$45 Million Roundup Weed Killer Settlement: There's Only a Week Left to File A Claim
Roundup, HDX and other Monsanto products fail to indicate they contain an alleged carcinogen, according to a 2019 class action suit.
A class-action suit alleged Monsanto failed to properly indicate that its Roundup line of weed and grass killers contains glyphosate, which some analysts have labeled a carcinogen.
If you've purchased Roundup, HDX or Ace weed and grass killer in recent years, you could be eligible for a multimillion-dollar payout -- but the deadline to file a claim is just days away.
Agricultural giant Monsanto, which produces all three products, agreed to a $45 million settlement this year in response to a class-action suit accusing it of failing to warn customers that a herbicide in its weed killers can potentially cause cancer or other adverse health effects.
Monsanto and its parent company, Bayer, have faced tens of thousands of personal injury claims filed by people diagnosed with cancer after using Roundup. This suit is unrelated -- it instead alleges Monsanto was negligent in not warning all customers of the potential danger.
In a statement shared with CNET, Bayer said the US Environmental Protection Agency "has repeatedly concluded that glyphosate is not carcinogenic; therefore, a cancer warning label on Monsanto's glyphosate-based products would be illegal misbranding."
Last year, however, Bayer announced it would remove glyphosate from its retail lawn care products to "manage litigation risk in the US."
Read on to find out what the Roundup case is about, who can file a claim, how much they can expect to receive and when the deadline to file is. For more class action cases, see if you qualify for T-Mobile's $350 million payout or AT&T's $14 million hidden fee settlement.
What is Monsanto accused of in the class-action lawsuit?
The suit, filed in US District Court in Oregon in 2019, claims Monsanto promoted and sold various weed and grass killers without disclosing their potential cancer risks. All the cited products contain glyphosate, one of the most common herbicides in the world.
While the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) in 2015 classified glyphosate as "probably carcinogenic to humans," the EPA has determined there is "no evidence that glyphosate causes cancer in humans."
Monsanto denies any wrongdoing but in 2021 agreed to pay between $23 million and $45 million to resolve the case. On June 21, 2022, US District Judge Vince Chhabria provisionally approved the maximum payout.
Bayer, Monsanto's parent company, said in a statement that its support for a settlement "is not due to any safety concerns, as the weight of scientific evidence and the conclusions of all expert regulators worldwide continue to support the safety of glyphosate-based herbicides."
Which Monsanto weed killer brands are included in the settlement?
The settlement includes 19 Monsanto products containing glyphosate, including Roundup Ready-to-Use Weed & Grass Killer, HDX Weed & Grass Killer Ready-to-Use and Ace Weed & Grass Killer Concentrate.
You can find a complete list of products here.
Who is eligible to file a claim in the Monsanto settlement?
Anyone in the US who purchased one of the varieties of Roundup, HDX or Ace weed and grass killer covered by the suit for any other reason than resale or distribution is eligible for a cash payment.
The relevant time period depends on the state in which a product was bought. You can locate the specific time frame for your state here (PDF).
Do I need to have a Roundup receipt to file a claim?
According to the provisional settlement, no.
"Recognizing that many consumers will not have receipts or will not wish to go through the effort of locating them, proof of purchase will not be required to claim up to one Product for each year of the class period," the settlement said.
The only exception is for the largest and highest-priced concentrated products, which will require valid proof of purchase.
Bayer's San Francisco offices. The German pharmaceutical company bought Monsanto for $63 billion in 2018.
How much money could I get in the Monsanto settlement?
The agreement compensates class members without proof of purchase ffor up to 20% of the average retail price of up to 11 Roundup products, according to Courthouse News, paying anywhere between 50 cents and $33 per bottle, depending on the size and state purchased in.
With the exception of the three largest concentrated products, claims without proof of purchase are limited to one item a year within the period covered by the settlement.
If the class member has proof of purchase, there is no limit to the number of units they can claim.
How do I file a claim to be part of the Roundup class-action settlement?
To participate in the settlement, you need to file a claim that includes your contact information, proof of purchase or information about the product you purchased, the retail location of the purchase including city and state, and the approximate date of purchase.
You can file a claim here.
When is the deadline to file a claim?
The deadline to submit a claim or opt out of the settlement is Oct. 19, 2022. The deadline to object to the settlement is Dec. 5, 2022.
When will class members receive their money?
The claimants in this class action suit allege Monsanto was negligent in not warning them of cancer risks.
A final hearing to determine the fairness of the settlement is slated for Jan. 12, 2023. If approved, payments would begin to be issued at some point after that.
Read on: What is a class action lawsuit
Does accepting the settlement mean I can't sue if I develop cancer later?
The settlement does not relate to personal injury -- it only covers false advertising, consumer fraud, breach of warranty and other economic claims, according to the Top Class Actions website.
The settlement language "needs to scream from the mountaintops that if you participate in this settlement and later get sick from non-Hodgkin lymphoma your participation in this settlement does not preclude you from suing Monsanto," Chhabria, the district court judge, said in an April hearing, Courthouse News Service reported.
There have been at least three high-profile civil suits involving the potential links between Monsanto's weed killers and cancer: In 2018, a San Francisco jury awarded $289 million to a groundskeeper who used Roundup products and developed late-stage non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
In March 2019, a federal jury awarded $80 million to another California man after determining Roundup was "a substantial factor" in causing his lymphoma. In May of that same year, another jury awarded more than $2 billion to a California couple in their 70s who had both been diagnosed with the same illness after using Roundup for decades.
Courts, including the Supreme Court, have rejected Bayer's appeals and, in 2020, the company agreed to pay $10.9 billion to settle nearly 100,000 more lawsuits from individuals claiming glyphosate in Roundup and other Monsanto weed killers caused them to develop cancer.