Verizon settlement payments from lawsuit leave many unsatisfied

On By Littum

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Did you get an email or an alert that Verizon sent you a few bucks? Here’s why.

Last year it was proposed $100 million class action settlement with Verizon over the communications firm’s alleged practice of charging undisclosed administrative fees, all customers who filed a claim were promised a settlement payment of up to $100 each.

Customers started reporting getting those payments on Monday, and the “up to” part did a lot of heavy lifting. The settlement agreement said each valid claim would receive a minimum of $15, plus $1 for each month of service the payee was a Verizon customer and paid the disputed administration fee. Reality fell a little short.

Some customers had as much as $14.81 deposited into their PayPal or Venmo accounts. Some got $4.89. The person behind Tech Life Channel on X, formerly Twitter, reported receiving a $2.37 Mastercard gift card.

“Got my paycheck from the Verizon lawsuit!!! These lawsuits are a joke, a waste of time,” they said.

Why didn’t I get $100 from the Verizon class action settlement?

While the company hasn’t issued a statement about it, the settlement website said the final amount you receive depends on many factors, including how many claims were filed. The base payment, after dividing the funds among the number of applicants, may have been significantly lower than the original $15, with the extra dollar a year that the service provides for some recipients bringing their payments up.

Applicable taxes and fees charged by the payment services that each applicant specified when they submitted may also affect the total.

Another possible factor? Last year This was reported by Reuters that the plaintiff’s attorneys in the lawsuit requested $33 million in fees.

What was Verizon sued for?

According to the class action lawsuit, the plaintiffs said Verizon’s “administrative fee” was not disclosed in the plan’s advertised monthly fee and was charged in a “deceptive and unfair manner.”

Verizon has denied the allegations, saying in a statement that the company “clearly identifies and describes its wireless consumer administrative charge multiple times during the sales transaction as well as in its marketing, contracts and billing.”

In the settlement to resolve the lawsuit (actually a combination of four lawsuits), the company denied any wrongdoing and would continue to collect the administrative fee, but agreed to pay $100 million to affected customers who filed a claim.

However, as part of this settlement, Verizon will amend its customer agreement to include revised information about administrative fees.

What is a class action?

USA TODAY explains that a class action involves one or more people suing on behalf of themselves and others with similar claims. Once a class action is approved, every member of the class is awarded, with the exception of anyone who opts out of the class.

Who was entitled to a payment from the Verizon settlement? can i have one

Current and former wireless or data service customers who were charged administrative fees between January 1, 2016 and November 8, 2023 were eligible.

Verizon sent out emails and letters to affected customers who had to go to the settlement website and file a claim. But the deadline for that was April 15, 2024.