A class action lawsuit is a lawsuit filed by one person on behalf of a group of persons.
TopThis class action alleges that the Defendants unlawfully conspired to fix prices for Polyether Polyol Products in Canada from January 1, 1999 to December 31, 2004. The following entities were named as Defendants in the class action:
Polyether Polyol Products means:
(a) Polyether polyols, monomeric or polymeric diphenylmethane diisocyanate (“MDI”) and toluene diisocyanate (“TDI”) purchased from any source; and/or
(b) Polyether polyol systems purchased from the Defendants.
Settlements totalling approximately CAD $13,300,000 have been reached with the following Defendants:
All of these settlements have received court approval. The settlement funds (plus interest, less court-approved fees and expenses) are being held in trust for the benefit of settlement class members.
You are eligible to receive a payment if you purchased Polyether Polyol Products in Canada between January 1, 1999 and December 31, 2004 (the “settlement class” or “settlement class members”).
As described in FAQ 3, Polyether Polyol Products are:
You are not eligible to receive money if you are a Defendant, a related entity of a Defendant, an employee, officer or director of a Defendant, or if you validly and timely opted-out (excluded yourself from) the class action. For a list of the Defendants in this action, see FAQ 2.
TopThe claims deadline was February 11, 2019; no further claim submissions will be accepted. All settlement funds were distributed on October 11, 2019.
TopIt does not cost anything to file a claim. Counsel and Administration fees will be paid out of the settlement funds.
TopClaims must be filed by no later than February 11, 2019.
TopAs part of the claims process, you will be required to establish your purchases of Polyether Polyol Products. There are two ways to establish your purchases.
A. Purchases Substantiated by Defendant Sales Data
If you purchased Polyether Polyol Products directly from any of the Defendants, you may be able to rely on the Defendants’ sales records to establish your purchases. If applicable, you will receive an email or letter from the Claims Administrator and your purchase information will be pre-populated on the File Claim page. If your purchases are fully substantiated by the Defendants’ sales records, no further proof of purchase is required.
B. Other Purchases
If you are claiming for purchases that are not fully substantiated by the Defendants’ sales data (for example, you did not purchase from the Defendants or you are claiming for purchases in addition to those disclosed in the Defendants’ sales data), you must provide a declaration attesting to those purchases.
If you maintained purchase records for at least two years during the class period (January 1, 1999 to December 31, 2004), you can use those records to extrapolate your purchases of Polyether Polyol Products for the remainder of the class period. You can also extrapolate your purchases of Polyether Polyol Products using sales data provided by the Defendant Bayer (Bayer only provided sales data for part of the relevant period).
The online claim form does not require you to upload any additional proof of purchase. However, if you claim is selected for audit, you will be required to provide the Claims Administrator with additional information or documents to substantiate your purchases. Details respecting the audit process are included in FAQ 13 and in paragraphs 31 - 34 of the Distribution Protocol.
TopImmediately after you file your claim, a page will be displayed confirming the receipt of your claim. You will also be sent a confirmation email to the email address you provided in your claim form.
If you do not receive this confirmation, please confirm that you have filled in all the required information. There will be red text on the form anywhere that information is missing. If you are still unsure whether your claim was received, call us at 1-866-674-1760 or email us at polyether@ricepoint.com.
TopThe court has appointed RicePoint Administration Inc., formerly NPT RicePoint Class Action Services, as the "Claims Administrator". The Claims Administrator will receive and review claims, make determinations in respect of entitlement to settlement benefits, and issue payments to eligible settlement class members.
Once all claims are received and processed, decision notices will be sent to everyone who filed claims. Decision notices will be sent to the address you provided in the claim form. If you change address prior to receiving a decision notice, it is your responsibility to advise the Claims Administrator.
Accurate claims processing claims takes a significant amount of time. Your patience is appreciated.
TopThe Claims Administrator will notify you, by email or by regular mail, that your claim is the subject of an audit and that you are required to provide proof of purchase.
Proof of purchase might include invoices, receipts, delivery or packing slips, purchase records, historical accounting records, credit card statements, bank statements, cancelled cheques, wire transfer confirmations, or comparable verification that is acceptable to the Claims Administrator. Please see paragraph 33 of the Distribution Protocol for more information.
If you have extrapolated purchase records in accordance with paragraph 22 of the Distribution Protocol, you will have to explain the basis for and calculation of the extrapolation of purchases.
TopSettlement benefits will be distributed to qualifying settlement class members pro rata (proportionally) based on the value of the qualifying settlement class member’s “Notional Entitlement” (see FAQ 15) as against the value of all qualifying settlement class members’ Notional Entitlements. This means that the amount you will receive depends on the number and size of the claims filed.
Notwithstanding the above, settlement class members with valid claims will receive a minimum payment of $20.
TopA settlement class member’s Notional Entitlement will be calculated based on: (a) the value of the settlement class member’s Aggregate Purchases (defined below); (b) the categorization of the settlement class member; (c) the type of Polyether Polyol Products purchased; and (d) the date of purchase.
(a) Value of Aggregate Purchases
The Claims Administrator will calculate the aggregate amount paid by a settlement class member for Polyether Polyol Products, less any taxes, delivery or shipping charges, rebates, or other form of discounts (a settlement class member’s “Aggregate Purchases”) based on the information disclosed in the Defendants’ sales information and/or information provided by the settlement class member as part of the claims process.
(b) The Categorization of the Settlement Class Member
Settlement class members will be categorized into purchaser groups depending on their positon in the distribution chain. The purchaser groups are as follows:
Settlement class members can fall within multiple purchaser groups.
(c) Type of Polyether Polyol Product
The following values will be applied to account for the type of Polyether Polyol Product:
(d) Date of Purchase
The following values will be applied to account for the date of purchase:
Sample Calculation:
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If a Distributor purchased $1,000,000 of MDI and TDI in 2001, its notional entitlement would be as follows:
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All settlement funds were distributed to eligible claimants on October 11, 2019.
TopThe law firm of Siskinds LLP represents settlement class members. Siskinds LLP can be reached at:
Email: polyetherpolyols@siskinds.com
Telephone (toll-free): 1-800-461-6166 ext. 2455
Mail: 680 Waterloo Street, London, ON N6A 3V8, Attention: Charles Wright.
TopThe court approved Claims Administrator gathers and stores claim submissions using a secure site. More information about the Claims Administrator is available by clicking here.
TopIf you have further questions please contact the Claims Administrator (RicePoint Administration Inc.) at:
Email: polyether@ricepoint.com
Telephone (toll-free): 1-866-674-1760
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