Verizon Could Owe You Money: How to Claim Your Settlement Share

Thousands of Verizon customers have received an email this week urging them to file a claim for settlement from the media mogul due to "unfair" and "not adequately disclosed" administrative fees. The lawsuit isn't a hoax, nor is the settlement proposal for case MID-L-006360-23 currently pending final approval in the Superior Court of New Jersey. If the suit is successful, Verizon could owe customers a payout. Here's what you need to know:

Class Action Lawsuit Against Verizon Wireless: Why is Verizon Being Sued?

On November 10, 2023, attorneys for an extensive list of clients filed a class action lawsuit against Cellco Partnership, doing business as Verizon Wireless. The lawsuit claims that Verizon's sign-up policies and practices "deceive customers by prominently advertising certain monthly rates for Verizon post-paid wireless service plans." The lawsuit claims that after a customer signs up for a Verizon service plan, "Verizon uniformly charges them higher monthly rates than it advertised and promised by adding what Verizon calls an "Administrative Charge" to the bill." The suit document also claims that the charge is never "adequately" or "honestly" disclosed to consumers.

Such hidden or "surprise" administrative fees have recently faced public backlash in the political sphere. In October 2023, the Biden-Harris administration announced a new effort to curtail "junk fees" and "provide consumers with the full price upfront." According to the administration's website, "Research shows that fees charged at the back-end of the buying process...lead to consumers paying upward of twenty percent more." The Federal Trade Commission has drafted a new rule to ban hidden and misleading fees, requiring businesses to show the "full price" of services upfront.

Verizon rejected the claims, arguing that the company "clearly identifies and describes its wireless consumer admin charge multiple times during the sales transaction, as well as in its marketing, contracts, and billing." As part of the settlement agreement, Verizon has changed the wording of the charges, reports the New York Times.

The lawsuit settlement was provisionally certified and preliminarily approved on December 15, 2023.

Do You Qualify for Settlement Money?

The lawsuit, if approved, will see a $100 million settlement issued from Verizon. Claimants will receive up to $100 from the settlement, though the total payout will vary based on how long they have been a client at Verizon between January 1, 2016, and November 8, 2023. The funds would be sent to claimants on the case. The proposed settlement was preliminarily approved on December 15, 2023, with an order to notify all possible claimants.

If you received an email from @verizonadministrativechargesettlement.com, your Verizon account was flagged as qualifying for the settlement. The settlement "includes consumers residing in the United States (based on account holders' last known billing address) who received post-paid wireless or data services from Verizon and who were charged and paid an Administrative Charge between January 1, 2016, and November 8, 2023."

How Do You Get Paid from the Settlement?

Claimants will only receive a payout from the lawsuit if the proposed settlement is approved at the next court hearing on March 22, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. EST. Consumers must file a claim by April 15, 2024, to receive money from the settlement. According to the claim website, verzonadministrativechargessettlement.com, claimants will receive their funds through electronic payment or check. Find more information on the settlement by clicking here.