Up to 40MILLION Brits could be in for £450 windfall from MasterCard if landmark case goes their way
Former Financial guru claims shoppers paid too much for 16 YEARS because of unfair charges
MILLIONS of 'ripped off' Brits could be in for a £450 windfall if a legal challenge goes their way.
As many as 40 MILLION MasterCard users could benefit from the action, which claims the credit card giant imposed unfair charges on its customers for 16 years.
The landmark claim for £19BILLION is the biggest in British legal history and the man fronting the case, Walter Merricks, believes it has a good chance of success.
Claiming MasterCard's charges were "illegal" and "anti-competitive", the former financial ombudsman said: "I want consumers to know that it is possible to take on a large organisation that has behaved badly.
"The prices of everything we all bought from 1992 to 2008 were higher than they should have been as a result of the unlawful conduct of MasterCard.
"This case should send a signal to companies that break competition laws at the expense of UK consumers that they do so at their financial peril."
The former lawyer and Chief Ombudsman, who is being supported by US legal hotshots Quinn Emmanuel, added: "Although most of us did not know this, experts who study the retail economy knew it was happening - and so did MasterCard.
"My aim is to get the redress to which UK consumers are entitled and to ensure that MasterCard cannot hold on to the illegal profits it made."
It is alleged that charges levied on MasterCards were often passed on to shoppers by retailers through increased prices.
In 2014 the European Court of Justice declared that such fees were a violation of EU rules and capped the charges.
Should the action be successful, it could see almost two thirds of the population receiving hundreds of pounds worth of compensation.
But MasterCard said it "firmly disagrees with the basis of this legal claim".
A statement added: "MasterCard is committed to providing ever more convenient, safe and secure payments to all our customers, including consumers, retailers, governments and banks."
Director of policy and campaigns at consumer group Which?, Alex Neill, believes the case has a good chance of success.
He said: "MasterCard has been found to be imposing illegal fees on millions of consumers and businesses across Europe.
"It's now only right that the money is returned to customers that were victims of this practice. This landmark case is using the new consumer law to bring a collective claim on behalf of individuals to get back the money they are owed."
The case is reminiscent of the PPI scandal that saw millions of Brits handed thousands of pounds worth of compensation.
A legal ruling declared banks had often mis-sold unnecessary insurance policies to cover customers when they were out of work.
To date more than £20bn has been paid out by high street banks.
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