Carpenter v. Allstate Insurance Company

Case No. 2:21-cv-03381-EAS-EPD

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF OHIO

Frequently Asked Questions

  1. Basic Information

  2. Why is there a Class Notice?

    A Court authorized the Notice because you have a right to know about a proposed Settlement of this class action lawsuit that affects your rights, and about all of your options, before the Court decides whether to approve the Settlement. If the Court approves the Settlement and if such approval is final with respect to appeal(s), if any, an administrator appointed by the Court will make the payments and take other actions that the Settlement allows. Because your rights will be affected by this Settlement, it is extremely important that you read the Notice carefully.

    If you received a postcard, it is because, according to the records that have been obtained in the course of this lawsuit, you received (1) one or more calls from AGAX; (2) that were made for the purpose of encouraging the purchase of Allstate goods or services; (3) which call(s) were transferred to an Allstate agent(s); (4) on or after September 23, 2016, up to and including the date of Preliminary Approval Order of the Settlement October 1, 2021; and (5) that originated from leads sold by Phoenix Leads (“Phoenix”) to Overstep Leads (“Overstep”). In addition, you may have received two or more of the calls described above, within a 12-month period, while your telephone number(s) was registered on the DNC Registry.

  3. What is the class action lawsuit about?

    The United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio is responsible for this class action lawsuit known as Carpenter v. Allstate Insurance Company, Case No. 2:21-cv-03381-EAS-EPD (S.D. Ohio). This case was brought by Plaintiff Morgan Carpenter, also known as the “Class Representative.” The Plaintiff sued Allstate.

    A class action is a lawsuit in which the claims and rights of many people are decided in a single court proceeding. The Class Representative asserts claims on behalf of the entire class. The Class Representative claims that automated calls were made on behalf of Allstate to individuals who did not give prior express consent to receive such calls, and further claims that some of those calls were made to telephone numbers that were on the DNC Registry. The Class Representative has alleged that this violated a federal statute called the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”), 47 U.S.C. § 227, and that Allstate is liable for such violations.

    Allstate denies any liability or wrongdoing of any kind and further denies that this case is appropriate for treatment as a class action.

  4. Why is there a Settlement?

    The Court has not decided in favor of either the Class Representative, the Settlement Class Members, or Allstate. Both parties agreed to a settlement instead of going to trial. That way, they avoid the cost and uncertainty of a trial, and the people affected will get compensation. The Class Representative and her attorneys think the Settlement is best for all Settlement Class Members. The Court in charge of this lawsuit has granted preliminary approval of the Settlement and ordered that the Notice be distributed to explain it.

  5. WHO IS IN THE SETTLEMENT

  6. How do I know if I am part of the Settlement?

    The Settlement provides relief for all Settlement Class Members, who are described as:

    All persons in the United States (i) to whom AGAX made one or more calls (ii) for the purpose of encouraging the purchase of Allstate goods or services (iii) which call(s) were transferred to an Allstate agent(s) (iv) on or after September 23, 2016, up to and including the date of Preliminary Approval Order of the Settlement October 1, 2021 (v) that originated from leads sold by Phoenix to Overstep.

    To check your eligibility to participate, click here.

    If you have questions about whether you are a Settlement Class Member or are still not sure whether you are included in the Settlement, you can contact the settlement administrator toll-free at 1-(855) 613-3666 or visit this website for more information.

  7. THE SETTLEMENT BENEFITS - WHAT YOU GET

  8. What does the Settlement provide?

    Allstate has agreed to pay $450 to each Settlement Class Member who makes a valid claim under the Settlement. In addition, Allstate agrees that it will pay for Plaintiff’s attorneys’ fees and reasonable expenses, an incentive award to the Class Representative, and settlement administration costs and expenses.

  9. HOW YOU GET PAID

  10. How do I get paid?

    Each Settlement Class Member who submits a valid and timely Claim Form will receive a check for $450. This is considered a cash payment.

    Each Settlement Class Member is eligible to receive one check regardless of the number of times the Settlement Class Member was called or the number of telephone numbers at which the Settlement Class Member was called.

