Published
October 15, 2026
Starbucks health and vision plan participants not covered by Starbucks’ arbitration agreement, and plan beneficiaries, who were sent a COBRA election notice between July 21, 2016 and January 1, 2023 and did not elect continuation coverage may qualify to claim an equal share of a $325,000 fund from the Starbucks COBRA notice class action settlement. Claims are filed by mail only and must be postmarked by December 2, 2026; the final approval hearing is set for January 6, 2027.
Current Status
Claims are open. Class members file by mailing the claim form that came with their postcard notice, postmarked by December 2, 2026; there is no online claim form. The court granted preliminary approval on July 8, 2026, and the final approval hearing is set for January 6, 2027 at 11:00 a.m. No payment date had been announced as of October 15, 2026.Free settlement alerts
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Status
Claims Open
Claim Deadline
December 2, 2026
Postmark date · claims by mail only
Estimated Payout
About $30–$74 (est.)
Equal share of $325,000 after administration costs · depends on how many people claim
Proof Required
Yes — mailed form
Claim form arrives with the mailed postcard notice · no online or printable form · no receipts
What Changed Recently?
On July 8, 2026, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida preliminarily approved a $325,000 settlement in Lubin v. Starbucks Corporation, a class action over the COBRA election notice Starbucks used for its employee health and vision plans. Under the court’s schedule, the settlement administrator was to mail postcard notices to class members and launch the settlement website by October 2, 2026, which started a roughly 60-day window to claim, opt out or object.COBRA, the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985, amended ERISA to let many people keep employer group health coverage for a limited time after a qualifying event, such as the end of a job, generally at their own expense. When a qualifying event happens, the plan must send an election notice describing the right to continue coverage and how to elect it, and a Labor Department regulation, 29 C.F.R. § 2590.606-4, lists what that notice has to contain.
The lawsuit alleges that Starbucks’ notice did not adequately explain how to elect continuation coverage. According to the allegations summarized in the court-approved notice, it lacked a clear explanation of how to enroll along with an election form; the name, address and telephone number of the party responsible for administering the plan; the name of the plan; the address for paying premiums; and other information the regulation requires. The plaintiff sought statutory penalties under ERISA, which a court may award in its discretion, along with injunctive relief and attorneys’ fees.
Starbucks denies the allegations, denies any liability and maintains that its COBRA notice complied with COBRA and ERISA. It agreed to settle without admitting wrongdoing to avoid the cost and uncertainty of further litigation, and the court has not decided who is right. The class period ends January 1, 2023, the date of a later Starbucks COBRA notice; in the settlement agreement, the plaintiff stipulates that this January 1, 2023 notice resolves the deficiencies alleged in the case.
The case was filed in 2020 and spent several years on whether it belonged in arbitration. The district court declined to send the named plaintiff’s claims to arbitration, and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed that ruling in December 2024. The parties reported a settlement in January 2026 and later revised its terms after a dispute over the size of the class and the class period.
Who Qualifies?
The court certified the class for settlement purposes only. It covers people in Starbucks’ Welfare Benefits Plan in the United States, including its Health Plan and Vision Plan, who meet all three of these conditions:- they were sent a COBRA notice between July 21, 2016 and January 1, 2023 because of a qualifying event, as determined by Starbucks or its third-party administrator;
- they did not elect COBRA continuation coverage; and
- they are either a plan participant who is not subject to Starbucks’ arbitration agreement, or a plan beneficiary.
Plan participants who are subject to Starbucks’ arbitration agreement are not part of the class, and neither are people who elected COBRA continuation coverage after receiving the notice. The court puts the class at about 33,800 people. Membership is decided from Starbucks’ records, and the settlement administrator mailed notice to the class members those records identify.
How Much Can Class Members Get?
Starbucks will pay $325,000 into a settlement account. Settlement administration costs come out of that amount first; the parties estimate them at $75,000 or less, and the agreement says Starbucks will not pay more if they run higher. What remains, the net settlement fund, is split equally among every class member who submits a timely, valid claim form, a pro rata division whose size depends on how many people file.The court-approved notice gives two estimates, both based on the full 33,800-person class:
- about $30 per claimant if 25% of class members file valid claims; and
- about $74 per claimant if 10% file.
These figures are estimates, not promised amounts. More claims mean smaller checks, and fewer claims mean larger ones.
The court appointed Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A. and Justice Litigation Associates, PLLC as class counsel. They have asked for $450,000 in attorneys’ fees and costs, subject to court approval, and Starbucks pays that amount separately; it does not come out of the $325,000 fund.
No money returns to Starbucks. Checks must be cashed within 60 days of the date printed on them, and money left from uncashed or undeliverable checks goes to Bay Area Legal Services, a nonprofit legal aid organization, as a cy pres award, subject to court approval.
What Proof or Notice ID Is Required?
