How to file a Bank of America settlement claim (with or without a Claim ID)

Who can actually file this claim

The class covers people in the United States whose personal information — names, Social Security numbers and addresses — was compromised in the Bank of America data security incident announced in February 2025, and who received a notice letter from the bank or the administrator. If any of the following is true, you're likely in the class:

• You got a letter from Bank of America or Kroll about the 2025 incident (paper or email).
• You have (or had) any BofA-serviced account, including HELOC or wealth-management accounts, during the affected period.
• You saw your name on a breach-notification database matched to this incident.

You do not need to prove identity theft or a specific loss to collect the flat payment. You only need proof if you want to claim reimbursement of documented losses on top of the $50. If you never got a notice but believe your data was exposed, you can still submit the claim — the administrator will attempt to match your name, address and Social Security number against the class list before approving. See the full case summary on the settlement page.

What the settlement actually pays

The $425 million fund pays two things, and you can claim one or both on the same form. Understanding this before you file saves you from picking the wrong box and leaving money on the table.

Choose the flat $50 if you never had to spend time or money because of the breach. It's the fastest path, requires no receipts, and everyone in the class qualifies. Choose the documented-loss reimbursement (up to $600) if you can show out-of-pocket costs — replacement card fees, credit-freeze fees, notary charges, postage, fraud losses that weren't reversed, or up to 4 hours of your time at roughly $25/hour for calls to your bank. Everyone who files also gets two years of free credit monitoring through the administrator, regardless of which cash option they pick.

What to gather before you open the form

The form takes 5–10 minutes if you have the right things on hand. Missing pieces are the #1 reason people abandon halfway and forget to come back. Pull these together first:

• Your notice letter (paper or email) — it prints a Claim ID and PIN/Notice ID. This is the fastest way to file.
• Legal name and current mailing address. If you moved since the breach, have both the old and new address handy.
• Last four of your Social Security number — the administrator uses it to match you to the class list, especially if you don't have a Claim ID.
• A payment destination — bank routing/account for ACH, a PayPal/Venmo/Zelle handle, or a mailing address for a paper check.
• Receipts, statements, or logs for any losses you're claiming — dated PDFs or clear photos work.

If you can't find your notice, don't skip filing — the next section covers the no-Claim-ID path. You have until November 20, 2026, but administrators warn that filings in the final week frequently get flagged for manual review, delaying payment by weeks.

Filing with a Claim ID and PIN (the fast path)

If you have your notice letter, this is the path the administrator expects and it's the smoothest. The form is hosted by Kroll Settlement Administration, the court-appointed administrator for this case. Follow these steps in order.

1. Go to the official Kroll settlement site linked from the court-approved notice — never a link from a random email or text message.
2. Click 'File a Claim' and enter the Claim ID and PIN (or Notice ID) exactly as printed on your notice. Both are case-sensitive.
3. Confirm your name, mailing address, email and phone. Update anything that's changed — payment goes to whatever's on the form.
4. Choose the flat $50 OR the documented-loss option (or both, if you're claiming losses). Upload proof as PDF or image files if you're claiming reimbursement.
5. Pick your payment method: ACH, PayPal, Venmo, Zelle, prepaid card, or paper check. Digital pays weeks faster than paper.
6. Opt in (or out) of the two years of free credit monitoring — it's free and doesn't ding your credit.
7. Review, sign under penalty of perjury, and submit. Save the confirmation number and screenshot the confirmation page.

Filing without a Claim ID (the 'no notice' path)

Notice letters get lost, thrown out with junk mail, or sent to old addresses. The court anticipated this. On the same claim site there's an option labeled 'I did not receive a notice' or 'File without a Claim ID' — use it. The form is almost identical, but you'll be asked to supply more identifying information so the administrator can match you to the class list.

Expect to enter your full legal name, current address, address at the time of the breach (roughly early 2025), date of birth, and the last four digits of your Social Security number. Kroll runs that against Bank of America's class file. If it matches, your claim is processed like any other. If it doesn't match, you'll get an email asking for more information — respond within the window they give you (usually 30 days) or the claim is closed. Owed users can skip the manual match: connect once, and we submit the identity fields the administrator expects. See the settlement page for the direct link to the claim portal.

How to document losses for the up-to-$600 payment

The reimbursement track is where people leave real money on the table by not itemizing. The administrator won't guess — every line needs a dollar amount and a supporting document. What counts:

• Unreimbursed fraud losses — charges you weren't refunded, wire-transfer losses, tax-return fraud costs.
• Card replacement, notary, postage, and credit-freeze/unfreeze fees at the three bureaus.
• Credit monitoring or identity-protection services you paid for out of pocket after the breach announcement.
• Lost time dealing with the breach — typically capped around 4 hours at roughly $25/hour, self-attested, no receipt required for the time itself.

Bundle everything into one PDF if you can. Label each document ("Experian freeze fee — 3/12/2025 — $11.23"). Redact account numbers to the last four digits. Keep the originals for a year in case the administrator requests them during audit. If your losses exceed $600, only the first $600 is paid — but you keep the flat $50 on top only if the administrator's rules allow both (they do for this case). Losses above the cap can sometimes be pursued separately; not legal advice.

Choosing a payment method and when money arrives

Payment method is a bigger deal than most people realize. Digital methods — ACH, PayPal, Venmo, Zelle, prepaid debit — typically clear in 3–10 business days once distribution starts. Paper checks add 2–4 weeks of mail time and are the #1 source of "lost" payments (uncashed checks eventually revert to the fund or unclaimed-property databases). For rough timing on the whole distribution, see our Bank of America settlement payout date guide.

Distribution can't start until after the fairness hearing on December 17, 2026, and only if the court gives final approval and no appeals are filed. Realistically, most claimants who file cleanly can expect payment somewhere between spring and late 2027. The claim deadline itself is November 20, 2026 — file well before that, because the administrator's site historically slows to a crawl in the final 72 hours as millions of claims come in at once. If you want to see other active settlements you may also qualify for while you wait, browse the full settlements directory.

How Owed files this claim for you

You can absolutely file this yourself in 10 minutes with your notice letter in hand. Owed exists for the other case — the letter you tossed, the deadline you'd forget, or the six other settlements you also qualify for and don't know about. Here's what the app does specifically for the Bank of America claim:

• Runs the 9-question eligibility quiz once. It carries your identity fields (name, address, last-4 SSN) across every claim so you don't retype.
• Pre-fills the Kroll form with your info and submits it — including the no-Claim-ID path if you never got a notice.
• Optional inbox connect finds fraud-related receipts (card replacement fees, monitoring subscriptions) to boost your documented-loss claim.
• Tracks the claim from filed → approved → paid, and reminds you about the November 20 deadline.
• Pays you into a bank, check, or gift card (+5% bonus on gift cards). Free to file. No cut of self-filed payouts.

Owed is not a law firm and not the administrator — Kroll and the court decide who qualifies and how much you're paid. This article is general information, not legal or tax advice.

Glossary

Claim ID

A unique code printed on your notice letter that the administrator uses to look up your record. Also called Notice ID or PIN.

Class member

Anyone the court's definition covers — here, US residents whose personal data was exposed in BofA's February 2025 breach notice.

Documented losses

Out-of-pocket costs you can prove with receipts or statements. Reimbursable up to $600 in this case.

Fairness hearing

The court date when a judge decides whether to grant final approval of the settlement. Payments can't be sent before it.

Administrator

The court-appointed company (Kroll here) that runs the claims process — sends notices, reviews forms, and issues payments.

Pro rata

A proportional reduction. If more valid claims come in than the fund can cover, everyone's amount is scaled down evenly.

FAQ