Published
September 9, 2026
People whose personal information was compromised in the June 2025 cyberattack on Carter Credit Union may qualify to claim a flat $50 with no proof, or instead up to $2,500 in documented out-of-pocket losses, plus three years of credit monitoring that can be claimed either way. Claims close November 19, 2026, and the Login ID and PIN from the notice are required to file online.
Current Status
Claims are open. The deadline to file is November 19, 2026, online, by email or postmarked. The deadlines to opt out or to object fall a full month earlier, on October 20, 2026. The Court has scheduled a Final Approval Hearing for November 30, 2026 at 9:30 a.m. Central Time in Shreveport, Louisiana, and the settlement has not been approved yet. No payment date has been announced: the Notice says payments are distributed only if the Court grants final approval and after any appeals are resolved, and that it is not known whether appeals will be filed. If a notice reached you, it carries the Login ID and PIN you need to file online.
Status
Claims Open
final approval hearing November 30, 2026 in Shreveport, Louisiana
Claim Deadline
November 19, 2026
online, by email or postmarked · opting out and objecting close a month earlier, on October 20
Estimated Payout
$50 or up to $2,500
a stated $50 with no proof, or documented losses instead — one or the other · three years of credit monitoring either way
Proof Required
Yes — ID to file online
no receipts for the $50 tier, but the online form opens on a Login ID and PIN screen · a printed form mailed in treats the Notice ID as optional
What Changed Recently?
The settlement is newly open to claims. Carter Credit Union d/b/a Carter Federal Credit Union has agreed to resolve Ellis, et al. v. Carter Credit Union d/b/a Carter Federal Credit Union, Case No. 662980-C, in the 1st Judicial District Court for the Parish of Caddo, Louisiana, and the Court has authorized notice to the class. Simpluris is administering it, and the claim portal, the long-form notice, the claim form and the settlement agreement are live on the official settlement website.Carter Credit Union denies that it did anything wrong, and the Court has not decided who is right. The Notice states that both sides agreed to settle to avoid the costs, risks, disruptions and uncertainties of continuing the litigation. No finding of liability has been made.
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What the Case Is About
According to the Notice, the case concerns a targeted cyberattack on Carter Credit Union's computer systems in June 2025, during which files containing private information were accessed. The Class definition dates the incident to on or about June 25, 2025.The Notice says those files may have contained names, addresses, Social Security numbers, driver's license and government-issued ID numbers, financial information such as account numbers and credit or debit card numbers, medical information, health insurance information, dates of birth, and other personally identifiable or protected health information the credit union collected and maintained.
The financial fields are what make this one different from a typical retailer breach. A credit union holds account numbers alongside the Social Security number, date of birth and government ID that a fraudster needs to pass identity verification on a new account — the combination that makes account takeover and new-account fraud possible rather than just card fraud. Cards get reissued; the rest of that file does not change. The three years of monitoring offered here is a year longer than most breach settlements provide, which fits the data involved.
The Notice also mentions that Carter Credit Union's records indicate class members are entitled to benefits, and that some people may have received an earlier notice directly from the credit union before this court-authorized one. If you remember a letter about this in 2025 and then a second notice arrived, that is the sequence being described, not a duplicate.
Who Qualifies?
The Court defined the Class as all persons whose personally identifiable information was compromised because of the Data Incident experienced by Carter Credit Union beginning on or about June 25, 2025.There is no residency requirement in that definition, which is the point most likely to be misread. The case sits in a Louisiana state court in Shreveport and Carter Credit Union is a Louisiana institution, but the class is defined by whose information was compromised, not by where they live. Someone who has since moved out of state is still a class member.
Three groups are excluded: Carter Credit Union along with its officers, directors and related companies; attorneys for the parties; and the judge in the case, along with the judge's family and staff.
How Much Can You Get?
There are three benefits, and the way they combine is worth getting right before you open the form:- Credit monitoring — three years of CyEx Financial Shield Complete. Available to every Settlement Class Member, with $1 million of financial fraud insurance and monitoring for fraud or identity theft, unauthorized financial transactions, and personal information appearing in high-risk transactions, plus access to a fraud resolution agent if something suspicious related to the incident turns up.
