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By Aliss Higham
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Telecommunications giant Verizon has begun paying out settlements following a $100 million class action lawsuit. But how much will customers be getting?
Newsweek reached out to Verizon via email for comment.
Why It Matters
According to Verizon, payments should range from a minimum of $15 to a maximum cap of $100. However, some customers got less than they expected, with a handful posting online that they have received payments of as little as $2.50.
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What To Know
A class-action lawsuit filed against the company in 2023 claimed Verizon Wireless customers had been subject to an additional "administrative charge" added to their monthly bills to "extract extra funds" from them.
Plaintiffs alleged this fee was "never adequately or honestly disclosed" to customers. Verizon has denied any wrongdoing.
Eligible customers had until April 15, 2024, to claim their share of the fund; exactly how many people have claimed is not publicly available.
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How Much Should You Get?
According to Verizon, each eligible claimant was entitled to receive $15 per account and an extra $1 for every month they used postpaid wireless or data services and incurred an administrative fee. The total payout per customer was limited to a maximum of $100.
However, it appears this has been lowered in line with Verizon's previously published information on the payouts.
Verizon outlined on its dedicated website that if the settlement fund "is not sufficient to pay all the filed valid claims after deducting any Court-approved amounts for the cost of settlement administration, attorneys' fees and costs, and incentive awards to the class representatives," then payments will be "decreased from the initial allocated amount on a pro-rata basis."
A third of the $100 million fund was set aside to pay attorneys' fees, and an undisclosed amount was used to cover the cost of administering the settlement, the Hill reported.
What People Are Saying
Verizon customers have taken to social media in protest, with some saying they got less than they anticipated from the telecommunications giant.
X user Stacy Coventry wrote on January 7: "Verizon Administration Settlement payment was supposed to be $15. I got $2.51." She shared a screenshot of the payment in her Zelle account.
Another X user posting under the name Nancy wrote: "Class Action Lawsuits are ridiculous. Look how much the Verizon one was," alongside an image showing she had received $4.29.
Others joked, saying they had "won" and were "rich" after receiving payments as low as $7.55 and $4.29.
What's Next
Payments are still being administered, so it remains to be seen if some customers will get higher amounts than those reported online.
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