This week, exactly one year ago, the Finish Line Blog ran a post called, “Won’t Get Fooled Again”. In that post, we discussed ways to combat unwanted or spam calls that come to your cell phone. Back in the old days, if you registered with the National Do Not Call Registry, you needn’t worry about those pesky calls. Nowadays, however, there’s a seemingly constant barrage of these calls to mobile and landlines alike. If you find yourself increasingly aggravated by telemarketers, you owe it to yourself to read, “Won’t Get Fooled Again”. Fast forward one year to today, and you’ll learn that today is the day we finally get even. Have you ever answered the phone and heard the exciting announcement that you’ve won a free cruise? Thanks to a class action lawsuit, you just might get a jump on saving for tickets!
The case in question is Charvat v. Carnival et al, and the Case Number is 1:12-cv-5746 if you’d like to look it up yourself. I’ll quote the reason for the suit from its website: “The Plaintiffs in this settlement allege that Resort Marketing Group, Inc. (“RMG”) violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, or TCPA, when they made automated telephone calls to consumers to offer a free cruise with Carnival Corporation & PLC (“Carnival”), Royal Caribbean Cruises, Ltd. (“Royal Caribbean”), and NCL (Bahamas), Ltd. (“Norwegian”) (collectively “Cruise Defendants”)”. And, from the same website, information regarding who is eligible to collect a settlement: “The Settlement includes people who received pre-recorded telephone calls between July of 2009 and March of 2014 on their residential or cellular telephone lines initiated by RMG during which RMG offered a free cruise with Carnival, Royal Caribbean, or Norwegian cruise lines as a promotion.” There will be a settlement of between $7,000,000, and up to $12,500,000 to be divided up between those eligible to receive it. The Final Approval Hearing is scheduled for April 8, 2018, so don’t waste your time running out to the mailbox until next summer after any appeals have taken place. It’s possible that each member of the class action could receive up to $300 per call, and a maximum of $900. You must file a claim by November 3, 2017 to be included in the class action suit.
To check and see if you’re eligible for some cold hard cash, visit the website by clicking here. Next, click “File a Claim” at the top left. To see if your phone number is one of those affected, click the third bubble down for “I did NOT receive a notice and do not have a claim number, but would like to see if my phone number is a part of this settlement and File securely Online.” Please note that if you feel more comfortable mailing in a form, choose the fourth option for “I did NOT receive a notice and do not have a claim number, but would like to see if my phone number is a part of this settlement and download a personalized claim form, print it out, and mail it in.” For our purposes today, we’ll go with option three and file online. After you’ve made your selection, click “Continue”. Enter your phone number (with area code, and without parenthesis or hypens), then check the box for “I’m not a robot” under “Security”, then click “Continue”. At the top of the screen, you’ll see a message appearing in green or red text describing your inclusion or exclusion from the suit. If you’re not eligible, shake it off, and wait for the next one. If you are, fill in the “Claimant Name and Address” fields, followed by “Claimant Contact Information”. Click “Continue” when you’re finished. Next, verify that the correct phone number was entered, and click “Continue”. Finally, on the “Review Your Claim” screen, read through and check the two boxes in the “Certification” section, type your name and enter the date below, and lastly, click “Submit Claim”. All that’s left to do now is cross your fingers and wait!
You’re not going to be able to retire from the Charvat v. Carnival et al class action lawsuit, but it’s worth your time to file a claim. After putting up with these calls over the years, it’s high time that we get rewarded for our troubles. Besides, who wouldn’t like a little “Cash for Cold Calls?”