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The Court of Appeal has ordered the Competition Appeal Tribunal to reconsider a class action claim, brought by former financial ombudsman Walter Merricks, over allegedly excessive transaction fees.
Editor at Credit Strategy. Previously held roles at Accountancy Age, Accountancy Daily and the Leicester Mercury.
Merricks claims that 46 million UK consumers paid higher prices in shops over a 16-year period because of the transaction fees.
The Competition Appeal Tribunal threw out Merricks’ claim two years ago, ruling it would not grant an order for the case to continue to trial. However, the court of appeal has now ordered the tribunal hear the case again.
If Merricks’ case proves successful, Mastercard could face a payout of up to £14bn.
In a statement, Mastercard said it would fight the case all the way to the Supreme Court. It said: “This decision is not a final ruling and the proposed claim is not approved to move forward, rather the court has simply said a re-hearing on certain issues should happen.
“Mastercard continues to disagree fundamentally with the basis of the claim and we believe UK consumers receive real value from the security, convenience and consumer protection of our payment services.”
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