19 hours Ago By Harvey Geh
ELIGIBLE Americans could claim a handsome $5,300 cash payment from a massive multimillion-dollar settlement.Retina Group of Washington agreed to a huge $3.6million class action lawsuit settlement to resolve allegations made against them.
GettyAmerican could claim a $5,300 payment[/caption]The claims made say that the eye care firm failed to prevent a 2023 data breach.The Retina Group of Washington (RGW) settlement benefits anyone whose personal information was potentially accessible after the company’s data breach on March 26, 2023.The leak reportedly affected thousands of their customers.
The breach also gave away sensitive information such as Social Security numbers, driver’s license numbers and health insurance data.Furious patients took legal action against RGW.They argued that the firm should and could have prevented the breach – had they implemented reasonable cybernetics measures.
The eye care center has locations in Maryland and Virginia.It offers a range of services, including retina surgery, diabetic eye care, macular degeneration treatment and more eye-related services.RGW did not admit any wrongdoing, but agreed to the huge $3.
6million class action settlement in order to resolve the allegations. Under the terms of the RGW settlement, eligible class members can receive a cash reimbursement or an alternative cash payment.Claimants who experienced losses as a result of the data leak can receive up to $300 for ordinary out-of-pocket expenses.
This includes bank fees, communication charges, travel expenses and up to four hours of lost time at a rate of $25 per hour. The settlement will also pay out claims for up to $5,000 in additional reimbursement for “extraordinary losses” resulting from identity theft or fraud.Class members who did not experience direct losses as a result of the data breach can still benefit from the settlement though.
The settlement allows these less affected class members to receive an alternative cash payment of around $100. Exact alternate payment amounts will vary depending on the number of claims filed, as well as the funds remaining in the settlement after paying reimbursement claims.Class members may also be eligible for two years of complimentary credit monitoring and identity theft protection services.
These include every-day three-bureau credit monitoring, identity restoration services and $1million in identity theft insurance. But class members who opt to receive an alternate cash payment are not eligible for the free credit monitoring.On top of this, RGW agreed to implement additional data privacy and security measures to properly enhance its cybersecurity.
These new measures include maintaining a written information security policy, conducting cybersecurity training, maintaining a written password policy and more.The deadline for those who wish to object or exclude in May 27.And for those to want to submit a valid claim and receive the free funds, the deadline is June 23.
GettyThe settlement resolves claims of a data breach[/caption].
