Is the Straight Talk Settlement Letter a Scam?

Straight Talk Settlement Letter
Straight Talk Settlement Letter

I received the letter pictured above the other day.  I have included the entire contents of the letter at the bottom of this post.

Update 3/29/16:

I received my check for this settlement today!!  Scroll to the bottom and you can see that it cleared at my bank.

Is the Straight Talk Settlement Letter a Scam?

I do happen to be a Straight Talk customer and use an unlocked iPhone on Straight Talk and that is why I believe I received this letter.  I have written up how you too can save a lot of money by using prepaid Straight Talk on your iPhone and you can read about it here:
This letter is not a scam.  I looked up this settlement on the United States Federal Trade Commission website (original link now is bad) and it points to the very same prepaidphonerefund.com website that the letter references.  I visited the website listed in the letter, www.prepaidphonerefund.com.  The settlement website looks like this:
PrePaidPhoneRefund.com main page
I clicked on the File Your Claim link and this is what it took me to:
Prepaidphonerefund.com Claim Start Page
When you click on the “Begin Claim” link you are taken to the contact information page.  I entered my name, address and email:
Prepaidphonerefund.com Claim Personal Information Page
Once I clicked “next” I was at the Claim Eligibility page.  This page wants to verify that you had service with one of the phone companies during the 7/24/09 to 12/31/14 time period the settlement covers:
Prepaidphonerefund.com Claim Eligibility Check
Once you click Next, if you are eligible you’ll receive a claim acknowledgement page with a claim number on it like this:
Prepaidphonerefund.com Claim Acknowledgement Page
I don’t know what you will see if you are not eligible because I am and it let me through.  I’ll update this post when something further happens.  I didn’t have my service cancelled on me and the amounts being paid out are small (except for the attorneys):

at least $2.25-$6.50 for claimants who had their data service “throttled”
at least $10.00 for claimants who had their data service suspended
$65.00 for claimants who had all of their services terminated

I don’t even know for sure that I’ve had my data throttled.  Usually I’m on my phone on my home wifi and I switch wifi off to use my cellular data via StraightTalk because my AT&T UVerse service is so slow!   The settlement claim application page doesn’t ask for any personal information really, not social security numbers for sure, so I felt comfortable filling it out.  I’ll update this post if anything changes.
Here I have OCRed the text of the letter:
++++++++++++ Begin Straight Talk Settlement Letter Contents +++++++++++++++

 

If you had a Straight Talk, Net10, Simple Mobile, or TelcelAmerica “Unlimited” Mobile Service Plan, you may be entitled to a cash refund from a class action settlement.

 

You must file a claim to receive a cash refund.  Visit www.PrepaidPhoneRefund.com to file a claim.

 

A federal court authorized this notice. This isn’t a solicitation from a lawyer and you aren’t being sued.  This notice may affect your legal rights. Please read it carefully.

 

Si desea recibir esta notificacion en Espanol, llamenos o visite nuestra pagina web.

WHAT IS THIS CASE ABOUT? Consumers have filed a class action lawsuit saying that Straight Talk, Net10, Simple Mobile, and Telcel America advertised “unlimited” wireless plans, but then slowed or cut off data service, or terminated all services, for some customers. The defendants in the case, TracFone Wireless (the owner of those four brands) and WalMart, deny all liability.

WHO IS INCLUDED? You’re eligible for a refund (meaning that you’re a “Class Member”) if you bought a Straight Talk, Net10, Simple Mobile, or Telcel America mobile service plan with “unlimited” data in the United States, and, at any time between July 24,2009 and December 31, 2014, you had your data usage “throttled” (slowed), suspended (cut off), or had all of your services terminated by TracFone before the expiration of your service plan. If you had an “unlimited” plan, but aren’t sure if your service was throttled (slowed), cut off or terminated, file a claim and the information you provide will be checked against company records to see if you’re eligible.

WHAT DOES THE SETTLEMENT PROVIDE? TracFone has agreed to pay $40 million to a settlement fund. Class Members who file valid claims (“claimants”) will receive cash refunds from the fund. Refund amounts will depend on three things: the number of claimants, when you were a customer, and how your service was affected. It is expected that refunds will be at least $2.25 to $6.50 for claimants who had their data service “throttled,” at least $10.00 for claimants who had their data service suspended, and $65.00 for claimants who had all of their services terminated. Actual refund amounts may be different depending on the number of claimants. The Settlement Administrator supervising the refund program will use company records and the information you provide in your Claim Form to determine your eligibility and your refund amount.  TracFone also has agreed to improve its advertising and customer service as part of the settlement to make its policies clearer to customers. For more information, visit www.PrepaidPhoneRefund.com.

HOW DO I GET A REFUND? You must file a Claim Form to get a refund. There are two ways to file a Claim Form: (1) File online, at www.PrepaidPhoneRefund.com; or (2) Print a Claim Form, available at www.PrepaidPhoneRefund.com, fill it out, and mail it (with postage) to the address listed on the Claim Form.  Claim Forms must be filed online or postmarked by June 19, 2015. If you had more than one phone number with “unlimited” data from Straight Talk, Net10, Simple Mobile or Telcel America between July 24,2009, and December 31, 2014, you should file a separate Claim Form for each phone number you had. (It’s easier to file multiple claims online.)

YOUR OTHER OPTIONS.  If you don’t want to make a claim, and don’t want to be bound by the settlement and any judgment in this case, you must send a written request to exclude yourself from the settlement, postmarked no later than May 20, 2015. If you exclude yourself, you won’t get a refund through this settlement. If you don’t exclude yourself and don’t submit a claim, you won’t receive a refund from the settlement and you will give up the right to sue Tracfone or Wal-Mart about the claims in this case. If you don’t exclude yourself, you may object to the settlement or to the request for fees by the attorneys representing the Class. The detailed Class Notice, available at www.PrepaidPhoneRefund.com explains how to exclude yourself or object.

The Court will hold a hearing in the case-In re TracFone Unlimited Service Plan Litigation, No. 13-cv-03440-EMC (N.D. Cal.)–on June 23, 2015 at 2:30 p.m., to consider whether to approve: (1) the settlement; (2) attorneys’ fees of up to $5 million plus reimbursement of out-of-pocket litigation costs of up to $100,000, for the attorneys representing the Class, to be paid by TracFone in addition to the $40 million settlement fund; and (3) service awards of $2,500 each for the eight class representatives who represented the Class in this case. You may appear at the hearing, but you don’t have to.  The Court has appointed attorneys (called “Class Counsel”) to represent the Class. These attorneys are listed in the detailed Class Notice. You may hire your own attorney to appear for you, but you will have to pay that attorney.

WHERE CAN I GET MORE INFORMATION? For more information, visit www.PrepaidPhoneRefund.com or call (855) 312-3327.

www.PrepaidPhoneRefund.com                                                            (855}312-3327

++++++++++++ End Straight Talk Settlement Letter Contents +++++++++++++++

Update 3/30/16:

I received a check and it cleared:

I received my StraightTalk Settlement Check and it Cleared!
I received my StraightTalk Settlement Check and it Cleared!

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3 Comments

  • What if I didn’t file a claim, but received a check for $15.11? How can I verify this check is real? There is some information on the Internet which says that member of the class may be able to be identified from StraightTalk’s records. But I don’t want to make a deposit of this check and then discover a week later that my entire account has been cleaned out by someone who traced my account number by virtue of cashing this check.

    What bank is being used to disburse the settlement proceeds? Is there any way to verify, in a secured manner, whether this check is legitimate?

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