- Reimbursement of out-of-pocket losses — up to $2,500. For actual, documented out-of-pocket losses incurred between June 25, 2025 and November 19, 2026 that are fairly traceable to the incident: money lost to identity theft or fraud, fees for credit reports, credit monitoring or freezing and unfreezing credit, the cost of replacing IDs, and postage to contact banks by mail.
- Alternative cash payment — a one-time $50. No proof or explanation required.
The Notice's phrasing is "Credit Monitoring and/or one of the two cash payment options," and the Claim Form makes the rest explicit: do not claim the $50 if you are claiming documented losses, and do not claim documented losses if you are taking the $50. So the monitoring stacks with either cash option or can be taken on its own, while the two cash options are mutually exclusive.
The $50 is stated as an amount rather than an estimate, and that is genuinely unusual. Most breach settlements publish an "estimated" flat payment drawn from a fixed fund, which shrinks pro rata when claims run higher than the administrator projected — the mechanism our explainer on pro rata distribution walks through. The Carter Credit Union Notice discloses no settlement fund figure, no aggregate cap and no pro rata reduction, and calls the benefit a one-time cash payment of $50.00. Take that as what the Notice says rather than as a guarantee against every contingency, but on its face there is no published mechanism here that would cut the figure.
Which option to take is straightforward arithmetic for most people: $50 costs nothing but a few minutes, while the documented tier is worth reaching for only if your out-of-pocket losses since June 2025 exceeded $50 and you can document them. There is no partial credit for trying — a documented-loss claim that fails is not automatically converted to the $50 here, unlike some settlements that build in that fallback.
Expenses already reimbursed by a third party cannot be claimed.
What Proof Is Required?
Filing online requires the Login ID and PIN printed on the notice mailed to you. The settlement website says so plainly — to start the online claim form you must log in with those credentials, and you find them on the notice that was sent to you — which is why this page treats the settlement as Proof Required: Yes even though the $50 tier asks for no receipts at all.The paper route is looser: the downloadable Claim Form asks for a Notice ID only "if known," and it can be completed and returned by mail or as an emailed image. That is a real escape hatch for someone who never received a notice, but it is an envelope or an attachment rather than an open online door, so it does not make this a no-proof settlement.
Past that credential, the burden splits sharply between the two cash options:
- Alternative cash payment, $50: nothing. The Notice states that you do not have to provide any proof or explanation to claim this payment.
- Out-of-pocket losses, up to $2,500: proof such as bank statements or receipts showing what you spent or lost. The Claim Form asks you to itemize each expense with a description of the supporting documentation and an amount, and to total them.
The documented tier carries a requirement worth reading twice: the losses must be fairly traceable to the Data Incident, and the Notice says your proof or notes should show that your expenses were because of the incident. A bank statement proving money left your account is not by itself proof that this breach is why. Notes or papers you wrote yourself can be submitted to explain or support other documentation, but the Notice says they are not enough on their own to make a valid claim. The whole Claim Form is signed under penalty of perjury, and the Notice says claims are subject to verification and that the administrator may ask for supplemental information before treating a claim as complete and valid.
What Are the Deadlines?
Three dates, with the two that decide your legal rights falling first — and by an unusually wide margin:- October 20, 2026 — opt out. A Request for Exclusion must be postmarked by this date, carrying the case name and number, your full name, mailing address, telephone number and email address, your personal signature, and the words "Request for Exclusion" or a clear equivalent. You may only exclude yourself, not anyone else.
- October 20, 2026 — object. A complete objection must be filed with the Clerk of Court by this date, with a copy sent to the Settlement Administrator.
- November 19, 2026 — submit a claim. Online or by email by this date, or the completed and signed Claim Form with any supporting documentation postmarked no later than this date.
The thirty-day gap is the practical trap, and it is wider here than on most breach settlements, where the two dates sit a fortnight apart. Anyone weighing whether to keep the right to sue Carter Credit Union individually has to decide by October 20, because there is no way to opt out afterward even though claims stay open another month. Our glossary entry on opting out of a class action covers what that choice trades away.
