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Generation Z got a pleasant surprise when the Juul class action lawsuit payments were distributed.
After many filed claims in a class action lawsuit against Juul in 2021, some were surprised to receive the lawsuit payment on October 21. When Drewe Raimi applied as a college student, she said she did it as a joke, but to her surprise, years later, she received an unexpected Venmo payment of nearly $3,500 from the “Juul Labs, Inc. Settlement Administrator.”
With Justin Bieber's “Life Is Worth Living” playing in the background, Raimi recorded a clip of herself celebrating. She wrote in the overlay text: “POV: You just got Venmo for $3,000 from a JUUL class action lawsuit that you forgot you filled out as a PRANK 2 years ago in college.”
Dozens of Gen Z Tik Tok users reacted similarly to the surprise payment, with some noting in Raimi's comments section that they received different amounts.
“I also have [$3,000] I literally fell to my knees when I received the [notification]!” one user joked.
“I don’t even remember filing a claim and I got $6,000!” someone else revealed.
“I just woke up with $1600,” another person wrote. “How is it possible that we all have different amounts?!?! I forgot I did this!
Raimi responded by noting that he had seen amounts ranging from $200 to even $7,000.
Juul's legal troubles have finally led to massive payouts after claims that the company misled consumers about how addictive and dangerous its products are and that they were illegally marketed to teenagers. The settlement, split between Juul's $255 million settlement and Altria's $45 million contribution, amounts to $300 million in total, paving the way for compensation. Altria is no longer a Juul shareholder, following the sale of its minority stake last year.
In March, a federal judge gave the green light to Altria's part of the deal, following Juul's approval in January 2024. At that point, more than 14 million claims and the verification process had been filed for about 842,000 customers. eligible is finally underway. Claimants without proof of purchase will have their compensation limited to $300.
While Altria denies the allegations and Juul has not admitted any wrongdoing, both companies have agreed to settle. A court has yet to rule on whether they violated any laws.
Although Juul initially reached a deal in 2022, it wasn't until earlier this year that Altria approved the payments. The deadline to file claims has passed, leaving a total of approximately $202 million (after fees, taxes and contingencies) to be divided among eligible claimants. Exact payment amounts vary depending on the receipts customers can provide, although an average has not yet been made public.
Juul's fate remains murky, as the FDA rescinded an earlier ban on Juul products in June but stopped short of giving them the green light, pending further health studies and legal reviews.
