Finalizing claims in the $197.5 million Visa and Mastercard ATM surcharge settlement means the administrator, AB Data, is now conducting final verification of claimant eligibility and preparing to distribute the remaining settlement funds to approved recipients. As of June 20, 2025, the settlement received final court approval when the judge entered final judgment—and critically, no appeals were filed within the 30-day appeal period, meaning the settlement is now fully approved and legally binding.
This finalization stage determines which claimants will receive payment, how much they’ll receive based on their verified ATM fee claims, and when distributions will begin. The settlement administrator sent deficiency notices to claimants with questionable or incomplete claims by November 24, 2025, giving them 45-60 days to cure issues before the claim pool closes. This article explains what the finalization process actually means for claimants, what deficiency notices are, how to respond if you received one, what your expected payout could be, and the timeline for when payments will arrive.
Table of Contents
- How Does Claim Finalization Work in ATM Settlement Cases?
- Understanding the Deficiency Notice Timeline and Your Cure Period
- What Deficiency Notices Actually Require and How to Respond
- Expected Individual Payouts and How Settlement Amounts Are Divided
- Why Claims Get Rejected During Finalization and What That Means
- The Payment Distribution Timeline and When You’ll Actually Receive Money
- What Happens After the Payment Distribution Window Closes
How Does Claim Finalization Work in ATM Settlement Cases?
claim finalization is the administrator’s process of reviewing, validating, and approving all submitted claims before distributing settlement funds. In the atm settlement, AB Data uses a combination of ClaimScore technology and internal fraud review to examine each claim for legitimacy and completeness. Claims are evaluated based on the submitted documentation—typically bank statements, ATM receipts, or transaction records showing you paid surcharge fees—and cross-checked against your ATM activity history and account information.
If your claim passes validation without issues, it moves to the “approved” status automatically and you’ll receive payment during the distribution window. However, if the administrator flags questions about your claim—such as missing documentation, discrepancies in dates or amounts, unclear evidence of ATM surcharges, or suspected duplicate claims—you receive a deficiency notice explaining what’s missing or needs clarification. For the ATM settlement specifically, 296,877 claims were identified as valid out of a much larger pool of submissions, meaning many claims were rejected during this finalization review. The deficiency notice process is the critical gateway: it’s your chance to provide additional evidence before your claim is permanently denied.
Understanding the Deficiency Notice Timeline and Your Cure Period
The settlement administrator sent deficiency notices to affected claimants by November 24, 2025, and claimants had a 45-60 day cure window to address the issues raised before the finalization deadline. A deficiency notice isn’t a claim rejection—it’s a warning that your claim needs additional documentation or clarification before it can be approved.
The notice will specifically list what’s missing: for example, “we need clearer documentation of ATM fees charged during March 2019 through October 2021” or “your bank statement doesn’t clearly show the surcharge line items.” However, if you didn’t receive a deficiency notice by the deadline, that’s actually a good sign: it typically means your claim passed initial validation and is on track for approval. If you did receive a deficiency notice during the November 2025 deadline window, the critical mistake claimants often make is waiting too long to respond. The 45-60 day cure window is firm, and submitting evidence after that deadline means your claim may be denied without reconsideration, even if you had valid evidence all along.
What Deficiency Notices Actually Require and How to Respond
Deficiency notices specify exactly what documentation or information the administrator needs to approve your claim. Common deficiency reasons in ATM surcharge settlements include: insufficient bank statements showing the actual surcharge charges (administrators want to see the itemized fees, not just your account balance), proof of ATM usage during the claim period that matches your submitted amounts, identification documentation if there’s any question about who the claim belongs to, or clarification on disputed amounts where your claimed surcharge total doesn’t match the administrator’s database. The notice will include a response deadline (typically within the 45-60 day cure window mentioned above) and instructions for submitting additional documents—usually through the online claims portal at www.ATMClassAction.com or by mail to AB Data.
You can also call 877-311-3724 or email info@ATMClassAction.com to ask clarifying questions about what the administrator needs. The key is submitting clear, legible copies of supporting documents (PDF or image format) that directly address each issue listed in the notice. For example, if the deficiency says “surcharge amounts unclear,” submit a bank statement with the surcharge line items highlighted and labeled with dates, amounts, and which ATM network charged the fee. Missing this deadline means your claim gets denied, and you won’t be eligible for payment even if you later find the documentation.
