Checkers Data Breach Class Action To End In Voucher Deal

A chain of drive-in diners has agreed to offer vouchers as part of a Checkers data breach class action settlement.

Under the terms of the proposed settlement, Class Members can claim up to $20 in vouchers to Checkers Drive-In or Rally’s locations.

In addition, the chain has agreed to pay up to $5,000 for each Class Members’ out-of-pocket expenses that can be documented. The plaintiff awards are $2,500 and the attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses are set at $575,000.

Additionally, Checkers has agreed to update its security policies and procedures.

“The Settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate, and is in the best interests of the nationwide Settlement Class Members (‘Class Members’),” states the plaintiff’s motion for preliminary approval of the Checkers data breach class action settlement.

“The Settlement squarely addresses the issues raised in the Action and affords Class Members significant monetary and nonmonetary relief: tiered monetary relief to compensate Class Members for inconveniences and losses, and injunctive relief designed to better protect Defendant against similar data breaches that may again compromise consumers’ [personally identifiable information].”

Lead plaintiff Breandan Cotter lodged the class action lawsuit against Checkers after the chain announced a massive data breach affecting customers that used a credit or debit card at approximately 100 of its Checkers and Rally’s locations between September 2016 and April 2019.

According to the announcement, customers’ names, card numbers, expiration dates, and codes had been compromised by malware inserted into the company’s payment system.

The Checkers data breach allegedly affected 1.5 million transactions over the course of the three and a half years the malware was installed.

The Checkers data breach class action lawsuit accused the company of failing to implement adequate security measures, even as other restaurants and retailers had been affected by widely publicized data hacks.

The length of the hack was particularly long, over three years, noted the complaint.

The plaintiff accused the chain of violating Florida state consumer protection law, as well as negligence and breach of contract.

In addition, the Checkers class action lawsuit contended that Checkers failed to notify those affected by the data breach in a timely manner, increasing the risk that they could be unknowingly affected by identity theft.

Settlement Class Members include U.S. residents who used their credit or debit card at a Checkers or Rally’s restaurant affected by the data breach.

According to the settlement agreement, “Class Members who submit a valid and timely Claim Form and attest that they used a payment card at an affected Checkers location during the Data Breach are eligible to receive four (4) Checkers vouchers of $5.00 each, which are valid for one (1) year at any Checkers and Rally’s restaurant, and which are freely and fully transferable.”

Class Members seeking out-of-pocket expenses must complete the appropriate section of the claim form.

In addition, supporting information must be provided, including a receipt from a restaurant affected by the data breach, a card statement, or notification from a financial institution that a credit or debit card was affected by the breach.

Checkers has also agreed to a number of “remedial measures,” under the data breach class action settlement. These measures will benefit all Class Members even if they do not submit a claim form, points out the plaintiff’s motion for preliminary approval of the settlement.

These remedial measures will include “implementation of mandatory cybersecurity and data privacy training for all managers within its organization over the next two (2) years; and implementation of a solution that encrypts payment card data when it is read by the card acceptance device/point of sale system and routes the authorization message out to the payment card networks without the authorization message data being unencrypted on devices owned and managed by Checkers and/or Affected Franchisees,” notes the motion.

The court has yet to set a date for a hearing on the proposed settlement agreement.

Were you affected by the Checkers data breach? Tell us what happened in the comment section below!

Top Class Actions will post updates to this class action settlement as they become available. For the latest updates, keep checking TopClassActions.com or sign up for our free newsletter. You can also receive notifications when this article is updated by using your free Top Class Actions account and clicking the “Follow Article” button at the top of the post.

The plaintiff is represented by Patrick A. Barthle, Marcio W. Valladares and Jean Sutton Martin of Morgan & Morgan, Tina Wolfson and Bradley K. King of Ahdoot & Wolfson PC and Abbas Kazerounian and Jason A. Ibey of Kazerouni Law Group APC.

The Checkers Data Breach Class Action Lawsuit is Cotter, et al. v. Checkers Drive-In Restaurants Inc., Case No. 8:19-cv-01386, in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

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