2023 was a banner year for class actions. In total, class action settlements swelled to over $51 billion. As tallied in Duane Morris’s 2024 Class Action Review, that number, when considered along with 2022’s $66 billion, marks the highest 2-year period for class action settlements in American history. 2024 looks to make that a 3-year peak. A number of large class action settlements have recently been reached, and other class actions have been making their way through the courts.
Verizon
In a rather tortuous legal battle, Verizon has recently agreed to settle a class action alleging it deceived its customers with hidden fees. The company has agreed to pay $100 million. Although Verizon agreed to the settlement to resolve the lawsuit, the company has denied any wrongdoing and plans to continue to charge the administration fee in question. As part of the settlement, the company plans to adjust its customer agreement to include revised disclosures about the charge.
Amazon
So you’re on Amazon and you’ve found that perfect duvet cover you want. Naturally, you click “Buy Now” or the “Add to Cart” button. But have you ever stopped to check and see if you’re really getting the best deal? Maybe manually selecting another seller would make it both cheaper and faster? In a recent proposed class action, Amazon is alleged to have deceived customers into thinking they were receiving the best deal when using the “Buy Now” and “Add to Cart” options.
The suit alleges that Amazon’s algorithm does not select the cheapest, fastest options by default, but instead defaults to the option that would make the company (valued at nearly $2 trillion) the most money–by favoring product suppliers who pay fees to be in the “Fulfillment by Amazon” program.
LensCrafters
LensCrafters has agreed to pay $39 million to settle a class action that alleged their proprietary digital AccuFit technology, which purported to give consumers “clearer, crisper vision” by fitting glasses to the nearest 0.1mm, wasn’t as precise as advertised. In fact, the complaint argues that the decades old technology could only calibrate measurements to the nearest millimeter, no better than using a mere ruler.
Furthermore, employees of the eyeglasses retailer were apparently trained to dodge questions about AccuFit should a customer ask how it was able to provide such accurate measurements. If you purchased glasses through the company in the last 10 years, you are eligible to receive up to $50 remittance, as long as your claim form is submitted by April 26th, 2024.
USAA
You’ve seen those USAA insurance commercials over the last couple of years. Gronk (Rob Gronkowski, former NFL tight end) desperately wants to get a plan, but as he’s been told time and time again, plans are only for those who served in the military, along with their families. According to a recently certified class action, maybe Gronk not only needs to enlist but also become an officer in order to actually get access to the best plans from USAA. The suit alleges that enlisted members were unfairly directed toward higher premium plans, and more specifically, that they were denied “good driver” benefits as a result.
For more insights on legal trends and more, subscribe to RapidFunds on LinkedIn. RapidFunds has been providing settlement funding for almost 20 years. We’ve completed over 4,000 transactions and have helped thousands of firms with funding. Stop waiting for your legal fees and contact RapidFunds today.