Millions of people with Samsung or Apple phones could be entitled to a share of a £500 million compensation payout.
The reason being that Which? has won permission to represent UK consumers in its case against smartphone chip manufacturer Qualcomm.
According to a statement published on its website, the consumer choice brand believes Qualcomm abused its position as a key player in the sector by charging smartphone companies inflated fees to use its tech.
As a result, Which? argues that this led to users paying higher prices for phones, including models from Apple and Samsung, which breaches UK competition law.
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The Competition Appeal Tribunal has now given the greenlight for the case to be taken to trial, where Which? will represent millions of Brits in a bid to get them compensation.
Now before you get too excited, this significant sum is to be divided between 30 million customers, meaning the actual amount will be around £16.
But even so, every little helps – and you don’t need to do anything if you are eligible for the payout.
The statement reads: “We believe that Qualcomm breached competition law and cost UK consumers millions of pounds, so we are taking legal action against Qualcomm to recover the overpayments made on Apple and Samsung handsets bought since 1 October 2015.
“This type of legal action means that, if the claim succeeds, and if you’re eligible, you will automatically be included in the claim unless you tell us that you don’t want to be.
“As it stands, we estimate that, depending on the number and type of phones you have bought, you could be due around £16-17.”
If you want to find out if you’re included in the list, all you have to do is check on the claim website here, where Which? has included a provisional list of smartphones it believes to be affected.
Updates about the case will also be shared on the claim page, with a date for the trial to be set in the next few months.
Which? Chief Executive Anabel Hoult said: “We’re delighted to have secured this great result for consumers, bringing them a step closer to the nearly £500 million that we believe they are owed by Qualcomm.
“If Qualcomm has abused its market power it must be held to account. This judgement ensures that it can be.
“Which? brought this claim on behalf of millions of affected UK consumers, as it would not have been realistic for people to seek damages from the company on an individual basis.
“That’s why it’s so important that consumers can come together and claim the redress they are entitled to.”
In response to the trial getting the go-ahead, a Qualcomm spokesperson said: “We disagree with today’s ruling, though it is strictly procedural and in no way supportive of the plaintiff’s meritless assertions.
“The claims here recycle allegations in an old case brought by the Federal Trade Commission in the US, which Qualcomm won.
“The theories seen here were discredited two years ago by a unanimous panel of judges at the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in the US.”
Daisy Phillipson