  11. When do I get a payment?

    The Court will hold a hearing on August 15, 2022 to decide whether to approve the Settlement. If the Settlement is approved, appeals may still follow. It is always uncertain whether these appeals can be resolved, and resolving them can take time, perhaps more than a year, so we cannot say exactly when payment will be made. Please be patient.

  12. What am I giving up to get a payment or stay in the Settlement?

    The Settlement Agreement provides more detail regarding the release and describes the Released Persons and Released Claims with accurate legal terminology, so read it carefully.

    If you were to file your own lawsuit for violations of the TCPA and prevailed, you could obtain damages of $500 per violation, or up to $1,500 per violation if the statute is found to have been willfully or knowingly violated. The TCPA does not provide for attorneys’ fees to prevailing individual plaintiffs.

    However, Allstate has denied that it made any illegal calls to anyone or engaged in any wrongdoing of any kind, and Allstate has a full range of potential defenses.

    If you do not exclude yourself from the Settlement Class, you will be unable to file another lawsuit involving any of the claims described and identified below, and you will release Allstate and the Released Persons (defined as Allstate and all of its current or former agents, predecessors, successors, parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, officers, directors, partners, members, principals, employees, managers, shareholders, representatives, attorneys, servants, and assigns) from any liability for them.

    Remaining in the Settlement Class, whether or not you submit a Claim Form, means that you, as well as your current and former agents, employees, representatives, assigns, heirs, executors, administrators, partners, attorneys, successors, trustees, and predecessors-in-interest (each solely in their respective capacity as such) (collectively, “Releasing Persons”), release, resolve, relinquish, and discharge each and every one of the Released Persons from each of the Released Claims (as defined below). You further agree that they will not institute any action or cause of action (in law, in equity or administratively), suits, debts, liens, or claims, known or unknown, fixed or contingent, which they may have or claim to have, in state or federal court, in arbitration, or with any state, federal or local government agency or with any administrative or advisory body, arising from or related in any way to the Released Claims. “Released Claims” means all claims, demands, causes of actions, suits, damages, and fees arising under the TCPA and/or any other federal or state telemarketing laws and/or regulations, whether in law or equity, that have been or could have been brought by a Releasing Person against Allstate or any other Released Persons in connection with AGAX making or causing to be made telemarketing calls promoting Allstate goods or services to the telephone numbers on the Class List, where such call was made on or after September 23, 2016, up to and including the date of the Preliminary Approval Order of this Settlement, including but not limited to claims of any type or nature alleging that Allstate is vicariously liable for said AGAX calls.

    The Released Claims specifically extend to claims that Plaintiff and Settlement Class Members do not know or suspect to exist in their favor at the time that the Settlement Agreement and the releases contained therein become effective. This release will be interpreted to the fullest extent of res judicata principles. In addition, any rights of the Class Representative and each and every one of the Settlement Class Members to the protections afforded under Section 1542 of the California Civil Code and/or any other similar, comparable, or equivalent laws, are terminated.

    Remaining in the Settlement Class also means that you further agree and covenant not to sue any of the Released Persons with respect to any of the Released Claims, or otherwise to assist others in doing so, and agree to be forever barred from doing so, in any court of law or equity, or any other forum.

    The Settlement Agreement (available on this website provides more detail regarding the release and describes the Released Persons and Released Claims with accurate legal terminology, so read it carefully. You can talk to the law firms representing the Class listed in the “Do I have a lawyer in this case?” section below for free or you can, at your own expense, talk to your own lawyer if you have any questions about the Released Parties or the Released Claims or what they mean.

    The release does not apply to Settlement Class Members who timely opt-out of or exclude themselves from the Settlement.

  13. EXCLUDING YOURSELF OR OPTING OUT FROM THE SETTLEMENT

  14. How do I opt-out or exclude myself from the Settlement?

    If you want to keep the right to sue Allstate individually on your own or be a part of a case against Allstate (as a class member or otherwise) about the legal issues in this case, then you must take steps to exclude yourself or opt-out from the Settlement.

