Honda Civic Hybrid class action settlement objection

In True v. American Honda Motor Co., Case No. 07-cv-00287 VAP (OPx), trial lawyers seek to settle consumer fraud litigation over mileage claims for the Honda Civic Hybrid with a settlement that offers only coupons to the 186,000-member class, but $2.95 million for the attorneys. Worse, the coupon program appears to be designed to discourage class members from their use: they exclude Honda’s hottest models, may not be transferred, expire quickly, require a trade-in for full value, and cannot be used unless class members sit through a lengthy presentation on optimizing gas mileage. The Center for Class Action Fairness filed papers on behalf of a Civic Hybrid purchaser requesting that the settlement be rejected. A similar class action settlement over Ford Explorers in Sacramento last year issued one million $500 coupons to the class, of which only 75 were redeemed, while the attorneys collected over $20 million in fees.