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Hey you, with the headphones: Are you an Audible customer? If you signed up for Amazon’s audiobook service — or received it as a gift — before August 2018, you could get a free book from a recent lawsuit settlement.
Several lawsuits have alleged that Audible and its parent company, Amazon, didn’t properly inform customers about the expiration of membership credits and didn’t offer sufficient information on the company’s payment practices. All sides have agreed to a class action settlement as the best resolution.
So, how do you know if you’re a member of one of the “classes” involved in the suits? The suit covers Audible members who lost credits they’d purchased between March 10, 2013 and August 17, 2018. Folks who used a gift membership between August 11, 2011 through August 17, 2018 can also receive part of the settlement if they lost credits, too.
Everyone who’s part of the settlement will receive credit for one free audiobook, to be selected from a catalog of more than 200,000 choices at general list pricing. Members — or former members — who lost five or more credits get one additional credit, as well.
Potentially, you could receive up to four free books if you’re a member of all these groups:
- You purchased a membership and lost credits due to the “rollover limit”
- You canceled your membership and lost your remaining credits
- You received a membership as a gift and lost your credits after the membership expired
- You lost five or more credits
The settlement also covers people who received an unexpected charge on one of their Amazon payment methods. Apparently, if the customer’s first-choice credit card is declined, the company automatically charges another card on file. Customers in this class can file with Amazon for reimbursement of overdraft or similar fees incurred between March 10, 2013 and August 17, 2018 as a result of Audible charging a backup payment card.
So, you lost credits on Audible and thus fall into one of the above classes. What do you do? Nothing.
If you’ve received a notice about the upcoming settlement and want to receive your free book or reimbursement, just sit back and relax. Once the settlement is approved by the court, you’ll receive an email with instructions on how to proceed.
The only people who need to provide any documentation are those whose backup credit cards were charged. If you’re in that category, you should receive an email telling you so. File within 60 days of the settlement’s final approval to be eligible to recoup your loss.
Otherwise, you only need to take action if you wish to be excluded from the settlement. Most people who would do this are considering filing a separate suit. Information on how to exclude yourself is here.
If you’re content with the settlement that’s been reached, just hang tight and expect an email with more details in the coming months!
About the Author
Kathleen was born in Iowa, but has spent most of her life in Colorado - with stints in Chicago, New York and Wyoming for variety. She’s written about things like music, food, nightlife, medical news, motorcycles, animals, bargain shopping, strip clubs and plants for publications like The Denver Post, Esquire, The A.V. Club, and Scripps' Simplemost and Don't Waste Your Money. More.
