Heartland Payment Systems Inc. has agreed to settle another lawsuit arising from the data breach it disclosed in January.
The Princeton, N.J., processor said Monday that it would pay several million dollars to settle a class action brought against it by consumer cardholders. The settlement, which is subject to approval by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, indicated that Heartland could pay $1 million to $2.4 million to class members who can document losses incurred when their card details were compromised by the breach.
Heartland also said it agreed to spend up to $1.5 million to notify the class of the settlement and up to $760,000 for attorneys' fees. It has also agreed to let an independent expert examine the security improvements it has undertaken since it disclosed the breach.
Heartland said that it could terminate the settlement if 2,500 or more class members request exclusion or if the notification costs exceed $1.5 million.
Last week, Heartland said it would pay $3.6 million to settle a separate lawsuit by American Express Co. over the breach.
This month, a judge in New Jersey dismissed a separate class action brought against Heartland and its executives by shareholders.
