A Court authorized this notice to inform you about the proposed update to the Settlement (“Expanded Settlement”) and your rights. Before any final judgment is entered, the Court will have a hearing to decide whether to approve the Expanded Settlement. This notice is only a summary of the Expanded Settlement, the lawsuit, and your legal rights. Regardless of whether this update is approved, the original Settlement and the changes to Experian’s business practices that were already ordered as part of that Settlement, will remain in place. More details about the proposed Expanded Settlement, the date when appeals are no longer allowed and the Settlement is final, deadlines, and your options are available in a longer document called the Settlement Agreement.

The lawsuit is known as Hill-Green v. Experian Information Solutions, Inc., No. 3:19-cv-708 (E.D. Va.). Judge M. Hannah Lauck of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia is overseeing the case. The person who sued is called “Plaintiff” or “Named Plaintiff”; the company that she sued is called “Experian” or the “Defendant.”

The lawsuit claims that Experian violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act when it: (1) incorrectly reported some consumers’ residential addresses as high-risk or non-residential, (2) did not have procedures to make sure that it reported Fraud Shield Indicators accurately (or correctly), and (3) did not take off adverse information (that hurts your creditworthiness) on reports after seven years. Experian denies these claims and that it did anything wrong.

The Court did not decide whether either side was right or wrong. Instead, both sides agreed to the Settlement to resolve the case and provide benefits to consumers.

A class action lawsuit tries to bring similar claims into one case in one court. In a class action, one or more people called “Class Representatives” (in this case, Lisa Hill-Green) bring the case to court. They have their name listed in the title of the case. They sue on behalf of themselves and other people who have similar claims — called the Class or Class Members — which in this case may include you. One court resolves the issues for everyone in the Class. The Class Representative filed this case as a proposed class action.

The Court has not decided which side is right or wrong in this case. Instead, both sides agreed to a settlement to avoid the costs and risks of a lengthy trial and appeals process. Class Members will receive the benefits described in this notice. The parties think the proposed Settlement is best for all Class Members.

There is only one settlement in this case, Hill-Green v. Experian, but it has changed over time. The Settlement provides both injunctive relief and money damages to certain consumers. An injunction occurs when a court orders a person or company to do or not to do something. In this case, the Court ordered Experian to change its business practices for its Fraud Shield product.

On April 27, 2022, the Court approved a settlement that provided benefits to all Class Members in the form of Court-ordered changes to Experian’s business practices. It did not provide money to class members and did not resolve claims against Experian in the litigation.

Recently, the parties agreed to modify the Settlement to provide additional Court-ordered changes to Experian’s business practices (see FAQ 9) (the “Expanded Settlement”), as well as the possibility that certain consumers who were potentially harmed by Experian’s reporting of high-risk and non-residential Fraud Shield Indicators (the “Money Settlement Class”) receive a payment.

The Court granted Preliminary Approval of the Settlement on September 29, 2022. Settlement Notice was issued to Rule 23(b)(3) Class Members by mail and/or email.

The Court held a final hearing to decide whether to approve the updated Settlement on March 1, 2023 at 11:00 a.m., Eastern. The Court granted Final Approval of the Settlement.

You are included in the Class if, between September 27, 2017 though the present, Experian sent your consumer report to a third party with an inaccurate Fraud Shield Indicator No. 10, 11, 16, or 17, showing that your address was either a high-risk or non-residential address.

When you apply for credit, potential creditors may contact Experian to obtain your credit report. In addition to a standard credit report, potential creditors may also ask Experian to provide additional information that help the creditor detect potential fraud. This additional information sold to potential creditors as part of a product Experian calls “Fraud Shield.”

Specifically, when you apply for credit, a potential creditor may request that Experian check the address you provided in your application, along with current and prior addresses in your Experian credit file, against address information that it obtains from other sources. This information tells Experian whether one of your addresses has been used for a business and whether the business is of a type that Experian believes may be associated with fraud. If an address has been associated with that type of business, Experian will report it as non-residential and will report what type of business it appears to be. Experian does this by returning a “Fraud Shield Indicator,” flagging the presence of a business at the address associated with you.

If Experian’s records indicate that the address is a certain type of high-risk, business address (for example, a prison), Experian will also flag the address as potentially associated with fraud and advise the potential creditor to contact you directly to get more information. Experian does this by returning a “Fraud Shield Indicator,” flagging the presence of a high-risk business at the address associated with you.

If you are still not sure whether you are included in the Class, then you can call toll-free 1-877-917-0074.

You may contact the attorneys representing you for further information or assistance at: ExperianAddressSettlementCounsel@bm.net or write to: Experian Settlement Class Counsel, 763 J Clyde Morris Blvd., Suite 1A, Newport News, VA 23601.

The Court granted Final Approval of the Settlement, which provides injunctive relief benefits to all Class Members in addition to those already approved on April 27, 2022. An injunction occurs when a court orders a person or company to do or not to do something. In this case, the Court ordered Experian to change its business practices. This Settlement requires Experian, at its expense, to design, implement, and maintain specific and substantial procedures that address the lawsuit’s concerns about how Experian handles non-residential data and reports Fraud Shield Indicators. All Class Members will receive the benefit from these changes in business practices.

