AmeriCredit Financial Services TCPA Class Action Settlement

A settlement has been reached in a class action lawsuit alleging AmeriCredit Financial Services Inc. violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) by calling people on their cell phones with an automatic telephone dialing system or prerecorded voice message without their prior express consent. If you received a call on your cell phone from or on behalf of AmeriCredit Financial Services, you could be eligible for benefits from the class action settlement.

Though it denies the allegations, AmeriCredit has agreed to pay between $6.5 million and $8.5 million to settle the TCPA class action lawsuit. AmeriCredit asserts that it has a policy of obtaining prior express consent to place automated or prerecorded calls to cell phones. Individual phone calls made in violation of the TCPA can be worth $500 per negligent violation and up to $1,500 per willful or knowing violation. AmeriCredit agreed to settle the class action lawsuit to avoid the expense and uncertainty of ongoing litigation.

UPDATE: On July 5, 2016, the settlement website is updated with the following statement: “Settlement Class Members whose claims were approved were sent a check in the mail on July 1, 2016.” Let Top Class Actions know when you receive a check in the comments section below or on our Facebook page.

UPDATE 2: On July 6, 2016, Top Class Actions readers who submitted timely and valid claims for the AmeriCredit settlement began receiving checks worth as much as $30.

Who’s Eligible

Class Members of the AmeriCredit TCPA class action lawsuit include all persons who were called on a cell phone by AmeriCredit, or a third party dialing company on behalf of AmeriCredit, using an automatic dialing system or by prerecorded voice message between Dec. 30, 2007 and Nov. 14, 2014.

Potential Award

Up to $150.

Tiered Recovery: A Class Member can elect to receive a tiered recovery by providing proof of how many calls he or she received from AmeriCredit on a cell phone by an automated telephone dialing system or a prerecorded voice message system. Class Members who provide proof of calls in the form of a cell phone bill or bill history will be eligible for the following benefits:

• 2-5 calls: up to $60
• 6-10 calls: up to $90
• 11-15 calls: up to $120
• More than 15 calls: up to $150

No Proof Election:
Class Members who submit valid Claim Forms may elect to receive up to $30 per cell phone number dialed during the Class Period. To elect to receive this payment, Class Members must (i) check a box electing to file a claim, and (ii) affirm that he or she was called on a cellular telephone by AmeriCredit through ATDS or prerecorded voice without consent.

Proof of Purchase

None required. However, Class Members who submit proof of the calls may be eligible for a greater recovery.

Class Members must submit the following information when submitting claims for the AmeriCredit TCPA settlement:

• Name
• Claim Number (if you received a Postcard Notice)
• Cell phone number(s) on which you may have been called
• Current address for receipt of the class action settlement payment (if different from the Postcard Notice address, or if you did not receive a Postcard Notice)
• Written acknowledgement that you received a call to your cell phone using an automated telephone dialing system or prerecorded voice without your consent

Each Class Member who submits a timely and valid Claim Form may elect to receive up to $30 per cell phone number dialed during the Class Period. Though no proof of the calls is required, Class Members must affirm that they were called on a cellular telephone by AmeriCredit through an automatic telephone dialing system or prerecorded voice without consent. If your cell phone number is on the Class Member list, you may be entitled to receive a payment from the AmeriCredit class action settlement. To verify whether your cell phone number is on the Class Member list, contact the Settlement Administrator at 1-877-651-4179.

Class Members who can submit proof of the calls are eligible to receive up to $150 from the TCPA class action settlement.

Claim Form

Claim Form Deadline

Group 1: 3/26/2015

Group 2: 1/20/2016

Case Name

Newman v. AmeriCredit Financial Services Inc., Case No. 11-cv-3041-DMS-BLM, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California

Final Hearing

5/22/2015

Settlement Website

www.NewmanAmeriCreditSettlement.com

Claims Administrator

Newman Settlement Administrator
P.O. Box 30181
College Station, TX 88842-3181
1-877-651-4179

Class Counsel

KAZEROUNI LAW GROUP APC
BURKE LAW OFFICES LLC

Defense Counsel

TROUTMAN SANDERS LLP

UPDATE: According to a post on the settlement website, more Class Members have been identified. This second group of Class Members has until Jan. 20, 2016 to file a claim for the AmeriCredit class action settlement.

“To determine whether you are one of the 208,353 Newly-identified Settlement Class Members, you may contact the Claims Administrator at 1-877-651-4179 to determine if you are entitled to submit a claim for monetary payment.”