CRT settlement: Courts approve $49.8M payout in electronics class action

If you purchased a cathode ray tube TV or computer monitor between 1995 and 2007, you may be eligible for a cash payout.

Canadian class action law firm Siskinds LLP announced Friday that courts in Ontario, British Columbia and Quebec have approved class-action lawsuit settlements totalling nearly $50 million.

While the amount of the settlements will depend on the value of CRT purchases, and the overall number of claims, the minimum payouts are expected to be $20.

"The court-approved protocol we are announcing today will allow eligible Canadians to recover money they should have never been charged in the first place," Linda Visser of LLP Siskinds said in a statement.

Consumers who were living in Canada and purchased CRTs between March 1995 and November 2007 don't need to have receipts for their decades-old TVs and computer monitors, as claims can be filed online for up to two undocumented purchases.

The claim application deadline is March 1, 2019.

The class action was launched in 2008, alleging price-fixing in the Canadian CRT market.

The seven defendants, none of which have admitted to any wrongdoing or liability, have agreed to pay $49.8 million in settlements: Chunghwa ($2M), Panasonic ($4.15M), Toshiba (US$2.95M), Hitachi (US$2.05M), LG Electronics ($7.75M), Philips($12.45M), Samsung SDI ($16.98M).