What’s the Claim?
This website explains the legal claim brought by Which? against Qualcomm. Which? alleges that Qualcomm has contravened competition law. Which?’s claim is an opt-out collective claim, which means that Which? automatically represents all those who fit the class definition, who are called class members. If you have purchased a new Apple or Samsung 4G smartphone since October 2015, then you are likely included as a class member represented by Which?, and you have important legal rights relating to the claim; see the FAQs here for more details.
Who is Qualcomm?
Qualcomm is a global manufacturer of chipsets which enable smartphones to connect to 4G networks. It also holds patents essential to widely-used 4G technology.
What happened?
Qualcomm is alleged to have abused its position as a dominant company and charged smartphone manufacturers inflated fees to use its technology. This increased costs for smartphone manufacturers, such as Apple and Samsung, and in turn led to consumers paying higher prices for our phones.
We estimate that millions of people in the UK are affected – are you one of them?
If you are a UK consumer and purchased an Apple or Samsung smartphone (including as part of a mobile phone contract) in the UK on or after 1 October 2015 you could be due a payment – find out if you’re one of them here.
Why is Which? doing this?
Which? is the UK’s consumer champion, here to make life simpler, fairer and safer for everyone. We believe that Qualcomm breached competition law and it cost UK consumers millions of pounds, so we are taking legal action against Qualcomm to recover the overpayments made on Apple and Samsung handsets bought since 1 October 2015.
This type of legal action means that, if you’re eligible, you will automatically be included in the claim unless you tell us that you don’t want to be. As it stands, we estimate that, depending on the number and type of phones you have bought, you could be due between £5 and £30. Updates will be posted on the Case Updates page. Further information is available in the FAQs.
It’s estimated that if we’re successful, Qualcomm is likely to owe consumers about £480 million.
Am I part of the class of consumers that Which?
represents in this claim?
Use our eligibility tool to find out if you might be eligible to be part of the class.
Register for updates
Thank you for registering your interest in Which?’s smartphone claim. You will receive periodic email updates as the claim progresses. Should you have any queries, please contact info@smartphoneclaim.co.uk
Register for updates
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By providing your name and contact details, you agree to receive periodic updates on the progress of Which?'s claim against Qualcomm. These updates will be provided by Which?, or by Epiq (the claims administrator) on Which?’s behalf, in accordance with the website Privacy Notice.