United HealthCare Services agreed to a $3.5mn settlement in a class-action lawsuit over claims it used artificial and prerecorded voices to repeatedly contact individuals who were not policyholders, violating federal law.
The lawsuit states that the company regularly called nonmembers without consent to promote its Optum HouseCalls program.
These actions breached the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, which bans the use of automated systems or artificial and prerecorded voices for non-emergency calls without prior consent.
Under the terms of the UnitedHealthcare settlement, class members can receive an equal share of the net settlement fund.
Class members who submit a valid claim form are estimated to receive between $50 and $125.
Exact payments will vary depending on the number of participating class members and the amount deducted for various costs.
The deadline for exclusion and objection is April 25, 2025. The final approval hearing for the UnitedHealthcare robocalls settlement is scheduled for July 10, 2025.
To receive settlement benefits, class members must submit a valid claim form by April 25, 2025.
The complaint also claims United HealthCare made repeated non-emergency calls using artificial and prerecorded voices to wrong or reassigned mobile numbers.
The lead plaintiff said she informed a representative that the company had the wrong number and that she had no connection with United HealthCare. She also stated she never gave the company her phone number.
Despite this, the automated calls continued. Plaintiffs argue these calls invaded their privacy and caused them to spend time trying to stop the unwanted contact.
Over 12,000 people are affected by the case, which alleges that the company violated the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act by using artificial or prerecorded voices to make calls without prior consent.
Who qualifies for a payment?
If you were not a UnitedHealthcare member or an authorized third party at the time you received one or more prerecorded calls from Jan 9, 2015, to Jan 9, 2019, from one of the following teams, you may be eligible:
- Medicare and Retirement Non-Licensed Retention Team
- Community and State National Retention Team
- Medicare and Retirement Collections Team
If eligible, you should have received a notice by email or mail.
Individuals who received a call from UnitedHealthcare regarding the Optum HouseCalls program that used an artificial or prerecorded voice and was directed to a cellular telephone number not associated with a UnitedHealthcare member or planholder between Oct. 12, 2019, and Feb. 10, 2025.
A court hearing on June 20, 2025, will decide whether to give final approval. If approved, payments will be issued to eligible claimants who filed by the deadline.
In February, a cyberattack affected about 190mn UnitedHealth Group customers. The breach targeted Change Healthcare and interrupted payments to hospitals and doctors. Exposed data includes ID numbers, bank records, and health information.
Senator Chuck Schumer has urged advanced federal payments to hospitals in New York affected by the breach under the Accelerated and Advance Payment Program, allowing Medicare and Medicaid to pre-pay delayed claims.