Expected Individual Payouts and How Settlement Amounts Are Divided
The finalized ATM settlement distributes $197.5 million among approved claimants, with an estimated 296,877 valid claims now in the approved pool. This means the individual payout per claimant is determined by dividing the settlement fund (after attorney fees, administrator costs, and settlement expenses) by the total number of approved claims. The settlement administrator estimates that approved claimants will receive 23-38% of their unreimbursed ATM surcharge fees, with the wider range (38% at the high end) reflecting the impact of rejected claims, which reduces the total claimant pool and increases per-person payouts.
For example, if you submitted a claim for $150 in ATM surcharges and your claim is approved, you could reasonably expect to receive somewhere between $35 and $57 (23-38% of $150), depending on final approved claim totals and settlement expenses. The exact percentage won’t be known until claim finalization is complete and all disputed claims are resolved. The reason payouts don’t reach 100% is that settlement funds must also cover attorney fees (typically 25-30% of the settlement), administrator costs (usually 5-10%), and court-approved service awards to named class representatives, leaving the remainder for individual claimants.
Why Claims Get Rejected During Finalization and What That Means
During the finalization process, some claims are rejected because they don’t meet the settlement’s eligibility requirements or because claimants can’t provide sufficient evidence of their ATM surcharge fees. Common rejection reasons include: claims submitted without any supporting documentation (banks statement showing charges, ATM receipts, etc.), claims that predate the settlement class period (the settlement covers ATM fees charged during a specific timeframe, usually several years), duplicate claims from the same person under multiple names or account numbers (the administrator flags these to prevent double-payment), claims for ATM fees that don’t match the settlement criteria (for example, fees from ATMs owned by your own bank might not qualify if the settlement targets out-of-network surcharges specifically), and claims where the claimant can’t be verified or located for payment.
When a claim is rejected, the claimant doesn’t receive a deficiency notice—they receive a claim denial notice explaining why they’re ineligible. However, this is different from a deficiency notice: a denial means the claim didn’t meet the settlement requirements, whereas a deficiency notice means the claim might be eligible but needs more evidence. If your claim was rejected outright, most settlements do allow a formal appeal or review request, typically through the administrator’s website or by calling their support line.
The Payment Distribution Timeline and When You’ll Actually Receive Money
The settlement administrator begins distributing funds within 90 days of the court’s final approval order, which means distributions started in late September 2025. However, the actual payment distribution window extends through Winter 2026, estimated between December 2025 and April 2026, because the administrator staggers payments to handle the large volume of approved claims and to account for processing time, returned payments, and claim adjustments. Most claimants will receive payment via check mailed to their address on file, though some settlements offer electronic fund transfer if you provide banking information.
The payment process typically works like this: the administrator processes a batch of approved claims, generates checks or initiates transfers, and mails them out in waves. If you’ve been approved and claim finalization is complete for your record, you could see payment arrive anytime during the December 2025 to April 2026 window, though exact timing depends on when your claim finished processing and the administrator’s distribution schedule. A critical thing to watch for: if you move after filing your claim, make sure to update your address with the administrator at www.ATMClassAction.com or by calling 877-311-3724, because a check returned as undeliverable can delay your payment indefinitely.
What Happens After the Payment Distribution Window Closes
After April 2026, any remaining unpaid funds may be subject to cy pres provisions (a legal mechanism that directs unclaimed settlement money to related charitable organizations) or may revert to the defendant, depending on the settlement agreement. This is why it’s critical to cash or deposit any check received during the distribution window—uncashed settlement checks eventually expire (typically 6-12 months after issuance depending on state law), and after expiration, you generally lose the right to claim those funds. Some settlements allow claimants to claim payments even after checks expire if you contact the administrator and can prove your eligibility, but the process becomes complicated and you may lose some of your recovery.
For the ATM settlement specifically, if you received a deficiency notice and successfully submitted the required documentation, your claim should be included in the approved pool and you’ll receive payment during the distribution window. If you never received a deficiency notice and submitted your claim properly, you’re already approved and should expect payment soon. The finalization process concludes once all claims are resolved and the distribution window closes, at which point the settlement is administratively closed and new claims cannot be filed.