The objection requirements are lighter than many. Beyond your grounds and any legal support for them, an objector must give their contact details, list any cases in which they or their lawyer have objected in the past four years with the names, courts and civil action numbers, say whether they would like to speak at the final approval hearing, and sign it personally — a lawyer's signature alone is not sufficient. The Notice says an objection must meet each of these requirements to be valid.
Objecting does not cost you the money. The Notice confirms that a class member who objects may also file a claim for settlement benefits. Opting out does: an opt-out cannot object, and receives no cash and no monitoring.
How Do You File?
Claims go through the official settlement website, CCU Data Settlement.com, run by Simpluris. The Notice calls filing online the fastest route: log in with the Login ID and PIN from your notice, tick the credit monitoring, then either check the $50 alternative payment or itemize documented losses with supporting documentation, and sign.The Claim Form asks how you want to be paid, and the options are broader than most: PayPal, Venmo, Zelle, a virtual prepaid card, or a physical check mailed to the address you provide. Choosing an electronic method is worth a moment's thought, since a mailed check is the slowest of the five and the easiest to lose in a move.
If you prefer paper, the same site hosts a downloadable Claim Form that can be returned by mail with any supporting documentation, postmarked by November 19, 2026, or sent to the administrator as an emailed image of the completed form by the same date. Keep a copy of whatever you submit. Filing is free, and class members are not charged for Class Counsel's services.
Who Pays the Fees
Carter Credit Union does, separately — which works in class members' favor and is the structural detail that most distinguishes this settlement. The Court appointed Leigh S. Montgomery of Ellzey Kherkher Sanford Montgomery, LLP; Mariya Weekes of Milberg, PLLC; and A. Brooke Murphy of the Murphy Law Firm as Class Counsel. They will ask the Court to approve $400,000 as reasonable attorneys' fees and costs of litigation, and service awards of $2,000 for each of the nine class representatives. The Notice states that both are paid on behalf of Carter Credit Union.On a common-fund settlement the opposite is true: fees and awards come off the top of a fixed pot before anyone is paid, which is why so many flat payments are published as estimates that later shrink. Here the Notice describes no such pot, so the $400,000 and the service awards do not sit between claimants and their money. The Court will rule on both requests at the final approval hearing and may award less than what is asked.
What You Give Up
Staying in the Class means you cannot be part of any other lawsuit against Carter Credit Union about the issues this settlement covers. Section VII of the Settlement Agreement sets out the claims released, and the agreement is posted on the official settlement website.Doing nothing does not avoid that release. A class member who never files still gives up those claims and receives no cash and no monitoring — the only way to keep the right to sue Carter Credit Union on your own is to opt out by October 20, 2026. Given that the $50 requires no receipts and takes minutes, doing nothing is the one option with no upside at all.
What Happens Next?
At the November 30, 2026 hearing the Court will decide whether to approve the settlement, will decide how Class Counsel should be paid and whether to award the service awards, and will consider any objections. Nobody is required to attend — the Notice says Class Counsel will answer the Court's questions, and that a properly filed objection will be considered whether or not the objector appears. The Notice also warns that the date and time may change without further notice, so the settlement website is the place to confirm.If approval is granted, payments follow only after any appeals are resolved. A hearing being held is not the same as approval being granted, and approval being granted is not the same as payments being released. The Notice is candid that it is unknown whether appeals will be filed or how long they would take, so no payment date exists yet.