    To exclude yourself from the Settlement, you must send a signed request by mail saying that you want to be excluded from Carpenter v. Allstate Insurance Company, Case No. 2:21-cv-03381-EAS-EPD (S.D. Ohio). Your letter must include: (a) your name and address; (b) your telephone phone number(s) in which you received call(s) by AGAX (as described herein); (c) a statement that reasonably indicates a desire to be excluded from the Settlement Class; and (d) your signature.

    You must mail your request for exclusion postmarked no later than May 5, 2022, to:

    Allstate Call TCPA
    c/o Settlement Administrator
    1650 Arch St, Suite 2210
    Philadelphia, PA 19103

    If you ask to be excluded, you will not get any payment, and you cannot object to the Settlement. You will not be legally bound by anything that happens in this Settlement.

    If you do not exclude yourself and the Settlement is finally approved, you give up any right to sue Allstate or any Released Persons on any of the claims that this Settlement resolves. If you have a pending lawsuit against Allstate over these claims, speak to your lawyer in that case immediately. You must exclude yourself from this Settlement Class to continue your own lawsuit. You cannot exclude yourself by telephone or by email. You cannot exclude yourself by mailing a request to any location other than the address above or after the deadline. You must sign your letter requesting exclusion. A lawyer cannot sign for you. No one else can sign for you.

    EXCLUSION REQUESTS THAT ARE NOT POSTMARKED ON OR BEFORE MAY 5, 2022, WILL NOT BE HONORED.

  15. THE LAWYERS REPRESENTING YOU

  16. Do I have a lawyer in this case?

    The Court appointed the following law firms to represent you and other Class Members:

    Matthew R. Wilson
    Meyer Wilson Co., LPA
    305 W. Nationwide Blvd
    Columbus, OH 43215

    Daniel M. Hutchinson
    Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP
    275 Battery Street, 29th Floor
    San Francisco, CA 94111

    These lawyers are called Class Counsel. You will not be charged for these lawyers’ services related to this Settlement. If you want to be represented by your own lawyer, you may hire one at your own expense.

  17. How will the lawyers and Class Representative be paid?

    Class Counsel will ask the Court to approve payment of $99,500 to compensate them for expenses and for attorneys’ fees for investigating the facts, litigating the case, and negotiating the Settlement. Class Counsel will also request an award of an incentive payment of $1,000 to the Class Representative, in compensation for her time and effort. The Court may award less than these amounts and Allstate has reserved the right to object to the approval of the payment of these amounts. These payments, along with the costs of administering the Settlement, once approved, will be made by Allstate.

    Any objection to Class Counsel’s application for attorneys’ fees and costs may be mailed, and must be postmarked no later than May 5, 2022, which is thirty (30) days following the filing of Class Counsel’s motion for an award of attorneys’ fees and costs. You can object by sending a letter addressed to the Court at the address listed in the next section of the Notice. In your letter you must state that you object. Be sure to include your full name, address, telephone number, and the reasons you object to the proposed award, or to the amount of the proposed award.

  18. OBJECTING TO THE SETTLEMENT

  19. How do I tell the Court that I do not think the Settlement is fair?

    You can tell the Court that you do not agree with the Settlement or any part of it. If you are a Class Member, you can object to the Settlement (or any part of it) if you do not think it is fair. You can state the reason(s) why you think the Court should not approve it. The Court will consider your views. To object, you must file a written objection saying that you object to the proposed Settlement in Carpenter v. Allstate Insurance Company, Case No. 2:21-cv-03381-EAS-EPD (S.D. Ohio). Your letter must include: (a) your name, address, and telephone phone number and if different, the telephone number(s) in which you received calls by AGAX (as described herein); (b) if represented by counsel, the name, address, and telephone number of your counsel; (c) the specific grounds for the objection; and (d) a statement of whether you intend to appear at the Final Approval Hearing, either with or without counsel. You may not file objections as a class representative.