Changes to Experian business practices will include:

• Experian will add a page to its consumer education website blog describing Fraud Shield Indicators and what they mean and instructions on how consumers can dispute an incorrect Fraud Shield Indicator.
• Experian will change its consumer file disclosures to show that Experian has flagged consumers’ address(es) as non-residential and/or high-risk. It will help consumers understand how this information was used for the Fraud Shield report sent to third parties.
• For at least five years after the Settlement becomes effective, all Experian consumer file disclosures that have a Fraud Shield Indicator must include a paragraph explaining the fraud shield indicator and provide instructions on how to dispute it.
• Experian will change the way it investigates disputes about Fraud Shield Indicators that use high-risk and non-residential addresses. If a consumer contacts Experian to show these Fraud Shield Indicators are incorrect, Experian will accept the that the address is residential and change its records to show it is not a business address.

Judge Lauck will supervise and enforce these changes. The specific terms of these changes are included in the Settlement Agreement.

Experian also agreed to pay and notice and administration costs up to $350,000.

Changes to Experian’s business practices will stay in effect for five years after this Settlement becomes effective or until Experian stops reporting Fraud Shield Indicators that state that a consumer’s address is either high-risk or non-residential, whichever is earlier.

During that time, the Court will continue to oversee these changes and enforce the Settlement Agreement terms.
 

No. Class Members in this Settlement will not receive a payment. All Class Members will benefit from Experian’s additional changes to its’ business practices.

There is a separate proposed $23.45 million settlement for certain Class Members who may have been harmed by how Experian reported its high-risk and non-residential Fraud Shield Indicators. These individuals may get additional benefits, including a payment. If you are part of the Money Settlement Class and entitled to a payment, you will receive a notice in the mail/email.

The Court held a Final Approval Hearing on March 1, 2023. The Court granted Final Approval of the Settlement.

The date when all appeals are completed, and the proposed Settlement becomes final, is called the Effective Date.

The Court granted Final Approval of the Settlement. You gave up the right to sue Experian in a representative or class action for any claims in this lawsuit, including claims relating to Experian’s reporting of high-risk or non-residential address Fraud Shield Indicators. This is called “releasing” your claims. This release is in addition to the release already approved by the Court.

However, you will keep your right to file an individual lawsuit for any damages that occurred before the Settlement became effective. Experian will have the right to deny it is responsible for damages.

More details are explained in the Settlement Agreement.

The Court’s decisions in this case applies to you even if you objected to this Settlement or have any other claim, lawsuit, or proceeding pending against Experian relating to the same claims. If you have additional questions about the release, you should consult with a lawyer (see FAQ 15).

No. This Settlement requires Experian to change its business practices and implement procedures to benefit all Class Members equally. As explained in FAQ 9, this type of benefit is injunctive. Therefore, under this type of class action, you cannot exclude yourself from the Class or this proposed Expanded Settlement.

However, as explained in FAQ 13, you still have the right to file an individual lawsuit against Experian for your damages and have your case and Experian’s defenses heard in court.

Yes. The Court approved the following lawyers as “Class Counsel” to represent you and other Class Members:

• Leonard Bennett, of Consumer Litigation Associates, P.C., in Newport News, Virginia;
• Kristi Kelly, of Kelly Guzzo PLC, in Fairfax, Virginia; and
• E. Michelle Drake, of Berger Montague PC, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
   

You will not be charged for these lawyers. You may hire your own lawyer to represent you, if you so choose, but you will be responsible for paying your attorney’s fees and expenses.

You may contact the attorneys representing you for further information or assistance at: ExperianAddressSettlementCounsel@bm.net or write to: Experian Settlement Class Counsel, 763 J Clyde Morris Blvd, Suite 1A, Newport News, VA 23601.

You will not be charged for these lawyers, and you will not have to pay any of their fees and expenses. Class Counsel will ask the Court to award attorneys’ fees and expenses and a service payment to the Class Representative to cover their work on the Money Settlement Class. Information about those fees will be contained in the notice describing the Money Settlement Class. If Experian’s records show that you could qualify for a payment, you will receive a notice in the mail/email.

The deadline to object to the Settlement was January 30, 2023.

The Court held a Final Approval Hearing on March 1, 2023 at 11:00 a.m., Eastern, before Judge Lauck, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Richmond Division at 701 East Broad Street, Richmond, Virginia 23219.

At the hearing, the Court considered whether the proposed Settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate. The Parties and other interested persons were given an opportunity to be heard in support of and in opposition to the proposed Settlement. The Court granted Final Approval of the Settlement.

The Final Approval Hearing was held on March 1, 2023.

The Final Approval Hearing was held on March 1, 2023.

You are not required to do anything to get benefits from the Expanded Settlement. The Final Approval Hearing was held on March 1, 2023, and the Court granted Final Approval to the Settlement. You are bound by the Court’s final judgment and the released claims explained in the Settlement Agreement. 

More details about this Settlement, the dates when appeals are no longer allowed and when the Settlement is final, deadlines, and your options are available in a longer document called the Settlement Agreement.

In addition, some of the key documents in the case are posted under the Important Documents page.

You also may write with questions to Experian Settlement Class Counsel, 763 J Clyde Morris Blvd, Suite 1A, Newport News, VA 23601, email ExperianAddressSettlementCounsel@bm.net, or call the toll-free number, 1-877-917-0074.

Do not write or call the judge or any court personnel concerning this lawsuit or Settlement notice.