Class Action Summary
| Case Title | Ellis, et al. v. Carter Credit Union d/b/a Carter Federal Credit Union |
|---|---|
| Case Number | 662980-C |
| Court | 1st Judicial District Court, Parish of Caddo, Louisiana |
| Defendant | Carter Credit Union d/b/a Carter Federal Credit Union |
| Incident | June 2025 targeted cyberattack on Carter Credit Union's computer systems, beginning on or about June 25, 2025 |
| Data Involved | Names, addresses, Social Security numbers, driver's license and government ID numbers, financial account and card information, medical and health insurance information, and dates of birth |
| Class Scope | All persons whose PII was compromised in the incident — no residency requirement |
| Cash Benefit | A one-time $50 with no proof, or up to $2,500 documented — one or the other |
| Monitoring | 3 years CyEx Financial Shield Complete · $1M fraud insurance · claimable alongside either cash option or alone |
| Fees | $400,000 plus $2,000 service awards, paid on behalf of Carter Credit Union rather than from a class fund |
| Claim Deadline | November 19, 2026 |
| Opt-Out / Object By | October 20, 2026 |
| Final Approval Hearing | November 30, 2026 at 9:30 AM Central (Shreveport, LA) |
| Administrator | Simpluris |
| Official Website | CCU Data Settlement.com |
Sources and Verification
• Official settlement website — CCU Data Settlement.com• Notice of Proposed Class Action Settlement and Claim Form (PDF)
• Ellis, et al. v. Carter Credit Union d/b/a Carter Federal Credit Union, No. 662980-C (1st Jud. Dist. Ct., Caddo Parish, La.) — Settlement Agreement posted on the official website
• Data Incident Settlement Claim Form, and the settlement website's FAQ, Important Dates and claim pages
• FTC — Data Breach Response: A Guide for Business
Questions
Can I claim the credit monitoring and a cash payment?
Yes. The Notice says all Settlement Class Members may claim Credit Monitoring and/or one of the two cash payment options, so the three years of CyEx Financial Shield Complete can be taken alongside either cash option or entirely on its own. What you cannot do is combine the two cash options: the Claim Form tells filers not to claim the $50 alternative payment if they are claiming documented losses, and not to claim documented losses if they are taking the $50.
Is the $50 payment really $50, or an estimate?
The Notice states it as a one-time cash payment of $50.00, not as an estimate, and it describes no aggregate cap and no pro rata reduction. That is unusual — most breach settlements publish an estimated flat payment that shrinks if claims run high. Nothing in the settlement documents guarantees the figure against every possible contingency, but on the face of the Notice the $50 is a stated amount rather than a projection.
Do attorneys' fees reduce what class members receive?
Not according to the Notice. Class Counsel will ask the Court to approve $400,000 in attorneys' fees and costs, and service awards of $2,000 for each of the nine class representatives, and the Notice states that both are paid on behalf of Carter Credit Union. That is the opposite of a common-fund settlement, where fees come off the top of the money available to claimants before anyone is paid. The Court will rule on both requests at the final approval hearing and may award less than what is asked.
What does "fairly traceable" mean for the $2,500 tier?
It means the documentation has to connect the expense to this incident, not merely show that money was spent. The Notice requires losses to have occurred between June 25, 2025 and November 19, 2026 and to be fairly traceable to the Data Incident, and it says your proof or notes should show that your expenses were because of the Data Incident. Notes or papers you wrote yourself can support other documentation but are not enough on their own, and expenses already reimbursed by a third party cannot be claimed at all.
Why is the opt-out deadline a month before the claim deadline?
The two dates serve different purposes and the settlement schedules them apart. Opting out and objecting both close October 20, 2026, because the Court needs those responses in hand before the November 30 final approval hearing; claims stay open until November 19, 2026. The practical effect is that anyone considering keeping the right to sue Carter Credit Union individually has to decide a full month before the claim window shuts, and there is no way to opt out after October 20.
Is the class limited to Louisiana?
No. The case is in a Louisiana state court in Shreveport and Carter Credit Union is a Louisiana institution, but the Court defined the Class as all persons whose PII was compromised because of the Data Incident beginning on or about June 25, 2025. No residency requirement is attached, so someone who has since moved out of state is still a class member.
Official Settlement Notice
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Settlement Amount
No fund figure disclosed
the Notice describes no aggregate cap and no pro rata reduction · fees of $400,000 and the service awards are paid on behalf of Carter Credit Union
Case Title
Ellis, et al. v. Carter Credit Union d/b/a Carter Federal Credit Union
Case Number
662980-C
Court
1st Judicial District Court, Parish of Caddo, Louisiana
Final Approval Hearing
November 30, 2026 at 9:30 AM Central
Shreveport, Louisiana · date and time may change without further notice
Administrator
Simpluris
Official Website
CCU Data Settlement
