 RE:
Enough
Lawsuits Already
Dear Geoffrey,
Thank you for bringing the report on the DB Schenker
lawsuit, and Bill’s always simple and to the point comments.
Honestly, this whole issue is just a big mess and the
only winners, if we want to call it that, are the attorneys involved.
I agree with Bill’s comments – it is getting
too crazy. And at the end of the day, the actual “injured”
(the shippers and beneficial cargo owners) will not get anything back.
I expect that DB Schenker will keep the money for themselves: a note in
Germany did comment that the ROI in such lawsuits is potentially 10x.
Thus I think it is primarily a profit driven decision, and not one driven
by doing the right thing for the customers and giving the money back to
them.
Thus the absolute majority of shippers still will never see
a penny. On the one or two original class action lawsuits, where shippers
could file a claim even if they did not pay the airline directly (which
is probably 98% of the air freight business model), the ROI was pennies
on the dollar – honestly a total waste of time for those shippers
that tried. The other class action lawsuits that followed excluded all
shippers, as it was a requirement that they had directly paid the airline.
It will be interesting to see what some of the other big
global air freight forwarders will do, as I am sure none will want to
sit by the sidelines while their competitor collects free money to add
to their bottom line and pay hefty bonuses as Bill suggests. Especially
not those publicly held with immense pressures to produce returns for
the stock holders.
Now the right thing to do, if there is anything goof left
to do, would be to donate settlements to global charities.
And for all to agree to this without lengthy trials
and expensive attorney bills.
Anyone up to it?
Albert Saphir
ABS CONSULTING
E: abscon@wans.net
or albert@abs-consulting.net |
