Did You Get a 'Free Cruise' Robocall? You Might Be Owed Up To $900

Robocalls are the telecommunications plague of the 21st century. With call centers located outside of the United States, illicit telemarketers are able to pester and harass consumers without any real fear of repercussion, even if the call recipient has registered their phone number with the Do Not Call Registry. Usually, these scammers try to extract money from people who believe they owe the IRS money or via some other fiction. A recent settlement, however, has turned the tables, as Today reports.

A Chicago judge recently approved a class-action settlement involving Resort Marketing Group acting on behalf of Royal, Caribbean, and Norwegian cruise lines. The calls claiming that people were owed a “free cruise” were found to be an unauthorized use of phone numbers that Resort Marketing didn’t have permission to use, a violation of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA).

What does that mean for you? If you’ve gotten a call with an offer involving a cruise, you’ll want to head to the suit’s landing page to see if your phone number was among those used during the marketing effort. If the site indicates it was, you can print and mail in a claim form. The suit will pay claimants $300 per call received, up to a maximum of three calls, or $900. It might be the easiest money you ever collect—and a nice bonus for putting up with the dozens of robocalls blowing up your phone. Claims will be accepted through November 3, 2017.

[h/t Today]