Photo: Jonathan Weiss (Shutterstock)
When it comes to fast food and fast casual burger chains, there are options galore. So, to help convince consumers that their burgers are the best, these chains have ads and marketing campaigns featuring new limited-time-only offerings and deals, as well as claims about the quality and size of their food.
Smashburger took this approach, but according to the group of unsatisfied customers who filed a class-action lawsuit against the restaurant in 2019, they didn’t accurately represent their burgers while promoting them. The result? Smashburger agreed to a settlement, and if you’ve eaten at the restaurant, you may be able to claim some of that money. Here’s what to know.
What did Smashburger do?
The story begins in 2017, when, according to a 2019 complaint filed against the chain, Tom Ryan, the CEO of Smashburger, led a marketing campaign promoting the restaurant’s Triple Double cheeseburgers as having “three times the cheese and double the beef in every bite.”
However, the plaintiffs in the class-action lawsuit (i.e. the group of customers) claim that Ryan’s assertion about the Triple Double was incorrect. More specifically, because the burger was made with two half-size patties, the combined weight of the beef was the same as one of Smashburger’s regular-sized burgers.
In court filings, Smashburger denied any wrongdoing [and did not respond to CNET’s request for comment on a post the site did about the case], but in September, did agree to a multi-million-dollar settlement to resolve the situation.
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Who is eligible for part of the settlement?
If you live in the United States and purchased any of the following burgers from Smashburger between July 1, 2017, and May 31, 2019, you’re eligible to file a claim:
Smashburger Triple DoubleFrench Onion Triple DoubleBacon Triple DoublePub Triple Double hamburgerAnd don’t worry if you don’t have fast food receipts from five years ago sitting around: Proof of purchase isn’t necessary.
What kind of payout could customers get?
So how much money are we talking about? Well, it depends on whether you’d choose to receive cash or a voucher as your payment—you can’t get both. Here are those options:
Cash: $4 cash payment for each of the sandwich (among those listed above), up to $20 in cash per householdVoucher: Up to 10 product vouchers per household, redeemable when you purchase a regularly-priced entrée at a Smashburger for either:(a) An upgrade of a single beef hamburger to a double beef hamburger for no additional cost (retail value of approximately $2.50); or
(b) A free small fountain drink (retail value of approximately $3).
How to file a claim for part of the Smashburger settlement
If, based on the information above, you think you’re eligible to receive part of the settlement, you have to submit a claim form either online (through this dedicated claims website), or by mail. To send it in by mail, call 1-833-644-1593 to request a copy of the form, and then mail it to:
Smashburger Settlement
c/o Kroll Settlement Administration
PO Box 5324
New York, NY
10150-5324
The deadline for submitting a claim electronically is January 17, 2023. All mailed-in forms must be postmarked by that date as well.
Technically, there’s one final hearing where the court would need to approve the settlement—which is scheduled for January 30, 2023—and if that goes through, any compensation will be mailed out within 45 days.
