3G Telematics Suit vs. Porsche Risks Dismissal for Failure to 'Effect Service'

Plaintiff Peter Grayson risks having his class action dismissed Feb. 3 for failure to “effect service” of his complaint and summons on defendants Porsche and Volkswagen and their German parent companies within 90 days of filing his Oct. 17 action, said a notice Friday (docket 3:22-cv-06105) in U.S. District Court for New Jersey in Trenton. Grayson’s is one of about a half-dozen class actions pending in various jurisdictions seeking to hold automakers accountable for discontinuing in-vehicle reception of 3G network services like roadside assistance without telling consumers (see 2211070032). The complaints typically allege the automakers knew well in advance of AT&T’s planned phaseout of its 3G service in 2022, but did nothing to upgrade to more modern telematics equipment in their vehicles. Efforts to reach Grayson and his attorneys for comment were unsuccessful. Grayson is also the plaintiff in a nearly identical class action against BMW in U.S. District Court in Newark. The automaker is scheduled to answer Grayson's complaint in that case (docket 2:22-cv-6103) by Jan. 30.