WALNUT CREEK, Calif. (BRAIN) — Giant Bicycle has reached a settlement with a plaintiff over claims that the bike company's e-commerce site charged consumers undisclosed "junk fees," the plaintiff's attorney notified the court Wednesday.
The action comes less than a month after the same attorney notified a court of a settlement in a similar case he had filed against Specialized Bicycle on behalf of a different client.
Terms of the settlements were not released. The Giant case settlement has yet to be approved by the court.
In the Giant case, plaintiff Bronson Thomas, a resident of Lompoc, California, said he was charged unexpected fees when he ordered a Giant bike, helmet and pedals from the company's website.
"He was initially quoted a price of $1,400.00 for the STACE 29 2 and $28.00 for the PATH MIPS MENS HELMET, with the ORIGINAL MTB PLATFORM PEDAL included as free, but after clicking through various screens, Defendant subtly added a “Destination fee” of $75.00 to the checkout screen. The fee was mandatory because Plaintiff could not purchase the products from Defendant’s Website without paying the fee. Plaintiff was charged this fee even though he selected to pick up his items from the store," the complaint read.
The complaint said Giant's policies violated California pricing laws, including a law banning "junk fees" that took effect in July, 2024.
Attorney Stefan Bogdanovich of the Bursor & Fisher firm in Walnut Creek is the lead attorney on both cases. Bogdanovich has filed similar suits against vendors in other industries, including one against Williams-Sonoma, Inc. Both cases were filed as putative class-action suits but neither was certified as a class action before the settlements. Both bike companies have declined to comment on the cases.
