Toyota’s pricing policy is under attack due to a new lawsuit: the automaker is accused of passing on multibillion-dollar customs duties to buyers, which may later have to be returned. Carscoops reports this.
California resident Ananias Cornejo filed a lawsuit alleging that buyers overpaid for the cars because Toyota inflated prices to cover import costs. As reported by Car Complaints, according to the lawsuit, the company incurred customs costs of about $9 billion (approximately 650 billion rubles) for operations in Japan, Canada and Mexico, and then shifted the bulk of this burden to consumers.
The lawsuit concerns American citizens who purchased or leased Toyota vehicles between February 2025 and February 2026. The lawyers who filed the lawsuit claim that the company did not explain to customers whether they would receive compensation in the event of a refund of customs duties.
Automakers raise prices for a variety of reasons, from rising costs of materials to changes in demand. It is quite difficult to prove that price increases are directly related to duties. However, some of Toyota’s price jumps have been quite impressive.
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