Visa, Mastercard to pay $168M to settle ATM fee lawsuit
Visa and Mastercard will pay $167.5 million to settle a class-action lawsuit alleging collusion to maintain high ATM fees.Summary
Visa and Mastercard have agreed to a $167.5 million settlement in a class-action lawsuit accusing them of conspiring to keep ATM access fees artificially high. The proposed settlement, filed in Washington's federal district court, requires judicial approval and aims to compensate millions of customers who paid unreimbursed fees for cash withdrawals from independent, non-bank ATMs. Visa will contribute approximately $88.8 million, while Mastercard will contribute around $78.7 million to the fund, which will be distributed to eligible customers with qualifying transactions dating back to October 2007.
The lawsuit, originally filed in 2011, challenged industry rules that allegedly prevented independent ATM operators from lowering prices. This settlement follows a previous agreement in 2023 where the companies paid $197.5 million to resolve similar claims related to overcharges at bank-operated ATMs. Plaintiffs' lawyers have requested up to 30% of the settlement fund, approximately $50 million, for legal fees.
A separate, ongoing lawsuit brought by independent ATM owners and operators remains pending in the same court.
(Source：Newsbytes)