American Express $17.5M Antitrust Settlement 2026, If You Paid With Visa, Mastercard or Discover in These States, You May Be Owed Cash

American Express has agreed to pay $17.5 million to settle a class action lawsuit accusing it of forcing merchants to hide cheaper payment options from customers — ultimately causing millions of non-Amex cardholders to pay inflated prices without knowing it. The lawsuit alleged American Express unlawfully subjected merchants who accept Amex cards to rules prohibiting them from steering consumers to pay with non-Amex cards that may charge the merchant a lower fee — and that this caused merchants to raise prices for all customers to cover the Amex fees.

The case went to trial, concluded in August 2025, and resulted in a jury finding for only one class of consumers. If you used a non-rewards Visa, Mastercard, or Discover card in Illinois between 2016 and 2022 — or a Visa or Mastercard debit card in certain other states between 2015 and 2022 — you may be eligible for a cash payment. The claim deadline is May 19, 2026.

Quick Facts

• Case: Moskowitz et al. v. American Express Co. et al. | Case No. 1:19-cv-00566-NGG-JRC
• Court: US District Court, Eastern District of New York
• Settlement amount: $17,500,000
• Claim deadline: May 19, 2026 ⚠️
• Opt-out/objection deadline: April 29, 2026
• Final approval hearing: June 17, 2026
• No documentation required: Claim form only — administrator may request proof later
• Official settlement website: amexantitrust.com
• Settlement administrator: Amex Antitrust, c/o A.B. Data Ltd., P.O. Box 173092, Milwaukee, WI 53217
• Phone: 877-315-0587
• Email: [email protected]

What Did American Express Actually Do?

Every time you swipe a credit card, the merchant pays a processing fee to the card network — Visa, Mastercard, Discover, or American Express. Amex charges merchants some of the highest processing fees in the industry, typically 2.5% to 3.5% per transaction compared to lower rates for Visa and Mastercard.

To protect those fees, American Express included anti-steering rules in its merchant agreements — contract provisions that prohibited merchants who accepted Amex cards from encouraging customers to pay with a different card that would charge the merchant a lower fee.

In practice this meant a cashier could not say “would you like to pay with Visa and save us both some money?” even if doing so would benefit both the store and the customer. Merchants were contractually forbidden from mentioning the fee difference at all.

The plaintiffs claimed these rules caused merchants to increase prices for all customers — not just Amex users — to cover the higher Amex processing costs. So if you never owned an Amex card but shopped at a merchant that accepted Amex, you were allegedly paying slightly higher prices to subsidize fees you had nothing to do with.

The case went all the way to trial. In August 2025 a jury found Amex violated Illinois law — but only the Illinois non-rewards credit card class suffered damages. Out of 12 certified classes, that was the only group that won at trial. American Express agreed to settle before the court entered the final verdict judgment.

Who Qualifies — Two Separate Groups

This settlement covers two groups of consumers. Read both carefully — you may qualify under one or both.

Group One — Illinois Non-Rewards Credit Card Class

This is the group that actually won at trial. You qualify if ALL of the following are true:

• You are an individual — not a business
• You held a non-rewards Visa, Mastercard, or Discover credit card with a billing address in Illinois
• You used that card to purchase goods or services from a qualifying merchant between January 29, 2016 and June 1, 2022
• You did NOT have an American Express card at any time during the class period — including Amex co-branded cards
• Your card did not offer rewards or charge an annual fee
• Your purchases were not limited to flat insurance copays for prescriptions or medical services

All class members must provide their Illinois credit card billing address when filing. The claim form does not require supporting documentation but the settlement administrator may request it later to verify eligibility.

Group Two — Debit Card Class

You qualify if you used a Visa or Mastercard debit card to make purchases from a qualifying merchant in the following states and timeframes:

• Alabama, Washington DC, Maine, North Carolina, Oregon, or Utah: January 29, 2015 to June 1, 2022
• Kansas, Illinois, or Mississippi: January 29, 2016 to June 1, 2022

The settlement also covers individuals who used a non-rewards Visa, Mastercard, or Discover credit card in Washington DC, Kansas, or Illinois between January 29, 2016 and June 1, 2022.

Which Merchants Are Covered?

