A fifth trucking company has filed suit against Pilot Flying J in the wake of a federal investigation into charges that the truck stop chain swindled truckers out of fuel rebates due them.
In a suit filed in U.S. District Court in Alabama, lawyers for Osborn Transportation of Gadsen accused Pilot Flying J of breach of contract, unjust enrichment fraud and violations of consumer protection statutes, according to a report in The Tennessean.
The 11-page complaint cites the recent 120-page filing by federal investigators who raided Pilot Flying J’s Knoxville headquarters on April 15. The FBI affidavit charges that Pilot salesmen secretly reduced the amount of rebates promised to truckers in order to boost commissions and company profits.
The Osborn suit charges that Pilot “willfully devised and conspired to devise a scheme to defraud Pilot’s customer Osborn by deceptively reducing rebate amounts.”
The suit seeks unspecified restitution and punitive damages.
