Popular grocery store Trader Joe's has agreed to settlements amounting to about £5.5 million ($7.4 million), as compensation for a 2019 mishap involving erroneous receipts. PerLos Angeles County Superior Court documents, claimants may receive approximately £75 ($102) each, depending on how many join the lawsuit.
The settlement stems from a July 2019 class-action lawsuit in Florida, claiming the company printed debit and credit card transaction receipts showing the card numbers' ten digits. Receipts can only print up to the last five digits, according to the Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act.
The impacted customers became more vulnerable toidentity theftbecause of the mistake. 757,663 unique class member card numbers were exposed, according to theIndependent. This was specified in the court documents, and Trader Joe's confirmed it was accurate.
After receiving notification via email or standard mail, affected customers can opt out, object, or claim a portion of the settlement. They can also choose to do nothing, consequently waiving their claim.
The settlement only applies to 'account holders whose credit or debit card was used in a Trader Joe's store transaction between 5 March and 19 July 2019, per the document. 'It is important to note that not all Trader Joe's stores printed receipts displaying the first six and last four digits of the card number, and in those stores that did, only a small minority of transactions involved such receipts,' it detailed.
About half of the settlement will be used to cover legal expenses, including attorney's fees. Three law firms represent Brian Keim, the plaintiff, along with other participants. Each firm receives a third of £1.8 million ($2.5 million) in payout.
The court has yet to approve the £5.5 million settlement, however. The hearing has been scheduled for 10 August at 8:30am.
In 2014, Trader Joe's gave £2.5 million ($3.4 million) in settlement payout, for inaccurately labelling food products containing artificial materials as 'all natural' and '100 per cent natural.' In 2016, the company also settled for about £959,000 ($1.3 million) after a customer filed a lawsuit claiming the grocer was underfilling tuna tins.
The company has proactively avoided potential lawsuits byrecalling productsin the interest of customer safety. Last February, it pulled out Trader Joe's Chicken Fried Rice that might be 'contaminated with foreign material, specifically glass.' Last year, six other food products were recalled due to food safety.
Trader Joe's began in 1958 as Pronto Market, a Southern California convenience-store chain managed by Joe Coulombe. In 1967, Coulombe opened the first Trader Joe's in Pasadena, aiming at educated, adventurous shoppers with affordable, unusual foods and private-label products.
Source: International Business Times UK
