Keurig K-Cup Coffee Pod Settlement: How to Claim a Piece of $10M Payout

If you bought Keurig K-Cup coffee pods at any point between June 2016 and August 2022, you might be entitled to some cash as a result of a recent court settlement. In 2018, Keurig was accused of mislabeling some of its products, resulting in a class-action lawsuit being filed.

In the lawsuit, Kathleen Smith alleged Keurig had falsely advertised that its coffee pods could be recycled, according to ABC 7.

In reality, there's only one facility in the U.S. that accepts K-Cups, making it nearly impossible to recycle them. Although the coffee maker hasn't admitted fault, it did modify its products’ packaging and agreed to pay $10 million to settle the class-action lawsuit. Here’s how much you might be entitled to and how to claim the cash.

Whether you’re an avid Keurig K-Cup coffee pod user or only buy the product every so often, you may be entitled to a portion of the Keurig K-Cup coffee pod settlement. If you bought Keurig K-Cups labeled as "recyclable" between June 8, 2016, and Aug. 8, 2022, you can submit a claim online with or without proof of purchase.

Despite whether you received notice of the settlement, you can still file a claim online.

If you submit an online claim for the Keurig K-Cup settlement with proof of purchase, you may receive up to $36 in cash per household. According to the settlement website, the actual amount is based on $3.50 per 100 pods purchased with a $6 minimum.

If you don't have proof of purchase, you can still file a claim, although you’ll only be entitled to receive up to $5 per household. When filling out the claim form, you’ll be given the option to select how you want your payout to be issued. The available options include:

• Mastercard
• PayPal
• Venmo
• Direct deposit
• Zelle

The deadline to submit an online claim for the Keurig K-Cup settlement was Jan. 9, 2023. Your claim must be submitted no later than 11:59 p.m. PST in order for it to be considered. If you mailed in your claim, it must be postmarked Jan. 9, 2023, or earlier.

Those who received an email notice regarding the Keurig settlement on Dec. 16, 2022, were given until Jan. 30, 2023, to submit their claim online, exclude themselves from the settlement, or object to the settlement. The claim form had to submitted no later than 11:59 p.m. on Jan. 30.

In 2018, Keurig was accused of “greenwashing,” which is when “companies mislead consumers about environmental attributes to their products,” according to Howard Hirsch with Lexington Law Group. The company claimed that its coffee pods could be recycled when in reality, there were very few places that accepted them due to them being “too small and dirty.”

Keurig ultimately decided to settle the lawsuit but refused to accept the blame.

Despite Keurig’s hiccup with its “recyclable” K-Cups, the product hasn't been discontinued. The company merely reworded its packaging so that it reads “not recycled in all communities.”

Keurig K-Cups can still be purchased online at Amazon or on the company’s official website. You can also find the items at Walmart, Target, Best Buy, Sears, Kohls, and other popular retailers.

One product Keurig did discontinue, however, is its K-Mugs pods. In December 2017, the coffee maker announced via Twitter that it wouldn't be adding any new K-Mug pods to its inventory.