State Farm Alabama Purchasing Fees Settlement: Window Closed
At a glance
- Status
- Closed
- Defendant
- State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company
- Settlement fund
- Not publicly disclosed
- Claim deadline
- July 15, 2026
- No-proof cash option
- Yes — $20.50 flat cash ("in satisfaction of applicable Purchasing Fees"), no proof required
- Estimated payout
- $20.50 flat cash ("in satisfaction of applicable Purchasing Fees"), no proof required
- Administrator
- Kroll Settlement Administration LLC
- Official site
- alabamafeesettlement.com
- Court
- Circuit Court of Montgomery County, Alabama
- Case number
- 03-CV-2024-901729.00
Last verified July 16, 2026
Key dates
| Milestone | Date | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Claim deadline | July 15, 2026(passed) | Last day to file for a payment |
| Opt-out (exclusion) deadline | May 15, 2026(passed) | Last day to leave the settlement and keep the right to sue |
| Objection deadline | May 15, 2026(passed) | Last day to object to the terms |
| Final approval hearing | June 15, 2026(passed) | When the judge decides whether to approve the settlement |
| Expected payout | Not yet scheduled | