If you were a customer of SmileDirectClub, you may be able to get a portion of a $4.8 million refund for fees collected after the company shut down.
More than 28,000 people could get part of the money that was recovered by the office of New York Attorney General Letitia James, The Associated Press reported.
The company illegally charged tens of thousands of customers, she said.
“Dental care is expensive and SmileDirectClub promised customers that they would provide affordable, quality care without the price tag, but instead, they extracted thousands of dollars from hardworking people,” James said in a statement. “Today, we are putting money back into people’s pockets who were cheated.”
The seller of clear dental aligners closed the business in December 2023, months after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, canceling orders and the “Lifetime Smile Guarantee.” But while services ended, customers who had used “SmilePay” were to continue paying what they owed the defunct business, the AP reported.
Most people paid more than $2,500 for the initial payments and installments, James said. After receiving complaints from people across New York about still having to pay without receiving services, her office sent SmileDirectClub a cease-and-desist letter. The company directed her office to HPS Investment Partners and Healthcare Finance Direct.
The settlement will see customers get either a partial or full refund of their installment payments or a reduction of their future installments, depending on when customers first received their aligners, how much of the plan was completed by December 2023 and the amount of outstanding balances.
Money will first go to the outstanding balance if any, and if there is any left over, the money will be deposited back into the form of payment. If that doesn’t work, then a check will be mailed, the AP reported.
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