See If You Qualify for a Piece of Noom's $56 Million Class Action Settlement
The makers of the weight-loss app were accused of luring subscribers with a free trial they couldn't easily cancel.
If you subscribed to the popular weight-management app Noom, you may be eligible for part of a $56 million class-action settlement regarding its automatic renewal and its cancellation policies.
Plaintiffs in the case accused Noom of violating consumer protection laws by getting customers to sign up for a free trial period without clearly disclosing its auto-renewal terms.
Founders Saeju Jeong and Artem Petakov did not acknowledge wrongdoing as part of the settlement, which they agreed to in February.
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Noom did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but Petakov and Jeong said in a February blog post that settlement was "the best path forward as it allows us to focus our energy on delivering the best possible health outcomes for our Noomers."
Here's what you need to know about the Noom settlement, including how to find out if you're eligible, how you'll be paid and how much you can expect to receive.
What is Noom?
Noom is a subscription-based app to track food intake and exercise habits to encourage weight loss. The company emphasizes behavioral changes and users' emotions related to food instead of calorie counting or other techniques. It incorporates support groups and personal coaches.
A class-action suit claims Noom lured users in with a free trial but made it difficult to cancel when the trial was over.
What is Noom accused of doing?
A 2020 lawsuit claimed the weight-loss app, which was valued at about $3.7 billion in May 2021, misled customers with a "risk-free" trial without providing a straightforward way to cancel after the trial period ended.
Subscribers were instead sucked into automatic renewals, plaintiffs in Nichols v. Noom alleged, which charged them for up to eight months of nonrefundable payments totaling as much as $199, according to Reuters.
What was the settlement Noom agreed to?
Noom has agreed to pay out a total of $56 million to subscribers and provide an additional $6 million in subscription credits.
Who is eligible to receive a payment?
Anyone who subscribed to the Noom Healthy Weight program online or via the company's app between May 12, 2016, and Oct. 6, 2020, and did not receive a full refund or chargeback is eligible to receive a portion of the settlement.
No proof of purchase is necessary. But if you purchased a Noom subscription through iTunes or Google Play, you are not considered an eligible recipient, or "class member."
Class members may have been notified about the settlement via email or social media. If you think you qualify but didn't receive a notice, visit the Noom Class Action Settlement site or call 844-999-2466.
How much will class members receive?
A court must still sign off on the deal, but the settlement groups have been broken into two categories: Subclass A and B.
Subclass A members can expect an approximate payment of $167. They include:
- Individuals who never completed their Noom enrollment but were charged anyway.
- People who enrolled but can prove they never used Noom after the trial period.
- Those who used Noom two times or fewer after the trial period.
- People who stopped using Noom after day 58 of the subscription.
- Customers who received a partial refund for a Healthy Weight Subscription.
- Individuals who were California residents when they signed up for the Healthy Weight Subscription.
Class members who don't fit any of those definitions are considered part of Subclass B and will receive approximately $30.
In addition, the first 100,000 Subclass B Members who file a valid claim form can also receive a free month's subscription to Noom's Healthy Weight program, independent of any cash reward.
When is the deadline to file a claim?
Class members must file their claims by June 24, 2022. That is also the deadline to exclude yourself from the settlement and retain your right to sue Noom regarding the issues in the case.
If you do that, you can request to speak at the final approval hearing on July 11, but your notice of intent to appear must be postmarked no later than July 5, 2022.
If you don't file a claim or indicate your desire to exclude yourself from the settlement by June 24, you waive any right to payment or to sue Noom.
Has Noom changed any policies since the suit was filed?
Saeju Jeong, co-founder and CEO of Noom
As part of the settlement, Noom agreed to alter certain practices. In the February blog post, Petakov and Jeong said they have added a self-service cancellation option on both the Noom app and website.
In addition, they indicated Noom has increased support staff, added more phone and online chat options, simplified pricing and made subscription details "even clearer and more readily available for Noomers to refer back to."