Dec 6 (Reuters) - Amazon ( AMZN ) customers sued the

online retail giant in a new lawsuit that claims it secretly

excluded their zip codes from its fast delivery service for

Prime members while continuing to charge them for the service.

The proposed nationwide class action lawsuit was filed on

Thursday in federal court in Seattle by five residents of

Washington, D.C., who said Amazon ( AMZN ) stopped serving historically

underserved communities with its Prime delivery trucks and began

outsourcing deliveries there.

The lawsuit parallels a case that Washington, D.C.'s

attorney general filed earlier this week accusing Amazon ( AMZN ) of

violating the city's consumer protection provisions.

Amazon ( AMZN ) in a statement said the claims were "categorically

false." Amazon ( AMZN ) said it made a business decision to adjust

operations in the affected zip codes for the safety of the

company's drivers.

"We're always transparent with customers during the shopping

journey and checkout process about when, exactly, they can

expect their orders to arrive," Amazon ( AMZN ) said.

A lawyer for the consumers, Jarrett Ellzey, said Amazon ( AMZN ) can

adopt measures to protect drivers and their cargo but "does not

have the right to charge customers for services they fail to

provide."

The consumers' lawsuit seeks class action status for more

than 10,000 Amazon ( AMZN ) customers.

The District's complaint estimated that Amazon ( AMZN ) unfairly

continued to charge about 48,000 Prime members for the full

subscription service, even though their zip codes were excluded

from the company's fastest service.

Both lawsuits said Amazon ( AMZN ) in 2022 made a decision to stop

using the company's branded trucks to deliver Prime-eligible

packages, and instead used other services such as UPS or the

U.S. Postal Service.

In a statement on Wednesday, Washington, D.C., Attorney

General Brian Schwalb said Amazon ( AMZN ) was charging thousands of D.C.

residents "for an expedited delivery service it promises but

does not provide."

The lawsuits said Prime members living in two of the

District's zip codes only receive promised two-day delivery 24%

of the time. Prior to the changes, Amazon Prime packages were

delivered within two days 72% of the time, the lawsuits said.

The case is King v. Amazon ( AMZN ), U.S. District Court for the

Western District of Washington, No. 2:24-cv-02009.

For plaintiffs: Jarrett Ellzey of Ellzey Kherkher Sanford

Montgomery and Janelle Bailey of Washington Injury Law

For Amazon ( AMZN ): No appearance yet

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