Equifax Settlement is a Joke, That Keeps . . . Taking
By Peter Boyd on December 23, 2022 in PaperStreet
The Equifax settlement is a joke. The company has agreed to give out funds for the data breach. It seems like most are getting $5.21 via PayPal, Check, or Pre-paid card. Seems like a fair price for giving out your full name, address, email, social security, and drivers license.
I am not sure if anyone is reading the pre-paid TOS agreement. Now granted, it is a bit long at 9 pages, but has some fun facts like . . . mainly FEES.
In the terms of accepting the prepaid card, you agree to this cool fee:
Inactivity Fee. $5.95
You will be charged $5.95 each month after you have not completed a transaction using your card for 6 months
Now, there are a few ways to read that clause due to the severe lack of punctuation:
1. You have to use the card within six months, or you will be charged $5.95 per month. (Most likely scenario).
– or –
2. Once you use the card, you have six months to use the card again, or you will be charged $5.95 per month.
– or –
3. You will be charged $5.95 for six months in any month you don’t complete a transaction.
So best case, you get a settlement of $5.21 and have to use it quickly. More likely case, is you forget out about the $5.21 and end up with a zero balance after six months. Worst case, somehow you end up owing money!
Owe money? Yes. It is not clear if the prepaid card company means you will be on the hook for the $5.95 until your card is at zero balance, or if you are charged forever even if you have a zero balance (and actually owe them money). You could read it that way if you take the sentence as a whole – meaning you will be charged $5.95 each month for 6 months
After reading the nine page agreement, I did not see anything about zero balances or when this fee applies or stops. So it could mean you lose your money and actually owe money (unlikely, but fun to think about).
Now I don’t think they would come after anyone for $5.95 to $35.70 (six months of fees), but you ever know. Maybe they need to update the TOS to be more clear or face a new class action.
PS: I thought it was illegal to put a time limit and have post sales fees on prepaid or gift cards depending on your state. So maybe this can brew an entirely new class action on the millions of accounts they are funding from the original breach.
3:33 pm on January 27th, 2023
My data, my SS#, name, address, dob and other data is worth a whole lot more that the check I just received for $3.52! This is truly a joke! Thank god I have frozen all my data with all three credit reporting agences.
10:00 am on February 18th, 2023
I saw that fee and was amazed! You’re exactly right, vague to the point of laughable.
And Equifax’s settlement firm clearly made no effort to encourage people to utilize the payments–the email routes you to myprepaidcenter.com (which isn’t any party I agreed to give info to) which seems very for-profit oriented–use that $5.21 with these paid sponsors!!. It feels like they turned the settlement into a money making opportunity. Just send me a damn check.
And, what’s more, the email itself looks like a sketchy phishing link if you’re not familiar with this stuff–I’m sure many people toss it (which is surely their intention).
Oh, but there IS a link in the email that lets you go to the Equifax Settlement site instead–where you just get a link to the prepaid site–but it takes you to a page asking for a code that the email never provided. Half assed, intended to fail implementation that is just asking for a lawsuit. And gets one, hopefully.