Attorney General Ken Paxton recently announced that a settlement has been reached with the former RadioShack that will see it pay the entire value of unredeemed gift cards.
On Aug. 11 the Texas Attorney General’s Office filed a motion requesting that U.S. bankruptcy court to compel the former RadioShack to provide notice of bankruptcy proceedings to 2.9 million customers holding approximately $46 million in unredeemed gift cards.
The settlement, announced Aug. 26 in a U.S. Bankruptcy Court, applies to consumers nationwide and does not impose a minimum dollar threshold.
"This is a victory for consumers in Texas and nationwide who spent their hard-earned dollars on these gift cards with full confidence that the company would honor them,” said Paxton. “I’m pleased that their voices were heard, and that, if approved next month by the bankruptcy court, they’ll get their money back with a minimum of bureaucratic red tape.”
According to a press release, an independent professional claims agent company will be approved by the bankruptcy court to review and process the claims. Consumers will have 12 months after RadioShack's plan of liquidation goes into effect to file a simplified proof of claim form that will be available online or they can file their claim by mail if they prefer.
The legal fight centered on whether unredeemed gift cards are entitled to priority treatment for payment ahead of general unsecured claims.
The Attorneys General of New York, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Tennessee, and New Hampshire support the settlement.