BT gets permission to appeal against landline class action

BT have been accused of overcharging customers

BT has been granted permission from the Court of Appeal to appeal against a class action compensation claim.

Ofcom investigated BT in 2017 and discovered it had been overcharging customers.

In September this year, the Competition Appeal Tribunal approved a bid to launch a £600 million claim against BT on behalf of over two million customers who have allegedly been overcharged. 

The case, led by Justin Le Patourel, aims to recover hundreds of pounds for BT landline-only customers, with many of them being older or from low-income households. 

BT applied to the tribunal in October asking for permission to appeal its judgement, but this was rejected.

In November, BT turned to the Court of Appeal to seek permission to appeal the case and this was accepted.

Justin Le Patourel said: “I note that the Court has granted BT permission to attempt an appeal on the basis that issues of practice and procedure are important and could have implications for other cases. 

“However, I remain confident that our case- which is that BT overcharged landline customers, many of whom were elderly and vulnerable, over the course of several years- is very strong. I hope we can resolve this appeal and move to full trial as quickly as possible.”