Updated 12/21/10 – Part of the Settlement has been thrown out by the Federal Appeals Court. Details on it are here. Attorneys for the Plaintiffs and Defense are working diligently to resolve this new issue quickly. We will post updates in the News Section and here as the case continues.

Updated 2/22/10 – Appeals have since been filed by two separate objectors contesting final approval of the Settlement, and these appeals will postpone the payment of claims. No payments may be made on eligible claims until all appeals are resolved. THE APPEALS HAVE BEEN FULLY BRIEFED, A HEARING WAS HELD ON FEBRUARY 22, 2010 AND WE NOW AWAIT THE DECISION OF THE APPELLATE COURT. It is uncertain how long these appeals will take to resolve, and the timing of resolving the appeals is not within the control of the parties or their counsel. It is not uncommon for appeals to take several months or even years to resolve.

Check out the Settlement Administrator Website

for more information.

We’re sorry! This settlement is CLOSED!

No more submissions are allowed.

Please join the Top Class Actions Newsletter

list so you don’t miss out next time and head

over to the OPEN SETTLEMENTS section

to see what’s available!

Companies: Menu Food; Nestlé Purina PetCare Company; The Iams Company; Del Monte Foods Co.; Mars, Incorporated; Nutro Products, Inc.; Royal Canin Canada Company; Royal Canin U.S.A., Inc.; ChemNutra, Inc. and ChemNutra LLC; PETCO Animal Supplies, Inc.; PETCO ; Animal Supplies Stores, Inc.; PetSmart, Inc.; and PetSmart Charities, Inc.; Target Corp.; Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.; PetSmart Charities of Canada, Inc.; Costco Wholesale
Corporation; Costco Wholesale Canada, Ltd.; Pet Valu Canada, Inc.; and Pet Valu, Inc.; Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Inc.; Loblaw Companies Limited; and Loblaws, Inc.; The Scoular Company; Wilbur-Ellis Company; Kroger Co.; and Kroger Supermarkets, Inc.;

Website Link to access the Class Action Lawsuit Settlement and get YOUR Stake: http://www.petfoodsettlement.com/

Address to submit paper claim:

Download the form here and submit to

PET FOOD PRODUCTS LIABILITY LITIGATION SETTLEMENT
Claims Administrator
c/o Heffler, Radetich & Saitta L.L.P
P.O. Box 890
Philadelphia, PA 19105-0890

Fax: 215-320-2004
[email protected]

Phone Number for Assistance: 1-800-392-7785

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Details: Fill out a separate claim form for each pet you’re making a claim on and snail mail, fax or email it in.

Purchased From: On or after March 16th, 2007

Claims Accepted Until (YOU MUST SUBMIT YOUR CLAIM BY THIS DATE!): Submitted/Postmarked by 11/24/08

Class Action Lawsuit Settlement Amount(s): $24,000,000 minus $6,000,000 to U.S. attorneys and $1,500,000 to Canadian counsel = $16,500,00 available to claimants

TCA Staff Tidbit: Well it was flabbergasting to read through the list of defendants on this lawsuit. It’s a who’s who of leading retailers and pet food vendors. It’s nice to see they’re traying to take care of their customers who purchased the contaminated pet food. Were you worried that your pet ate the contaminated food and took them to the vet to get them checked out? If you did so, and they were thankfully healthy, you’re still eligible to make a claim. Approximately $400,000 of the settlement fund is to cover the Veterinarian visits where no problems were found. Please. $250,000 of the fund is to cover refunding claimants the cost of the food purchased. 100% of documented veterinary expenses for sick animals are covered under the settlement even if the worst happened and your pet had to be put to sleep. The fund includes covering the replacement cost of a pet who died due to eating the contaminated food. Be prepared to provide AKC papers if you’re claiming hundreds or thousands of dollars in compensation to replace a purebred pet. Without the documentation, you’ll be switching to the undocumented claims group and only be eligible for $900 in expenses after everyone else is paid out. In addition, they are only paying the diagnostic and treatment expenses which are a direct result of the contaminated food. MAKE SURE TO SUBMIT YOUR CLAIM! Those who had sick animals are first in line to claim their share of the settlement. After all of those claimants have been paid out, then those who make undocumented claims will be paid. Claims of up to $900 will be accepted without any documentation required. Keep in mind two things. First you are giving them approval to call your Vet and confirm that you actually had a sick pet. If you’re lying about expenses incurred you will lose any right to any money from the settlement fund, even if part of your claim is true, and could prosecuted for Perjury. Second, all excess funds that don’t get claimed are going to charity. Please make sure you’re only submitting valid claims. Examples of undocumented claims would be expenses incurred by calling in sick to take care of your pet, gas to drive to the vet or carpet that had to be replaced or cleaned due to a sick animal. This is definitely a heart wrenching lawsuit settlement. We here at TopClassActions.com express our deepest sympathies to those who had beloved pets affected by the contaminated food.

An interesting note, and one we don’t see often, is that the defendants have the right to opt out of the settlement if 2,000 or more class members (consumers whose pets ate the contaminated food) opt out of the settlement in favor in individually pursuing the pet food companies.

Charities that will receive any part of the settlement fund which isn’t claimed. It will be distributed as a % of the claimants received from each region. For example, if 90% of the claimants are from the U.S. and 10% from Canada, then 90% of the excess will be split among the US charities, and 10% will be split among the Canadian charities. Please don’t submit false claims, each organization below could use every penny that’s left over from the settlement fund.

U.S. Charities
Delta Society
North Shore Animal League

Canadian Charities
Quebec – Rescue Quebec
British Columbia – British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
Alberta – Alberta Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
Saskatchewan – Saskatchewan Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
Ontario – Ontario Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
Nova Scotia – The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
New Brunswick – The New Brunswick Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
Newfoundland – The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Newfoundland and
Labrador)
Manitoba – D’arcy’s Animal Rescue Centre
Prince Edward Island – PEI: Atlantic Veterinary College at the University of Prince Edward
Island

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