Given the large number of valid claims, KPMG says claimants will receive an e-transfer of $7.86. Those receiving a cheque will get $5.86, after deduct

Claimants in LifeLabs data-breach class action to get $7.86 each

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2024-05-15 02:30:06

Given the large number of valid claims, KPMG says claimants will receive an e-transfer of $7.86. Those receiving a cheque will get $5.86, after deducting a $2 processing fee.

The class action was launched against LifeLabs after a 2019 data breach allowed hackers to access the personal information of up to 15 million customers.

Craig Jones, a law professor at Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops, B.C., says the judge who approved the settlement found that the data was not inappropriately used and no members of the class suffered harm. He also found that the chances of success at trial were minimal and felt a settlement between $4.9 million and $9.8 million would be appropriate.

When the class-action settlement was approved last fall, potential claimants were told they would be eligible to receive about $50, up to a maximum of $150, though legal fees and taxes would be deducted. The precise amount, however, would be determined based on how many claims were filed.

"Because really what you're trying to do is a couple of things here," the professor added. "One is compensation to the extent people have suffered harm, and here nobody, it turned out, had suffered harm.