Amazon is facing a multibillion-pound legal challenge in the UK after being accused of artificially inflating prices paid by tens of millions of British consumers.
The Association of Consumer Support Organisations (ACSO), a non-profit group, has applied to launch a collective legal action on behalf of 45 million customers who bought products from Amazon since 2019. It alleges that the e-commerce giant prevented independent sellers from offering cheaper prices on their own websites, thereby restricting competition and driving up costs for consumers.
If successful, the “opt-out” claim could see millions of Britons automatically entitled to refunds, without having to join the action individually.
Matthew Maxwell-Scott, founder and executive director of ACSO, said: “Millions of people in the UK make purchases on Amazon every day. Despite the company’s assurances that it is above all else ‘customer-obsessed’, we consider there are strong grounds to argue that UK consumers have paid higher prices because of Amazon’s pricing policies. This action will ensure that consumers can obtain redress for the considerable losses they have suffered.”
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