In 2024, Verizon Wireless reached a 100 million U.S. dollar settlement in a class action lawsuit that alleged misleading advertising practices. The lawsuit claimed that the company did not adequately disclose additional fees, such as administrative charges, in its advertisements, leading to unexpectedly high costs for consumers.

The plaintiffs contended that Verizon deceived customers by excluding these extra fees from the advertised prices of their plans, thereby creating a misleading perception of affordability. By failing to present the total costs, Verizon was accused of breaching consumer protection laws, including the Federal Trade Commission Act, which prohibits deceptive advertising.

Yesterday, social media users began reporting the receipt of their portions of the 100 million dollar settlement. However, many expressed disappointment. One customer tweeted about receiving a mere $2.37 and mentioned plans to “donate the amount.” Another, who received $4.29, remarked, “Class Action Lawsuits are ridiculous. Look how much the Verizon one was.”

Did something go wrong? Last year, Verizon committed to creating a 100 million dollar settlement fund to compensate affected customers, with disbursement set to commence in early 2025. The fund distribution is organized as follows:

Base Payment: Each valid claim will receive a fixed payment of 15 dollars.
Monthly Service Bonus: Eligible customers will receive an additional dollar for each month they were charged the disputed administrative fees, capped at a maximum of 85 dollars.

The total compensation for any individual claimant is limited to 100 dollars. However, the settlement website indicated that the total amount you receive is influenced by various factors, such as the number of claims submitted and the final legal expenses incurred.

“In the event the aggregate Settlement Payments across all Valid Claimant accounts exceed the Net Distributable Funds, the Settlement Payment issued to each Valid Claimant account will be reduced on a pro rata basis, as determined by the Settlement Administrator,” the settlement website said.

Given the number of payments, the base payment may have been considerably lower than the original 15 dollars. Furthermore, applicable taxes and any fees imposed by the payment services selected by each applicant during the filing process may also influence the overall amount received.