed for US-style class actions in UK competition claims.

    # Who is eligible for a payout?

    Consumers do not need to have been a Mastercard holder in order to claim, as virtually all UK consumers who shopped at major retailers from 1992 to 2008 were affected by the fees.

    The case originally sought over £10bn, but the final settlement amount reflects what the court has called a “fair and reasonable” outcome based on the evidence.

  3. Waiting for the no win no fee vultures to try and get a piece of this.

  5. Anyone born after April 1992 isn’t eligible, sorry kiddos.

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