This settlement resolves claims that TransUnion sold credit reports carrying a bankruptcy note on a credit account when no bankruptcy appeared in the report's own public records section and none existed on file. About 57,000 people are covered. Roughly 21,000 of them are paid $100 without lifting a finger — but a claim by October 30, 2026 is worth an estimated $1,000, and the other 36,000 get nothing unless they file.
Current Status
Claims are open and the deadline is October 30, 2026. That single date covers claims, exclusion requests and objections.The Court has not granted final approval. The Final Approval Hearing is scheduled for December 2, 2026 at 10:00 a.m. before Judge Karen Spencer Marston in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, and the notice warns the hearing may be held virtually or moved without further notice. Payments go out only after final approval and after any appeals are resolved, and the notice says plainly that resolving appeals can take time. No payment date has been announced.
TransUnion denies that it violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act or did anything wrong, and no court has decided whether it did. It agreed to settle to avoid the expense and distraction of continued litigation.
What Changed Recently?
The claim window is the development. Many class members first heard about this case in May or June 2025, when notice went out after the Court allowed it to proceed as a class action. This settlement notice opened the current window, and it closes October 30, 2026.One date is worth marking if you are weighing an objection. Class counsel's request for attorneys' fees is due to be posted on the settlement website on October 16, 2026 — two weeks before the objection deadline. Anyone who wants to see what is actually being asked for before deciding whether to object should look then rather than now.
Who Qualifies?
The settlement class is defined by what TransUnion's own records show. It covers all people residing in the United States and its territories for whom, between January 6, 2020 and January 31, 2023, TransUnion sold a consumer report to a third party that included a bankruptcy remark on a tradeline, where the same report contained no reference to a bankruptcy in its public record section, and for whom there is no government-held public record of a bankruptcy filing in the ten years before the report date.In plainer terms: a lender pulled your credit, and one of your accounts carried a note pointing at a bankruptcy — while the report's own public records section showed no bankruptcy, and no bankruptcy of yours existed on file anywhere.
About 57,000 people are in the class, split into two groups that are paid very differently:
- No Bankruptcy Group — roughly 21,000 people. A social security number search of public records found no locatable bankruptcy filing at all.
- Aged Bankruptcy Group — roughly 36,000 people. Public record searches found bankruptcies, but only ones filed more than ten years before the credit report.
Your group is printed on your notice, underneath the Claim Number and PIN, and logging in on the settlement website with those credentials will also tell you.
How Much Can You Get?
TransUnion will pay $8,310,000 into a settlement fund. That fund covers class member payments plus administration costs, attorneys' fees of up to $2,770,000, litigation expenses of up to $308,000, and up to $50,000 as a combined individual settlement and service award to the class representative — an amount the notice explains also covers his separate individual claims, for which he gives a broader release than the class does. If the Court awards all of those at the maximum requested, a little over $5.18 million would be left for class members before administration costs come out.What an individual receives depends entirely on which group they are in:
- No Bankruptcy Group, doing nothing: $100, paid automatically, as long as you do not exclude yourself.
- No Bankruptcy Group, filing a claim: an estimated $1,000, which replaces nothing — it is the higher payment available in addition to the automatic one.
- Aged Bankruptcy Group, filing a claim: an estimated $350.
- Aged Bankruptcy Group, doing nothing: nothing at all.
Both dollar estimates are just that. The notice states they are based on typical claims rates in similar cases, and that the actual amounts depend on how many claims are filed in this case and may be lower or higher.
The gap between the two groups is not arbitrary, and the notice explains it. TransUnion argues it was still accurate to report bankruptcy information about class members, and the Court has not decided who is right about that. Members of the Aged Bankruptcy Group — people who did file a bankruptcy, just longer than ten years ago — would face additional risk if the case continued. The No Bankruptcy Group receives preferred benefits to reflect its stronger litigation position.
Do You Need to File a Claim?
For most of this class, yes, and for one group it is the difference between a payment and nothing.If you are in the Aged Bankruptcy Group, roughly 36,000 of the 57,000 class members, no claim means no money. There is no automatic payment for this group.
If you are in the No Bankruptcy Group, the $100 arrives whether or not you act. Filing is still worth doing: the estimated claim payment is about ten times the automatic amount.
What Proof or Notice ID Is Required?
This is a proof-required settlement, even though nobody is asked for receipts.The online claim form is gated on the unique Claim Number and PIN printed on the mailed or emailed notice, entered exactly as they appear. Without those credentials you cannot log in and file. That identifier is precisely why this page marks proof as required: a class member who moved, changed email, or discarded the envelope cannot simply file anyway. The settlement website has a contact route for people who believe they are class members but never received a notice with a Claim Number, and anyone in that position should use it well before the deadline rather than at it.
The claim form itself is a sworn document. It asks you to certify that you did not file for bankruptcy in the ten years before the report request date shown in TransUnion's records, and to check at least one box stating either that your TransUnion credit score decreased because of the bankruptcy information, or that you were denied credit and the bankruptcy information on a TransUnion report was one reason. The form is signed under penalty of perjury, and the instructions warn that a form submitted without all parts completed, at least one box checked, and a signature may not be paid.
What Is the Deadline?
October 30, 2026 for everything a class member normally does — filing a claim, requesting exclusion, or objecting. A claim form sent by mail must be postmarked by that date; the online form must be submitted by it.One later date applies to a narrow group. If you object and also want to speak at the Final Approval Hearing, a separate Notice of Intention to Appear must be received by November 18, 2026, and copies must go to class counsel and TransUnion's counsel as well.
How Do You Take Action?
