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This settlement is closed!
Please see what other class action settlements you might qualify to claim cash from in our Open Settlements directory!
Rita’s Italian Ice has agreed to pay $3 million to settle allegations that the company sent unsolicited texts in violation of federal law.
Plaintiff Sherry Brown filed the Rita’s Italian Ice class action after claiming that she received “cool alerts” messages from the company informing her of certain frozen treats available for sale.
According to the lawsuit, Brown never gave Rita’s permission to contact her via text messaging nor did she grant “express written consent” required under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act.
Rita’s Italian Ice has denied the allegations but agreed to settle the lawsuit to avoid the cost and uncertainty of ligitatgion.
Those Class Members who want to object or be excluded from this settlement must make their request known no later than July 8, 2016.
Who’s Eligible
The Rita’s Italian Ice class action settlement is open to all U.S. residents who received a “cool alerts” text message between June 22, 2011 and Sept. 15, 2015.
Potential Award
Varies.
Class Members will receive a portion of the Settlement Fund based on an “Award Unit” formula. For example:
- Those who received a “cool alerts” text message from Rita’s on a cell phone between June 22, 2011 and Sept. 15, 2015 are eligible to receive one Award Unit
- Individuals who received at least one additional “cool alerts” text message after texting “STOP” in response to a previous text spam are entitled to 10 Award Units
- Class Members who qualify for both of these categories will receive a total of 11 Award Units
Each of these units will consist of an “equal monetary value” calculated from the $3 million Settlement Fund. However, the actual amount each Class Member receives will depend on the total number of claims filed.
Proof of Purchase
N/A
Claim Form
Claim Form Deadline
07/08/2016
Case Name
Sherry Brown v. Rita’s Water Ice Franchise Company LLC, Case No. 2:15-cv-03509-TJS, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
Final Hearing
07/27/2016
UPDATE: On March 16, 2017, the Rita’s Italian Ice TCPA settlement was granted final approval. Let Top Class Actions know when you receive a check in the comments section below or on our Facebook page.
UPDATE 2: On September 14, 2017, the court approved the motion to distribute the Rita’s Italian Ice TCPA settlement funds. 9,684 claimants will receive $144.00 and 480 claimants will receive $1,584.00.
UPDATE 3: On Oct. 26, 2017, Top Class Actions viewers who filed a claim for the Rita’s Italian Ice class action settlement started receiving checks worth as much as $144.00. Congratulations to everyone who got PAID!
Settlement Website
www.CoolAlertSettlement.com
Claims Administrator
Cool Alert Settlement
Administrator
c/o A.B. Data, Ltd.
P.O. Box 173005
Milwaukee, WI 53217
1-800-332-9084
info@CoolAlertSettlement.com
Class Counsel
Jody B. Burton
Sergei Lemberg
Stephen F. Taylor
LEMBERG LAW LLC
Defense Counsel
John M. Doroghazi
Constantine Thomas Fournaris
Kim E. Rinehart
WIGGIN & DANA LLP
Join a Free TCPA Class Action Lawsuit Investigation
If you were contacted on your cell phone by a company via an unsolicited text message (text spam) or prerecorded voice message (robocall), you may be eligible for compensation under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. Find out more at the Text Message Spam, Unwanted Cell Phone Calls TCPA Class Action Lawsuit Settlement Investigation.
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104 thoughts onRita’s Italian Ice TCPA Class Action Settlement
Distribution is suppose to occur within the next 60 days. According to the email I just received. Just wanted to keep you all updated on what I was told.
It seems like this is never gonna end every time we get close something else comes up !!! Geeze at this they are just making interest of the money in the fund……go figure
What else happened?
Any interest gets added to the distribution pot. But since they’re rejecting all claims from the serial filers, only the true victims will get paid.
Sounds like no one here is getting anything from this settlement. They’re cracking down on fraudulent serial filers. They know the phone numbers that were called. And if our numbers don’t match the records… REJECTED!
You are exactly right why would u even be dishonest if they didn’t call u !!!! That’s not being fair to the people that were being harassed!!! U write like it’s ok to put your name on a list for free money wow just shows what are world is all about !
Has anyone received payment?
Nobody has received payment and I’m beginning to think nobody won’t.
The court approved the motion to distribute on 9/14/17. It is not known how quickly checks will be mailed, but hopefully soon!
Thank God and thank you TCA for the updated info !!
2,154,816 wow the rest to ab data and lawyers …..ab data is real slow …
Wow what just happened ?????
I just tried to log onto the cool alerts website to see if they updated any court info and the website was down. Maybe their updating it with some helpful info?!? One can only hope.
The motion to distribute settlement funds has not yet been approved by the court. Claims will not be paid until this occurs.
Has anyone received a payment?
Nope! Maybe we would be better off reaching out to the attorney who represented all of us in this case. I think it was Lemberg?!? If you read through the court papers on the cool alert website the judge ordered Ritas to fund the account that would be paying all of us out on March 17th( I think that’s what I read). When I emailed the the address listed on the website asking what the deal was I received the same generic response both times “that most class action lawsuits take anywhere from a year or longer to fund and that they have to track everyone down again…blah blah blah.” Starting to think the attorneys blew it all.
Jessie you are absolutely correct and there’s nothing that claimants can do !!!
On 8/11/17, a motion to distribute settlement funds was filed with the court. The judge must approve the motion before funds will be distributed. There were over 20,000 invalid/false claims submitted, which may have delayed the claim review process. According to the motion 9,684 claimants will receive $144.00 and 480 claimants will receive $1,584.00.
Top Class Actions will let our viewers know when the motion to distribute settlement funds is approved!
Thank you for the information!
Thank you TCA for the update.
I just got an email from the class administrator stating that they don’t know how much anyone is getting or when. So TCA where did you get those amounts listed ?
Thank you…
nothing yet here in MA 7/30/17
I sent them another email asking for any updates and literally got the same response word for word from them. Beginning to lose faith in them.
I have also been waiting for the settlement check, only because I qualified under the settlement. However, I certainly haven’t been counting on that money for anything important and frankly, I think it’s one of the most frivolous class actions I’ve ever seen that was awarded approval. I can’t imagine how they come up with a monetary amount when there was certainly no pain and suffering or really much of any inconvenience at all involved in what they did. It was an error. It just pains me to see that it is near impossible to sue for life changing entirely legit matters but people and courts take the time and effort involved in these types of cases that seem to go through. I almost feel sorry for Ritas being forced into a settlement when there are doctors out there ruining lives that can’t be touched with a ten foot pole. Just sayin. As I said I will take the money because this suit says it’s due to me but I still can’t make sense of the way people in this country prioritize. Thanks TCA for keeping us updated on this and other class actions.
Sending out unsolicited text advertisements and continuing to do so even after being told to stop doesn’t sound frivolous to me. Sounds like harassment and a clear violation of the TCPA law.