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Updated 3/14/09 - This settlement has been APPROVED by the Court. This means checks are going out! If you submitted a claim, keep your eyes open for them.

Award (how much your claim may be worth): $50 or MORE depending on cost of replacement bulb

Case(s): Ersler v Toshiba America, Inc. Case No. 07 cv 2304

Company(ies): Toshiba

Website Link to access the Class Action Lawsuit Settlement and get YOUR Stake (Print out Claim Form here): Administrator Website

Address to submit paper claim (Required):

Toshiba DLP Lamp Class Settlement
c/o The Garden City Group, Inc.

P.O. Box 9310
Dublin, OH 43017-4210

Phone Number to call for Assistance: (800) 894-1766

Details: Only 2004 and 2005 Model Year DLP TVs are covered by this settlement. Any of the following models: 44HNHM84, 46HM84, 46HM94, 46HM94P, 52HM84, 52HMX84, 52HM94, 52HMX94, 62HM84, 62HM94, 62HMX84, 62HMX94, 62HM194, 46HM85, 46HM95, 46HMX85, 52HM85, 52HM95, 52HMX85, 52HMX95, 56HM195, 56MX195, 62HM85, 62HM95, 62HMX85, 62HMX95, 62HM195, 62MX195, 62HM15, 62HM15A, 62HM15B, 72HM195, and 72MX195.

This settlement extends the warranty on the TV's bulbs from 6 months to 12 months. In addition, certain serial numbers also allow you to claim a refund for DLP bulbs purchased within the warranty period of the TV.

Certain serial numbers are not eligible for a refund of charges incurred from purchasing replacement bulbs. The serial numbers below are not eligible for a refund as they were included in a previous"remediation" program.

The 2005 model year serial numbers below are eligible for a refund for charges incurred from purchasing replacement DLP bulbs as long as the bulb (or bulbs) were purchased within 24 months of the sale date of the TV.

Under the settlement, owners of all 2004 model Toshiba DLP televisions, and owners of those 2005 model Toshiba DLP televisions that do not fall within the range of serial numbers covered by the Remediation Program, who experienced a single bulb failure outside of the 12-month warranty period, but within 18 months from the date of purchase of the television, will be eligible to receive a cash refund for the purchase of the replacement bulb.
Owners of all 2004 and 2005 model Toshiba DLP televisions who experienced two or more bulb failures outside the 12-month warranty period, but within 24 months from the date of purchase of the television, will also be eligible to receive cash refunds for their purchases of replacement bulbs.

Finally, owners of those 2005 model Toshiba DLP televisions that fall within the range of serial numbers covered by the Remediation Program, and who purchased one or more replacement bulbs outside of the 12-month warranty period, but within 24 months from the date of purchase of the television, will also be eligible to receive cash refunds for their purchases of a replacement bulb or bulbs.

If you fall into one of the above categories and wish to seek a refund for one or more replacement bulbs that you purchased, you will need to submit a claim to Toshiba to claim your refund, and to provide proof of purchase of your television and for each replacement bulb for which you seek a refund

Confused yet? Yes, I know, it's a bit lengthy. Check out the Tidbit for our take on this settlement.

Purchased From: 2004 and 2005 Model Year Toshiba DLP TVs purchased between January 1, 2004 and September 18, 2008

Claims Accepted Until (YOU MUST SUBMIT YOUR CLAIM BY THIS DATE!): 6/24/09

Class Action Lawsuit Settlement Amount(s): $Unknown (not listed in the settlement agreement) plus $265,000 in Attorney Fees plus $18,000 in Lead Plaintiff Incentive Awards, plus $3500 in additional litigation expenses minus administrative costs (advertising the notice, settlement administrator expenses, etc.). Since Attorney Fees are usually about 15 - 30% of the total settlement amount we can make a guess that the Settlement Amount is between $1,500,000 to $3,000,000. If you know the real amount, send us a note!

TCA Staff Tidbit: This is only interesting settlement if you own a Toshiba DLP TV and have had bulb problems. So, hopefully if you had a bulb that died and you purchased a replacement you have your receipt. With the age of GMail upon us, you save ALL of your electronic receipts forever, right? :) I remember when I was looking at buying one of these sets back in 2004 the main reason I didn't is because of complaints about the bulbs wearing out prematurely. I'm happy I stayed away and waited for Plasma big screens to come down in price.

Our supposition is that Toshiba is attempting to brush this settlement under the rug... It only ran a few times in the national media and the budget for administrative expenses (including advertising to reach the affected class) is almost none existent. A few thousand bucks covers one nationwide legal notice. That's about it. I'm willing to bet that Garden City Group's (the Settlement Administrator managing dispersion of the refunds) margin on this is quite tiny. Competition is tough for Settlement Administrators right now so I hope they're covering their expenses on this one.

An interesting item from this case is the Lead Plaintiff incentive payments. The MINIMUM payment is $3,500, and the max a Lead Plaintiff is receiving is $5,000. That's pretty good. Of course, all of their travel expenses have been covered for depositions, but for such a small settlement overall ($1.5 - $3 Million estimated) I think they did pretty well. So, if you can, MAKE YOUR CLAIM! Also, remember, the only way to become a Lead Plaintiff is to be one of the first people filing the lawsuit! Submit your complaint now. If an attorney in our advertising network picks up the case you're on your way to being a Lead Plaintiff in a case!