    You must also state that the objection is being made on your behalf only and you must also identify any lawyer who was consulted as to the objection or this case. Any supporting documents must also be attached to the objection. Your objection to the Settlement must be filed with the Court and postmarked no later than May 5, 2022.

    The objection must be filed with the Court and must be mailed to Class Counsel and Defense Counsel:

    THE COURT
    Clerk of Court
    U.S. District Court,
    Southern District of Ohio
    Joseph P. Kinneary U.S. Courthouse, Room 121
    85 Marconi Boulevard
    Columbus, OH 43215

    CLASS COUNSEL
    Matthew R. Wilson
    Meyer Wilson Co., LPA
    305 W. Nationwide Blvd
    Columbus, OH 43215

    DEFENSE (ALLSTATE’S) COUNSEL
    Lewis Wiener
    Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP
    700 Sixth Street, N.W., Suite 700
    Washington, DC 20001

    Objecting is simply telling the Court that you do not like something about the Settlement. You can object only if you stay in the Class. Excluding yourself (or opting out), is telling the Court that you do not want to be included in the Settlement. If you exclude yourself, you cannot object because the Settlement no longer affects you. Any Class Member who does not file objections in accordance with the requirements stated in the Notice waives the right to object or to be heard at the Final Approval Hearing discussed below.

  20. THE FINAL APPROVAL HEARING

  21. When and where will the Court decide whether to approve the Settlement?

    The Court will hold a hearing to decide whether to approve the Settlement. This Final Approval Hearing will be held at 1:30 p.m. on August 15, 2022, in Courtroom 3 of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Joseph P. Kinneary U.S. Courthouse, 85 Marconi Boulevard, Columbus, Ohio 43215. The hearing may be held virtually by video conference or moved to a different date or time without additional notice, so it is a good idea to check the settlement website for updates. At this hearing, the Court will consider whether the Settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate, and whether to award attorneys’ fees, expenses, and incentive award as described above, and in what amounts. If there are objections, the Court will consider them. After the hearing, the Court will decide whether to approve the Settlement. We do not know how long it will take the Court to issue its decision. It is not necessary for you to attend this hearing, but you may attend at your own expense.

  22. May I speak at the hearing?

    You may ask the Court for permission to speak at the Final Approval Hearing. To do so, you must file a notice with the Court saying that you intend to appear at the Final Approval Hearing in Carpenter v. Allstate Insurance Company, Case No. 2:21-cv-03381-EAS-EPD (S.D. Ohio). Be sure to include your full name, address, and telephone number, and to the extent not otherwise submitted in relation to a filed objection, copies of any documents you will present to the Court in connection with the Final Approval Hearing. You cannot speak at the hearing if you do not file a timely notice or if you excluded yourself from the Settlement Class. Your notice of intention to appear must be filed with the Court and postmarked no later than May 5, 2022.

    The notice of intention to appear must be filed with the Court and must be mailed to Class Counsel and Defense Counsel:

    THE COURT
    Clerk of Court
    U.S. District Court,
    Southern District of Ohio
    Joseph P. Kinneary U.S. Courthouse, Room 121
    85 Marconi Boulevard
    Columbus, OH 43215

    CLASS COUNSEL
    Matthew R. Wilson
    Meyer Wilson Co., LPA
    305 W. Nationwide Blvd
    Columbus, OH 43215

    DEFENSE (ALLSTATE’S) COUNSEL
    Lewis Wiener
    Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP
    700 Sixth Street, N.W., Suite 700
    Washington, DC 20001

  23. IF YOU DO NOTHING

  24. What happens if I do nothing?

    If you are a Settlement Class Member and do nothing, you will not receive any payment from the Settlement. Unless you exclude yourself, you will be bound by the terms and conditions of the Settlement and you will not be able to start a lawsuit, continue with a lawsuit, or be part of any other lawsuit against Allstate about the legal issues in this case, ever again.

  25. GETTING MORE INFORMATION

  26. How do I get more information?

    The Notice summarizes the proposed Settlement. More details are in the Settlement Agreement.