How much will you get from the Bank of America settlement?

The $425 million fund at a glance

The Bank of America Data Breach Settlement creates a $425 million common fund. That number sounds huge, but it isn't split evenly among class members. A common fund pays out in a fixed order: attorney fees first, then administration costs (mailing notices, running the claim website, cutting checks), then any court-approved incentive awards for the named plaintiffs. Whatever is left is what actually funds member payments and credit monitoring.

In practice, that means the amount you personally receive is driven by three things: which payout tier you qualify for, how many other people file valid claims, and how much of the fund the court awards in fees. Below we walk through the tiers, the fee math, and realistic per-person scenarios so you have a defensible number in mind — not a headline. Bank of America has not admitted wrongdoing; the settlement resolves the case without a trial.

Two payout tiers: $50 flat vs up to $600 documented

The settlement offers two paths, and you can combine them.

• $50 flat cash payment — everyone in the class who submits a valid claim gets this, no receipts required. You also get 2 years of free three-bureau credit monitoring if you enroll.
• Documented out-of-pocket losses up to $600 — reimbursement for things you actually spent or lost because of the February 2025 breach: unreimbursed fraud charges, credit-freeze fees, replacement-card fees, notary and postage, and up to a set number of hours of your own time at a fixed hourly rate.

If you spent $180 disputing a fraudulent charge and had $220 in credit-freeze fees, you'd claim $50 + $400 documented = $450 total, subject to pro-rata reduction. The $600 documented cap is a ceiling per person, not a guaranteed minimum. If your losses were larger, the extraordinary-loss review path (with stricter proof) may apply — check the administrator's site for current rules.

Attorney fees and admin costs come out first

Class-action lawyers in cases like this typically ask the court for 25%–33% of the fund as fees, plus expenses. On a $425M fund, that's roughly $106M–$140M before a single class member sees a check. Notice and administration — mailing letters, running the claims portal, processing your claim, printing checks or issuing ACH — usually runs another 3%–8%, so figure another $13M–$34M. Named plaintiff incentive awards (a few thousand dollars each) are a rounding error.

After those carve-outs the net fund available for payments and credit monitoring lands in the ballpark of $255M–$300M. The judge signs off on the final fees at the December 17, 2026 fairness hearing, so the exact split isn't locked until then. Credit monitoring is generally paid to a third-party vendor at a per-enrollee price, which comes out of that net pool. That's the pool that has to cover every $50 flat payment and every documented claim.

Payout scenarios by claim volume

Data-breach settlements almost always trigger pro-rata reduction: if valid claims add up to more than the fund can pay, everyone's check shrinks proportionally. Bank of America mailed notice letters to millions of affected customers, and historic take-up rates on breach claims are typically 3%–15% of the class. Here's roughly how the math plays out on a ~$275M net fund, assuming most claimants take the flat $50 and a smaller share submit documentation.

How to boost your check with documentation

The single biggest lever on your final payout is documentation. The flat $50 is a floor; documented losses can add up to $600 more without extraordinary proof. Pull records for anything you spent or lost between the breach announcement in February 2025 and today that plausibly ties back to it.

Good documentation looks like: bank or credit-card statements showing disputed charges, receipts or emails confirming credit-freeze or replacement-card fees, notary invoices, and a simple log of hours you spent on the phone with your bank or fraud departments (the settlement compensates lost time at a set hourly rate up to a capped number of hours). Screenshots of Experian, Equifax and TransUnion freeze confirmations are gold. If you paid for a credit-monitoring subscription in the months after the breach, save the invoice — you can't double-dip with the free monitoring here, but past out-of-pocket monitoring is reimbursable within the $600 cap.

Upload clean PDFs, not blurry phone photos. Weak documentation is the #1 reason breach claims get downgraded to the flat amount.

Is the Bank of America settlement payment taxable?

Refund-type and reimbursement payments — the money you get back for out-of-pocket breach losses — are generally not taxable income under IRS rules, because you're being made whole for a loss, not earning something new. The $50 flat payment is usually treated the same way in data-breach cases when it's characterized as compensation for the intrusion rather than punitive damages or interest. Credit monitoring provided at no cost after a breach is specifically addressed by IRS Announcement 2015-22 and is not taxable.

Two situations can trigger a tax bill: any portion labeled as interest on the settlement fund, and any portion characterized as punitive damages. If either applies, the administrator will send you a 1099 the following January and you report it on your return. See IRS Publication 4345 for the general framework on lawsuit settlements.

This isn't tax advice — if your documented losses are large or you're unsure, run it by a CPA before you file your return.

How to file so you don't miss the payout

The claim itself takes under 10 minutes if you have your notice letter. You do not need a lawyer.

1. Find your notice letter or email from Bank of America / Kroll — it has a Claim ID and PIN that auto-verify you as a class member.
2. Go to the official administrator site (Kroll Settlement Administration) and start a new claim with your Claim ID and PIN.
3. Choose the $50 flat payment (default) and opt into 2 years of free credit monitoring.
4. If you had out-of-pocket losses, add the documented-loss section and upload PDFs of statements, receipts and freeze confirmations (up to $600).
5. Pick your payment method — direct deposit is fastest; paper check adds 2–4 weeks.
6. Submit before November 20, 2026 and save the confirmation email with your claim number.
7. Track the claim on the administrator site; payments typically follow the fairness hearing on December 17, 2026 by several weeks to months.

When you'll actually see the money

Class-action payouts don't hit your account the week you file. The claim window closes November 20, 2026. After that, the administrator spends weeks validating claims and calculating any pro-rata reduction. The final fairness hearing is scheduled for December 17, 2026 — that's when the judge either approves the deal (and the fees) or sends it back for changes. Assuming approval and no appeals, payments typically begin 60–120 days later. Appeals from objectors can add 6–18 months.

Direct deposit (ACH) is usually the fastest to hit; paper checks add mailing time and can get lost. If you move, update your address with the administrator — a returned check is the most common reason people never get paid. Owed tracks your claim status automatically once you connect it; if you want to skip the manual tracking, see the full settlements directory and open the Bank of America case to file through us for free.

Glossary

Common fund

A single pot of settlement money from which attorney fees, administration costs and class-member payments are all paid in order.

Pro-rata reduction

A proportional cut applied to everyone's payout when the total valid claims exceed the money available.

Documented losses

Out-of-pocket expenses you can prove with receipts, statements or invoices — the higher tier of the settlement.

Fairness hearing

The court date when a judge decides whether to approve the settlement, the fee award and the payment plan.

Notice letter

The mailed or emailed notification confirming you're in the class; contains your Claim ID and PIN.

Extraordinary losses

A separate, larger-reimbursement track for unusual documented harm, subject to stricter proof than the base tier.

FAQ