The Kroll Lens: Monitoring Class Action Settlements–2024, Volume XI

Telephone Consumer Protection Act

Kimble v. First American Home Warranty Corp.,

No. 23-cv-10037, 2024 WL 3325705 (E.D. Mich. Jul. 8, 2024) (Lawson, J.)

The Plaintiff brought a Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) class action against a home warranty company, alleging that calls were received despite being listed on the National Do Not Call Registry. After reaching a settlement through negotiation, the parties moved for final certification and for fees, costs and service award. The Court granted the motion.

In reviewing the settlement notice, the Court observed notice via first-class mail was sent to 20,762 members, an amount less than the expected 21,953 class members identified. The notice provider found 1,185 of these were duplicate entries, and six were without a valid address. A total of 3,311 notices were returned as undeliverable, and 144 of these were resent with forwarding information. The remaining undeliverable contacts (excluding 160 returned after the response deadline) were traced using a service, resulting in updated addresses for 1,633 members. Notices were reissued, with 160 returning undeliverable. In total, 19,068 notices were successfully mailed.

The Court also looked at the email notification sent to 20,642 class members with email addresses, including the six who did not have mailing addresses. Out of these, 18,147 emails were successfully delivered, 2,495 bounced back, 6,552 were opened and 807 recipients followed the link to the website.

In total, the Court found 20,373 members, or 98.1%, had received notice. There were 10,424 website visits, 562 calls to the hotline, 3,295 claim forms submitted and 235 claims from unverified potential class members, one of which had filed supporting information. There were 51 members who filed opt-outs and four unverified members. As of the April 30, 2024, deadline, no class member had objected.