CAMDEN, N.J. (CBS Local) — TD Bank could pay about $9 million to settle a class-action lawsuit on behalf of customers who used the bank’s coin-counting machines, according to a preliminary agreement before a federal judge.
The agreement, if approved by a Camden federal judge, would include a $7.5-million payment for TD Bank customers who were allegedly shortchanged by nearly 1,200 “Penny Arcade” coin-counting machines.
The deal would also conclude legal troubles that arrived after the bank’s April 2016 disclosure of possible malfunctions with the coin-counters.
TD Bank stopped using the “Penny Arcade” machines after NBC’s “Today” show aired a report showing incorrect results when $300 in coins were processed in five randomly selected machines.
Stephen DeNittis, an Evesham Township, N.J., attorney representing the class members, told the Asbury Park Press that the deal would provide “significant monetary relief” for Penny Arcade users from April 11, 2010, until they became unavailable.
A TD Bank spokesman on Monday said the company does not comment on pending litigation.
The bank will use its records to determine each customer’s Penny Arcade usage, and multiply the sum amount by 0.26 to compute each customer’s payment, according to the settlement.
TD tested more than 1,000 Penny Arcades twice to determine their coin-counting accuracy. The tests found net under-counts of 0.117 percent and 0.090 percent, according to the attorney’s brief.
An expert retained by DeNittis said he found numerous signs of neglect at 18 Penny Arcades in TD Bank locations in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania, according to a June 13 report.
Penny Arcade users who remain TD customers will obtain automatic payments into their accounts, while former customers and people who file written claims will receive checks in the mail, according to the attorney’s brief.
U.S. District Judge Jerome Simandle will reach a decision for the settlement in Camden.