Everything runs through the official settlement website, Brooks Bankruptcy Class Action, which is operated by the court-appointed administrator. It hosts the online claim form, the settlement agreement, the court orders and the complaint, and it has an address verification page for updating your mailing address.The Court has appointed a settlement administrator to run notice, claims and payments, but the notice and the settlement website refer to it only as "the Settlement Administrator" and do not name the firm, so this page does not name one either.
Updating your address is the step most people skip and later regret. Payments are mailed as paper checks by default to the address on file, and this class was identified from credit reports pulled between 2020 and 2023 — several years and, for many people, at least one move ago. The website also lets class members elect electronic payment instead, which sidesteps the problem entirely.
Opting Out and Objecting
Excluding yourself is the only way to keep the right to sue TransUnion yourself over these claims. It requires a written statement to the administrator giving your full name, address, email address and telephone number, a specific statement that you want to be excluded, and the unique identifier from your notice, submitted by October 30, 2026. Excluding yourself means no payment of any kind — including the automatic $100.Objecting is different: an objector stays in the class and still gets paid. Objections go both to the Court and to the administrator by October 30, 2026, and the notice sets out an unusually detailed list of required contents — the case name and number, your contact details, a detailed statement of each ground, any supporting documents, the identity of any lawyer representing you, any agreements relating to the objection, all relief sought, and the number of times you have objected to a class action settlement in the past five years, with case captions. An objection missing those elements risks not being considered.
What Are You Giving Up?
Every class member who does not opt out releases TransUnion and a broad set of related parties — its owners, shareholders, predecessors and successors, parents, subsidiaries and affiliates, and their officers, directors, employees, attorneys and insurers — from all claims that were asserted or could have been asserted in this litigation, including claims under 15 U.S.C. § 1681e(b) relating to the reporting of bankruptcies.That release binds you whether or not you file a claim. A member of the Aged Bankruptcy Group who ignores the notice entirely receives no money and still gives up the right to sue, which is the strongest practical argument for filing.
What Happens Next?
Class counsel's fee request is posted October 16, 2026. The claim, exclusion and objection window closes October 30, 2026. Notices of intention to appear are due November 18, 2026. The Court then holds the Final Approval Hearing on December 2, 2026 and decides whether the settlement is fair, reasonable and adequate, and what to award in fees and expenses.A hearing is not an outcome, and this settlement has an extra step beyond most: the notice states payments are sent only after final approval and after any appeals are resolved. Even a straightforward approval in December would not put checks in the mail immediately, and an appeal would extend it considerably. The official website is where updates will appear.
Sources and Verification
• Legal Notice of Class Action Settlement, Brooks v. Trans Union, LLC, Civil Action No. 2:22-cv-00048-KSM (E.D. Pa.), Judge Karen Spencer Marston• Claim Form and filing instructions issued by the Settlement Administrator
• Frequently Asked Questions published on the official settlement website
• Official settlement website, including the Important Documents page hosting the Settlement Agreement and court orders
Questions
Who is covered by the TransUnion bankruptcy reporting settlement?
People in the United States and its territories for whom, between January 6, 2020 and January 31, 2023, TransUnion sold a consumer report to a third party that carried a bankruptcy remark on a tradeline while the same report showed no bankruptcy in its public record section, and for whom no government-held public record shows a bankruptcy filing in the ten years before the report date. About 57,000 people are in the class.
What is the difference between the No Bankruptcy Group and the Aged Bankruptcy Group?
The No Bankruptcy Group, roughly 21,000 people, are those for whom a social security number search of public records found no locatable bankruptcy filing at all. The Aged Bankruptcy Group, roughly 36,000 people, are those whose only located bankruptcies were filed more than ten years before the credit report. The notice says your group is identified on your notice underneath the Claim Number and PIN, and you can also log in on the settlement website to see it.
How much money will I get?
If you are in the No Bankruptcy Group you receive $100 automatically without doing anything, or an estimated $1,000 if you submit a valid claim. If you are in the Aged Bankruptcy Group you receive nothing unless you file a claim, and the estimated payment is about $350. Both figures are estimates based on typical claims rates in similar cases; the notice states the actual amounts depend on how many claims are filed and may be lower or higher.
Why does one group get more money than the other?
TransUnion argues it was still accurate to report bankruptcy information about members of the settlement class, and the Court has not decided who is right. The notice explains that members of the Aged Bankruptcy Group would face additional risks if the case continued, so the No Bankruptcy Group receives preferred benefits to reflect their stronger litigation position.
What do I need to file a claim?
The unique Claim Number and PIN printed on the mailed or emailed notice, which are required to log in to the online claim form. The form also asks you to certify under penalty of perjury that you did not file for bankruptcy in the ten years before the report request date in TransUnion's records, and to check at least one box stating that your credit score decreased because of the bankruptcy information or that you were denied credit partly because of it. If you believe you are a class member but never received a notice with a Claim Number, the settlement website has a contact route for that.
What is the deadline?
October 30, 2026 for claims, exclusion requests and objections. A mailed claim form must be postmarked by that date. If you want to speak at the Final Approval Hearing, a separate Notice of Intention to Appear must be received by November 18, 2026.
When will payments be sent?
No payment date has been announced. The notice says payments will be sent only after the Court grants final approval and after any appeals are resolved, and that resolving appeals can take time. The Final Approval Hearing is set for December 2, 2026. Class members can choose electronic payment on the settlement website; otherwise a paper check is mailed.
What happens if I do nothing?
You give up the right to sue TransUnion over the claims this settlement resolves. If you are in the No Bankruptcy Group you still receive the automatic $100. If you are in the Aged Bankruptcy Group you receive nothing at all, which is why the claim form matters most for that group.
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