StarKist Tuna Offers $25 Cash, $50 Coupons As Settlement In Class Action Lawsuit

People who bought StarKist Tuna in the past six years will be able to take part in a class action lawsuit.

The suit, filed by Plaintiff Patrick Hendricks in California, February 2013, claimed that the company was under-filling 5-ounce cans of solid white albacore tuna and chunk light tuna.

U.S. federal law requires 5-ounce cans of tuna to contain between 2.84 and 3.23 ounces of fish. Hendricks reported that StarKist's 5-ounce cans only had an average of 2.81 to 3.11 ounces. The plaintiff claimed he would not have bought the tuna if he had known the cans contained an inadequate amount of fish, and his independent tests determined that StarKist Tuna cans contained, at times, a 17.3 percent deficit.

Hendricks versus StarKist Co. settled upon an agreement. Although StarKist will not admit fault in this situation, the company will offer either money or StarKist vouchers to people who bought certain types of 5-ounce cans of tuna between February 19, 2009 and October 31, 2014, according to Fox Carolina.

StarKist will pay $8 million in cash and $4 million in coupons. Bursor and Fisher, the law firm that presented the suit, will receive up to $4 million.

Those who bought any of the following varieties of StarKist Tuna are eligible for either $25 cash or $50 in StarKist coupons: Chunk Light Tuna in Oil, Solid White Tuna in Oil, Chunk Light Tuna in Water, and Solid White Tuna in Water.

Many people will receive notices of the settlement, but those who do not can register online. A receipt is not needed to file, but those who sign up for the settlement need to submit a form that certifies, under penalty of perjury, the products bought and the fact that they were purchased during the time period of February 19, 2009 and October 31, 2014. The claims need to be filled by November 20, 2015.

To file a claim for either the $25 cash or $50 in coupons, visit www.tunalawsuit.com.