MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Some former employees of Memphis-based American Car Center have filed a class action lawsuit against the company, after it shut its doors suddenly.
The lawsuit accuses American Car Center management of not providing employees with 60 days written notice of their terminations as required by the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN Act). The suit says the two employees from the Memphis headquarters who filed the lawsuit and more than 280 other workers were fired as part of the closing.
According to the filed paperwork, the employees learned of the closings and terminations in an email on Feb. 24, 2023, effective immediately. The lawsuit says the workers were fired “without cause.”
The suit says the workers are owed 60 days of wages and benefits (including pay for accrued time off and pension and 401k contributions), which equals the amount of time the workers would have had if they had written notice through the WARN Act.
The lawsuit asks for the 60 days of wages and benefits, attorney fees, and any interest owed for each employee.
American Car Center’s website lists more than 40 locations mainly across the southeast.
The Tennessee State Department of Labor also has a notice on its website saying the agency was notified of a permanent closure on Feb. 24.
Tuesday, a message on American Car Center's website tells customers they should still continue to make payments to American Financial according to the terms of their agreement. However, they added, "American Financial is not currently able to accept payments to a live representative."
These are the options they listed for customers to continue to make payments:
- Pay online through the payment portal
- Pay by phone by calling (877) 720-4477
- Pay in person at a CheckFreePay location
An apology was also included in the message; they also mentioned updates would be posted on the website.