The settlement includes 38 qualifying merchants and the retail stores and brands they may operate under — including Walmart and Sam’s Club, Target, CVS, Walgreens, Home Depot, Best Buy, Kroger, Albertsons, and others listed in the official settlement notice.

The full list of 38 qualifying merchants is available at amexantitrust.com. If you shopped at any of these stores during the covered period using a qualifying card in a qualifying state, you are likely eligible.

How Much Will You Receive?

Class members will receive a pro rata cash payment — meaning an equal share of the net settlement fund divided by the total number of valid claims filed. As an example: if $8 million remains after deductions and 100,000 people file valid claims, each claimant would receive $80.

The actual amount depends entirely on how many people file. With $17.5 million total and significant attorney fee deductions expected, individual payments will be modest — but the process takes about 10 minutes and requires no documentation.

How to File Your Claim Before May 19, 2026

Step 1: Visit amexantitrust.com

Step 2: Click the “File a Claim” button

Step 3: Log in with your unique ID and PIN from your settlement notice — or complete the form as a new registrant if you did not receive a notice but believe you qualify

Step 4: Provide your Illinois credit card billing address or qualifying state information, select your payment method, and submit

Payment options: Direct deposit, check by mail, or other electronic payment options available through the settlement portal

No notice received but think you qualify? Contact the settlement administrator:

• Phone: 877-315-0587
• Email: [email protected]
• Mail: Amex Antitrust, c/o A.B. Data Ltd., P.O. Box 173092, Milwaukee, WI 53217

When Will Payments Go Out?

The court will determine whether to grant final settlement approval at the hearing on June 17, 2026. Compensation will begin to be distributed to eligible class members only after final approval has been granted and any appeals have been resolved.

Assuming no appeals, payments could realistically go out by late 2026.

What If You Want to Opt Out or Object?

Opt-out deadline: April 29, 2026 If you want to preserve your right to sue American Express individually over the same anti-steering claims, you can exclude yourself by April 29, 2026. Opting out means no payment from this settlement.

Objection deadline: April 29, 2026 If you believe the settlement terms are unfair, you can file a written objection with the court before April 29, 2026. Full instructions are at amexantitrust.com.

Key Terms Explained

Anti-Steering Rules: Contract provisions that prevent merchants from encouraging customers to use a specific payment method — in this case preventing merchants from promoting lower-fee alternatives to Amex.

Sherman Antitrust Act: The federal law prohibiting anticompetitive business practices. The original lawsuit alleged Amex’s anti-steering rules violated this law by restricting competition in the payment processing market.

Non-Rewards Credit Card: A credit card that earns no cashback, miles, or points and charges no annual fee. Only these cards qualify for the credit card portion of this settlement.

Pro Rata Payment: Each eligible claimant receives an equal share of the net fund — the more people who file, the smaller each individual payment.

Merchant Processing Fee: The percentage of each transaction a merchant pays to the card network for accepting card payments. Amex typically charges merchants more than Visa or Mastercard.

This is not the only major payment card antitrust settlement currently active. Our breakdown of the Visa Mastercard ATM lawsuit and $167.5M settlement covers a separate open settlement over ATM fees that may apply to you if you regularly used non-bank ATMs. And if you have received multiple settlement notices in 2026 and are wondering which ones are worth your time, our guide on the BCBS $2.67B antitrust settlement payments starting May 2026 explains how large antitrust settlements calculate individual payouts and why filing even modest claims is always worth doing.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. For questions about your eligibility or claim status, visit amexantitrust.com or contact the settlement administrator at 877-315-0587.

Sources: Moskowitz et al. v. American Express Co. et al., Case No. 1:19-cv-00566-NGG-JRC (E.D.N.Y.) | Official settlement website: amexantitrust.com | ClaimDepot.com settlement report, March 2026 | ClassAction.org settlement report, February 24, 2026 | Daily Hodl, March 7, 2026

About the Author

Sarah Klein, JD, is a licensed attorney and legal content strategist with over 12 years of experience across civil, criminal, family, and regulatory law. At All About Lawyer, she covers a wide range of legal topics — from high-profile lawsuits and courtroom stories to state traffic laws and everyday legal questions — all with a focus on accuracy, clarity, and public understanding.
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