Newsroom

March 12, 2017

$25M settlement eyed in FIs' class action over Home Depot

Financial institution plaintiffs, including 42 credit unions, suing Home Depot over the store chain's 2014 data breach filed a motion last week for preliminary approval of a $25 million settlement of the case.

The class action cites more than $150 million in damages to credit unions and community banks as a result of the 2014 Home Depot breach. The lawsuit was filed in Atlanta, where the home-improvement store chain is headquartered. There are more than 100 plaintiffs, among them financial institutions in 44 states and the District of Columbia.

NAFCU is monitoring the case closely for impact on its members as it continues to advocate for passage in Congress of legislation to establish a national data security standard for retailers like that followed by financial institutions under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act.

According to documents filed with the court last week, class members that provide documentation will also be eligible to recover up to 60 percent of their uncompensated losses. Those in the class not providing such documentation could get up to $2 per card affected in the breach. Final recoveries will also depend in part on how many affected institutions file valid claims.

Another $2.25 million is proposed to pay claims of entities whose claims were released by a sponsor; sponsored entities filing a valid claim will receive up to $2 for each eligible payment card that was released, the documents say. Additionally, service awards of up to $2,500 to each class representative will be paid out of the settlement fund.

Home Depot meanwhile would agree to improve its data security practices to reduce the chances of a future data brief "and to pay separately the costs of notice, administration and, … reasonable attorneys' fees and expenses."