UnitedHealth class action settlement gets preliminary approval

UnitedHealthcare class action lawsuit overview:

• Who: A Washington federal judge granted preliminary approval to a $2.5 million settlement between UnitedHealthcare and a class of Telephone Consumer Protection Act claimants.
• Why: The settlement resolves claims UnitedHealthcare repeatedly made calls with marketing messages even after class members requested to be removed from their call list.
• Where: The UnitedHealthcare class action lawsuit was filed in Washington federal court.

A Washington federal judge granted preliminary approval to a $2.5 million settlement between UnitedHealthcare and a class of Telephone Consumer Protection Act claimants.

The judge signed off on the deal Jan. 16, with class counsel saying the settlement would net each class member over $90 if all apply.

The parties reached the deal last month, proposing a $20,000 service award for lead plaintiff Frantz Samson, who brought the suit in 2019 accusing UnitedHealthcare Services Inc. of repeatedly calling him with marketing messages even after he informed the company it had the wrong number and requested to be removed from their call list.

Class counsel, a collection of Seattle- and Pennsylvania-based law firms, would receive $833,333 — or one-third of the settlement fund — as part of the agreement, saying the attorneys incurred nearly $420,000 in out-of-pocket costs.

UnitedHealthcare class action lawsuit alleged company made ‘wrong number’ calls

A Washington federal judge certified two classes in October 2023. One, a “do-not-call” class of individuals who said they got calls despite having their numbers on UnitedHealth’s “do-not-call” list, was ultimately decertified last November after discovery produced over 100,000 call recordings from UnitedHealth.

According to the judge, the recordings showed that the question of whether recipients consented to the calls couldn’t be settled “based on class-wide proof,” but instead, “individualized issues of consent predominate.”

The other class — for individuals who received “wrong number” calls between 2015 and 2019 despite not being UnitedHealth members at the time — remained, although the insurance company moved for decertification of that class as well.

The settlement class is estimated to have about 12,000 members. 

“These potential payments exceed those made in other TCPA settlements that have been approved as fair, adequate and reasonable,” class counsel said. “The settlement provides an excellent recovery for claimants given that, at trial, class members could obtain at most $500 to $1,500 per call..

In April last year, UnitedHealthcare was hit with a class action lawsuit alleging it failed to secure the personal identifiable information and protected health information of consumers during a data breach caused by a ransomware attack against its subsidiary Change Healthcare in February 2024.

Have you been affected by UnitedHealthcare’s alleged TCPA violations? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiffs are represented by Jennifer Rust Murray, Beth E. Terrell and Blythe H. Chandler of Terrell Marshall Law Group PLLC, James A. Francis and Jordan M. Sartell of Francis Mailman Soumilas PC, and Jonathan Shub and Samantha E. Holbrook of Shub & Johns LLC.

The UnitedHealthcare class action lawsuit is Frantz Samson v. UnitedHealthcare Services Inc., Case No. 2:19-cv-00175, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.

Read About More Class Action Lawsuits & Class Action Settlements:

• California unpaid wages and overtime class action lawsuit
• AT&T class action alleges co. sends text solicitations after customers opt out
• Kohl’s class action alleges retailer made invasive robocalls
• Coach Outlet sends unlawful text messages, class action claims