U-Haul accused of adding hidden fee to advertised truck rental prices

U-Haul class action lawsuit overview:

• Who: Plaintiff Melanie Griffiths filed a class action lawsuit against U-Haul International Inc.
• Why: Griffiths claims U-Haul uses a deceptive business practice called “drip pricing” to lure customers.
• Where: The U-Haul class action lawsuit was filed in New York federal court.

A new class action lawsuit accuses U-Haul of using a deceptive business practice called “drip pricing” to lure customers into buying services at a low, but false, advertised price.

Plaintiff Melanie Griffiths filed the class action complaint against U-Haul in New York federal court, alleging violations of state and federal consumer laws.

According to the lawsuit, U-Haul rents trucks, trailers, storage units and containers, allowing customers to rent and purchase equipment to help them move.

Griffiths alleges U-Haul lures customers in with the promise of a low advertised rate for that equipment, and then, right before finishing the transaction, U-Haul adds an extra “environmental fee.”

“That bait-and-switch is paradigmatic drip pricing. It is also unlawful,” she says.

Griffiths explains that drip pricing misleads reasonable consumers because it leverages human psychology. “Our brains tend to fix on the price we first encountered even after we learn of the total cost. And even when customers learn about the hidden fees, they often pay up rather than shop around.”

Plaintiff claims U-Haul’s environmental fee a sham

Griffiths claims the environmental fee is a sham “junk fee” that does not correspond to any actual extra service that could reasonably be separated from the all-in price.

“U-Haul admits that the environmental fee ‘partially covers operations that indirectly benefit our customers,’” she says. “The fees are simply a second payment for product or service that U-Haul purports to provide.”

As a result of these deceptive practices, customers pay more than U-Haul purports to offer in its online advertisements, Griffiths alleges.

Griffiths is looking to represent anyone in the United States (except California) who purchased goods or services from U-Haul that included an “environmental fee” during the applicable statute of limitations.

She is suing for violations of New York General Business Law, intentional misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation and unjust enrichment and is seeking certification of the class action, damages, fees, costs and a jury trial.

U-Haul is facing similar allegations of drip pricing in a class action lawsuit filed in California state court in 2025. 

What do you think of the allegations made in this U-Haul class action lawsuit? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiff is represented by Jordan Merson, Nathan Werksman and Samuel A. Martin of Merson Law PLLC.The U-Haul class action lawsuit is Griffiths v. U-Haul International Inc., Case No. 1:26-cv-01092, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

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