GA trucking company files lawsuit against Pilot Flying J

UPDATE: here's the latest news on the Pilot Flying J mess. It's a bit long but well worth reading!

Two additional class action lawsuits have been filed in federal courts in Alabama and Arkansas by trucking firm customers charging that Pilot Flying J secretly reduced promised rebates by as much as $5 million on diesel fuel purchases.


Like an earlier lawsuit by a Georgia trucking firm, the two new lawsuits repeat allegations spelled out in an FBI search warrant affidavit that described a widespread conspiracy to cheat trucking companies who weren't paying close attention. The affidavit includes transcripts of secretly recorded meetings of Pilot sales executives in which they joked in expletive-laced language about the rebate scheme.


The Arkansas lawsuit was filed by National Trucking Financial Reclamation Services. The other was filed Thursday in Alabama by W.T.W. Enterprises and its owner Charles E. Winborn. The Alabama company charges that the rebate skimming scheme cost trucking firms in excess of $5 million. The suit charges breach of contract and violations of Tennessee's Consumer Protection Act.


Earlier this week, attorneys for the Georgia trucking firm Atlantic Coast Carriers charged that Pilot Flying J CEO Jimmy Haslam III is trying to short-circuit its class action lawsuit by contacting trucking firms and offering to pay back any money owed. It alleges that the contact "may constitute an improper attempt to coerce parties and witnesses under Tennessee law."


A hearing on the trucking company's request for a temporary restraining order is scheduled for Monday.


Aubrey Harwell, a Nashville attorney hired by Pilot, called the witness tampering charges ludicrous. He said the motion was an attempt to punish Haslam for doing "the right thing" and making his customers whole.