Lawsuit settlement means more refunds for motorists

  • Print
Listen to this story

Subscriber Benefit

As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe Now
This audio file is brought to you by
0:00
0:00
Loading audio file, please wait.
  • 0.25
  • 0.50
  • 0.75
  • 1.00
  • 1.25
  • 1.50
  • 1.75
  • 2.00

The Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles has agreed to repay motorists more than $62 million it collected in excessive fees to settle a class-action lawsuit.

Attorney Irwin Levin of Indianapolis-based law firm Cohen & Malad represented motorists in the lawsuit. He says the settlement includes $28.5 million in refunds for customers who were overcharged between 2002 and mid-2006 for driver licenses, vehicle registrations and other services. It also includes $33.6 million the agency began returning to customers last year for transactions from 2006 to 2014.

Levin says most motorists who qualify for refunds would be entitled to somewhere between $1 and $50.

The agreement calls for the BMV to pay an additional $7 million in attorney fees to Cohen & Malad. The law firm received about $6.3 million for the previous settlement.

Together with previous settlements and refunds, the BMV has admitted to charging drivers more than $115 million in higher-than-allowed taxes and fees over the past 15 years.

Attorney Carl Hayes represented the BMV in the case. He says the agency is pleased to have resolved the issue.

Please enable JavaScript to view this content.

{{ articles_remaining }}
Free {{ article_text }} Remaining
{{ articles_remaining }}
Free {{ article_text }} Remaining Article limit resets on
{{ count_down }}