Zimmer Dental TCPA Class Action Settlement

A class action lawsuit that alleged Zimmer Dental violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) has reached a settlement in the amount of $1.6 million (minimum) in an effort to resolve claims.

Plaintiff Suzanne Dengen, D.M.D., P.C. d/b/a Sunset Tower Family Dentistry accused Zimmer of sending unsolicited advertisements by fax without having received prior consent, in violation of the TCPA.

The TCPA, among other protections, prohibits entities from sending unsolicited advertisement via faxes, also known as a “junk fax,” to individuals or business.  Penalties for a violation be issued for up to $1,500 per fax for “willful violation” at the discretion of the court.

Zimmer Dental has denied any wrongdoing and has agreed to settle the class action lawsuit in order to avoid the expense of further litigation. The settlement does not represent an admission of liability, and both sides agreed to a mutually beneficial solution.

Individuals wishing to exclude themselves from the settlement or file an objection to the settlement terms must do so no later than Feb. 29, 2016.

UPDATE: On May 19, 2016, Top Class Actions readers who submitted a valid claim for the Zimmer Dental TCPA class action settlement started receiving checks worth as much as $975.87.

Who’s Eligible

According to legal documents, the Settlement class is defined as follows:

All persons who:

1. on or after February 17, 2011 through November 24, 2015,
2. were sent a telephone facsimile message of material advertising the commercial availability or quality of any property, goods, or services by or on behalf of Defendants,
3. with respect to whom Defendants cannot provide evidence of prior express permission or invitation for the sending of such faxes,
4. with whom Defendants does not have an established business relationship,
5. which did not state that the recipient may make a request to the sender of the advertisement not to send any future advertisements to a telephone facsimile machine or machines and that failure to comply, within 30 days, with such a request meeting the requirements under 47 C.F.R. § 64.1200(a)(4)(v) is unlawful, or
6. which did not include a facsimile number for the recipient to send an opt-out request.

Potential Award

Up to $1,500 per claim or per fax.

For eligible claimants, the settlement benefits will either be “(a) $100, per claim, which may be increased pro rata up to $1,500 per claim, or (b) $100 per fax, which may be increased pro rata up to $1,500 per fax, depending on the option selected by the Class member on the Claim Form.”

Proof of Purchase

N/A

Claim Form

CLICK HERE TO FILE A CLAIM »

Claim Form Deadline

02/29/2016

Case Name

Suzanne Degnen, D.M.D., P.C. d/b/a Sunset Tower Family Dentistry v. Zimmer Dental Inc., et al.,   Case No. 4:15-cv-01103-RLW, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri.

Final Hearing

04/14/2016

Settlement Website

www.DentalFaxSettlement.com

Claims Administrator

Kurtzman Carson Consultants

Zimmer Dental TCPA Administrator
P.O. Box 43398
Providence, RI 02940-3398

Class Counsel

Ronald J. Eisenberg
Mary B. Schultz
Robert Schultz

SCHULTZ & ASSOCIATES LLP

Defense Counsel

David S. Almeida
SHEPPARD MILLIN RICHTER & HAMOTOM LLP

Jonathan H. Garside
FOX GALVIN, LLC

Join a Free TCPA Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you received an unsolicited advertisement (“junk fax”) that was sent to your fax machine without your prior permission, 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.