Massive Equifax Data Breach Settlement
In September of 2017, Equifax announced it experienced a data breach, which impacted the personal information of approximately 147 million people. A federal court is considering a proposed class action Equifax data breach settlement that was submitted on July 22, 2019. If it is approved by the Court, the Equifax data breach settlement would resolve lawsuits brought by consumers because of the data breach. Equifax denies any wrongdoing, and no judgment or finding of wrongdoing has been made in this settlement.
Most people should qualify for a $125 settlement check through this Equifax data breach settlement. But, you can get as much as $20,000 depending on how much time you spent and out of pocket losses that you incurred relating to the data breach. Keep in mind that these payouts could be lower which will depend on the number of people that file claims.
Equifax Data Breach Settlement Eligibility
Update: This suit has been popular and the government warns you may not receive a full payout. Read here before filing your claim.
You are an Equifax Settlement Class Member if you are among the approximately 147 million U.S. consumers identified by Equifax whose personal information was impacted by the Equifax Data Breach. You can confirm you are a Settlement Class Member, and eligible for benefits, by:
- Going here; or
- Calling the Settlement Administrator toll-free at 1-833-759-2982.
RELATED: Be Cautious of Fake Equifax Claim Sites that are Stealing Your Info
How Much Can You Claim?
Equifax will pay at least $380,500,000 into a Consumer Restitution Fund. If the Consumer Restitution Fund is used up, Equifax will pay up to an additional $125,000,000 to pay Out-of-Pocket Losses. The Consumer Restitution Fund will be used to:
- Make cash payments for Out-of-Pocket Losses and Time Spent
- Purchase Credit Monitoring Services
- Pay cash Alternative Reimbursement Compensation to Settlement Class Members who already have their own credit monitoring or identity protection coverage before making a claim
- & more
If you already have, or do not want the free Credit Monitoring Services available through the settlement, you may file a claim for Alternative Reimbursement Compensation for up to $125. Everyone should be eligible for this.
Then you may make a claim for reimbursement for $25 per hour for up to 20 hours for time spent because of the data breach. This could include things like checking your accounts, calling credit card companies, freezing credit reports and more.
If you spent money to deal with fraud or identity theft that was fairly traceable to the Data Breach, or to protect yourself from future harm, then you can submit a claim for reimbursement up to $20,000 (including your claim for Time Spent).
Equifax Data Breach Settlement Details
- Check Eligibility
- File Claim Here
- You must submit a claim by January 22, 2020 in order to receive compensation. You also have till January 22, 2024 for future losses and time.
Conclusion
This was a huge data breach that affected almost every adult in the country. Because of that is has lead to a massive Equifax data breach settlement. If you file a claim and do not want the free credit protection, you can get $125. Then you can get even more for time spent and costs you might have had because of the data breach. Total compensation per person has been capped at $20,000.
The payout we will all get will also depend on the number of claims that are filed. The total money available is about half a billion dollars.
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[…] Equifax Data Breach Settlement: So a couple of years ago Equifax suffered a massive data breach impacting millions of people. Now you can check to see if you’re eligible for some money due to the settlement. […]
I don’t think anyone breathlessly writing these articles (and there are hundreds of them out there now) have ever entered into a class action settlement.
Actually, I did read the settlement. The “$125” checks are only taken from a pool of $31 million, the rest of the money goes to the costs of the “free” credit monitoring or those with actual damages (attorney fees, etc). I now think the $10 I estimated is too high. I am putting the amount at about $2 or $3 per claimant. Oh, and it’s fully taxable, too.
What’s nice about the internet is that this post will be up a year from now when you finally get that check and you can laugh at me when your free $125 shows up.
You were spot on about this. A week later, people are seeing what that means.
125 x 147millon people is over 18 billion- yea expect the money
That was easy! Glad I read this post.
Tino you obviously did not read the terms of the settlement. The main refund iui s fixed at $125. There are options that allow you to get more money.
So why a large settle this for Equifax yet Marriott data breach goes unaffected.
That’s not how class action claims work. That’s a MAXIMUM if a very, very small percentage of those affected file. I recently received a settlement that I was eligible for up to $3,000 of damages. So many people applied, I got about a hundred bucks. I’ve had other settlements that pay less than a dollar.
Do the math. If everybody applied and was damaged equally, everyone would receive $3 or $4. It goes up for every person that does not apply. There may be a few people with big, substantiated claims, but my guess for the rest of us will be about $10.