No receipts or documents are required, but filing depends on the mailed notice itself. The claim form is part of the postcard notice the settlement administrator mailed to class members at the addresses in Starbucks’ records, and the version of that form filed with the court carries the class member’s pre-printed Notice ID. The form asks for a name and mailing address and a signature confirming that the class member wants a share of the fund and releases the claims covered by the settlement.The settlement website does not offer an online claim form and does not post a blank claim form to print. Its only online tool, an address-update page, asks for the Notice ID and PIN printed on the mailed notice. The long-form notice says membership is determined from Starbucks’ records and that anyone unsure whether they are in the class can contact the settlement administrator.
If a claim form arrives unsigned or otherwise defective, the administrator mails a cure letter within three business days. The class member then has until the later of the claim deadline or 15 calendar days from the date of that letter to mail a corrected form.
What Is the Deadline?
Claim forms must be postmarked by December 2, 2026. The postmark on the return envelope decides whether a claim is on time, and the notice gives a date only, with no time of day or timezone. The same December 2, 2026 postmark deadline applies to requests to opt out and to objections; an objection must also be filed with the court by that date.How Are Claims Filed?
Claims are filed by U.S. mail only. A class member completes and signs the claim form from the postcard notice and mails it to the settlement administrator at the address printed on the postcard, postmarked by December 2, 2026. The official settlement website carries the long-form notice, the settlement agreement and other court documents. A class member who does nothing receives no payment but is still bound by the settlement’s release if the court approves it.Two other options share the same deadline. A class member can opt out by mailing a signed written request to the administrator, which keeps any individual claim against Starbucks but gives up any payment. Or a class member can stay in the class and object by filing a written objection with the court and mailing a copy to the administrator. The long-form notice lists what each request must include. The release covers claims about the COBRA notice against Starbucks and its COBRA administrators and notice providers, including Alight Solutions.
What Happens Next?
Class counsel’s motion for attorneys’ fees and costs is due November 10, 2026, and the motion for final approval is due December 16, 2026. The court will hold the final approval hearing on January 6, 2027 at 11:00 a.m. in Tampa, and it may move the hearing or hold it by phone or Zoom without further notice. The settlement website’s Key Dates page lists the hearing as January 6, 2026, but the court’s July 8, 2026 order and the long-form notice both set it for January 6, 2027.Payments come only after final approval and after any objections or appeals are resolved. Once the settlement takes effect and the administrator confirms the final count of valid claims, Starbucks has 20 business days to fund the settlement account, and the administrator mails checks within 30 days after that. No payment date had been announced as of October 15, 2026.
Sources and Verification
- Official settlement website — Lubin v. Starbucks Corporation
- Important court documents — complaints, revised settlement agreement, motion for preliminary approval and the July 8, 2026 preliminary approval order (Doc. 117)
- Key dates page
- Long-form notice of proposed class action settlement and hearing (PDF)
- 29 C.F.R. § 2590.606-4 — COBRA notice requirements (eCFR)
Questions
Can someone who never got the Starbucks postcard notice still file a claim?
The claim form is part of the postcard notice mailed to class members from Starbucks’ records, and the settlement website offers no online claim form and no blank form to print. The long-form notice says class membership is decided from Starbucks’ records and that anyone unsure whether they are included can contact the settlement administrator, whose contact details appear in that notice on the official settlement website.
Are Starbucks plan participants who signed an arbitration agreement part of the settlement?
The class includes plan participants only if they are not subject to Starbucks’ arbitration agreement. Plan beneficiaries are included without that condition. Participants bound by the arbitration agreement fall outside the settlement class.
Do the attorneys’ fees reduce the $325,000 Starbucks fund?
Starbucks pays class counsel’s fees and costs, requested at $450,000 and subject to court approval, separately from the $325,000 fund. Only settlement administration costs, estimated at up to $75,000, are deducted before the fund is divided among claimants.
What happens if a Starbucks COBRA claim form is unsigned or incomplete?
The settlement administrator mails a cure letter within three business days of receiving a defective claim form. The class member then has until the later of December 2, 2026 or 15 calendar days from the date of that letter to mail a corrected form. A second defective response does not get another cure letter.
What happens to Starbucks settlement money that is not claimed or cashed?
The net fund is divided in full among class members who file valid claims, so a lower claims rate means larger checks. Checks must be cashed within 60 days of the date printed on them. Money from uncashed or undeliverable checks goes to Bay Area Legal Services, a nonprofit legal aid organization, as a cy pres award subject to court approval. None of it returns to Starbucks.
Official Settlement Notice
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Settlement Amount
$325,000
Case Title
Lubin v. Starbucks Corporation
Case Number
8:20-cv-01311
Court
U.S. District Court, Middle District of Florida (Tampa Division)
Final Approval Hearing
January 6, 2027 at 11:00 AM
Courtroom 13A, Tampa · may be held by phone or Zoom
Administrator
American Legal Claims Services, LLC
Official Website
COBRA Notice Class Action
