Intuit, the company that makes TurboTax software, is writing about 4.4 million checks to users after a 50-state settlement. The customers affected (and you might be one of them) won't have to file a claim or do anything else to receive about $30 by mail, most likely this month. For users who used TurboTax for three consecutive years, the payout could be as high as $85, CNN Business reports.
The reason for the payout? TurboTax was accused of steering millions of U.S. customers away from free tax-filing services in favor of its own software, which it promoted as being free in an ad campaign. (Spoiler: It wasn't.)
A 2019 ProPublica story investigated Intuit and found that the company used lobbying and some shady business practices to block the government's efforts to provide free and easy tax-prep service to the country's lowest-income citizens.
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The settlement was finalized almost exactly a year ago, with Intuit set to pay out about $141 million total after 50 states joined a class action against Intuit. The settlement affects those who used TurboTax Free Edition for the tax years 2016 through 2018.
A check for $30 or even $85 may not seem like a lot of money, but if you're getting cash back from Meta as well, you can start an interest-earning bank account just for your class-action money and start saving for your retirement!
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