BMW Cracked Wheel Class Action Settlement Gets Initial OK

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On March 12, a federal judge gave preliminary approval to a BMW cracked wheel class action settlement, which will resolve allegations that BMW of North America LLC knowingly sold BMW Z4 vehicles containing defective alloy wheels.

As part of this cracked wheel class action settlement, which was reached last month, BMW has agreed to reimburse eligible Class Members for past repairs stemming from the allegedly defective alloy wheels or will cover the cost of repairing cracked alloy wheels in select BMW vehicles if these defects occurred during the warranty period.

According to the BMW class action settlement, the cracked wheel Settlement Class will include:

“All residents of the United States (including Puerto Rico), who currently own or lease, or previously owned or leased, a Class Vehicle. The phrase ‘Class Vehicle’ is defined as follows: 2009 through 2012 model year BMW Z4 vehicles that were sold or leased in the United States or Puerto Rico to residents of the United States and Puerto Rico that were equipped with Class Wheels [BMW Style 296 wheels].”

Lead plaintiff Barry Jekowsky originally filed this cracked wheel class action lawsuit in May 2013, alleging he leased a 2011 BMW Z4 that during the warranty period allegedly contained a defective alloy wheels, which eventually cracked. According to the BMW cracked wheel class action lawsuit, Jekowsky alleges he brought this car to a BMW dealership where he leased to vehicle to have it repaired. However, “BMW refused to allow its authorized dealership to replace the wheel under warranty, and required plaintiff to pay for repairs to the wheel as well as the affected tire.” Three months later, the plaintiff alleges a second wheel also cracked and again he as the car lessee had to pay for the repairs out of pocket. Jekowsky claims he paid over $2,000 to repair the two cracked wheels and the damaged tires that resulted from this defect.

During the course of the BMW class action lawsuit trial, the carkmaker attempted to dismiss the complaint, but was denied by U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White. BMW denies all wrongdoing in this cracked wheel class action lawsuit, but has agreed to settle in order to avoid the uncertainty and cost of future litigation.

A Class Notice will be mailed out to eligible Settlement Class Members by the Claims Administrator on May 26 and they will have until August 24 to submit a Claim Form in order to claim reimbursement or repair costs. During this time, Class Members will also have the option to opt-out of the BMW class action settlement.

A final approval hearing for this BMW cracked wheel class action settlement will be held on Oct. 29 of this year.

More information about how to file a claim for the the BMW class action settlement was not immediately available. Keep checking TopClassActions.com or sign up for our free newsletter for the latest updates. You can also mark this article as a “Favorite” using your free Top Class Actions account to receive notifications when this article is updated.

The plaintiffs are represented by Mark A. Chavez of Chavez & Gertler LLP and Bryan Kemnitzer of Kemnitzer Barron & Krieg LLP.

The BMW Cracked Wheel Class Action Lawsuit is Jekowsky v. BMW of North America LLC, Case No. 3:13-cv-02158, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.