Afni data breach $1.9M class action settlement

Afni has agreed to a $1.85 million class action lawsuit settlement to resolve claims its negligence led to a data breach that exposed the information of about 260,000 employees and consumers. 

The settlement benefits anyone to whom Afni provided notification that their personal information was exposed in the June 7, 2021, data breach. 

The class action lawsuit alleged Afni failed to implement adequate cybersecurity to safeguard its employees’ and consumers’ personally identifiable information and allowed the data breach to happen.

Afni is an Illinois-based consumer collections agency with about 10,000 employees.

The settlement provides compensation of up to $5,000 per member of the settlement class. 

Eligible claimants can be compensated for up to four hours of lost time at a rate of $25 per hour for time spent dealing with the data incident. 

They can also be compensated for documented out-of-pocket expenses incurred as a result of the breach, such as bank fees, long-distance phone charges, cellphone charges, data charges, postage, gas for local travel, fees for credit June 7, 2021, through Sept. 12, 2023, compensation for proven monetary loss, and professional fees such as attorneys’ fees, accountants’ fees and fees for credit repair services incurred as a result of the incident. 

Class members can alternately opt for a pro-rata cash payment from the settlement fund or choose to receive two years of credit monitoring and identity theft protection.

Class members who wished to exclude themselves from or object to the Afni class action settlement must have done so by Aug. 14, 2023.

The court has scheduled a final approval hearing for Sept. 12, 2023.

The deadline to submit a claim form is Sept. 12, 2023.

Who’s Eligible

Anyone to whom Afni provided notification that their personal information was exposed in the June 7, 2021, data breach. 

Potential Award

Up to $5,000

Proof of Purchase

Phone bills, gas receipts, postage receipts, a detailed list of locations to which the class member traveled — such as a police station or IRS office — and an indication of why they traveled there, along with the number of miles traveled; receipts or account statements reflecting the purchase of credit monitoring or identity theft insurance services.

Claim Form

NOTE: If you do not qualify for this settlement do NOT file a claim.

Remember: you are submitting your claim under penalty of perjury. You are also harming other eligible Class Members by submitting a fraudulent claim. If you’re unsure if you qualify, please read the FAQ section of the Settlement Administrator’s website to ensure you meet all standards (Top Class Actions is not a Settlement Administrator). If you don’t qualify for this settlement, check out our database of other open class action settlements you may be eligible for.

Claim Form Deadline

09/12/2023

Case Name

In re: Afni Inc. Data Breach Litigation, Case No. 1:22-cv-01287, in the United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois

Final Hearing

09/12/2023

Settlement Website

AfniDataIncidentSettlement.com

Claims Administrator

Afni Data Incident Claims Administrator
1650 Arch Street, Suite 2210
Philadelphia, PA 19103
Info@AfniDataIncidentSettlement.com
844-966-4924

Class Counsel

Ben Barnow 
BARNOW AND ASSOCIATES PC 

Gary M Klinger 
MILBERG COLEMAN BRYSON PHILLIPS GROSSMAN PLLC

Defense Counsel

James Monagle
MULLEN COUGHLIN LLC