You May Not Get That $125 From the Equifax Settlement After All
The Federal Trade Commission said Wednesday that it would likely not be able to make the cash payouts many expected from a settlement with the financial services giant Equifax, which exposed the sensitive personal information of 147 million people in 2017.
Customers who filed a claim via an FTC form were given the option of receiving $125, certifying they had already acquired credit monitoring and waiving their right to sue Equifax, or free credit monitoring for 10 years. Though the settlement between Equifax and the FTC amounted to $700 million, apparently only $31 million—4% of that total—was earmarked for these payouts.
The FTC said it received an “unexpected number of claims” and now warns that the more people opt for the payout, the less money each person will receive from the settlement.