Ill. Judge Certifies Aftermarket Parts Class Action

A Madison County, Ill., judge has certified a class-action lawsuit on behalf of 30,000 Geico Corp. policyholders on the direct insurer’s use of aftermarket parts to fix damaged vehicles.

The Alliance of American Insurers’ claims director Kirk Hansen said the certification could have a “chilling effect throughout the country on the use of aftermarket auto parts.”

Hansen said in a statement that original manufacturers’ equipment (OEM) costs an average of 60 percent more than aftermarket parts “of equal quality.”

Madison County is notorious for its friendliness to big class-action judgments.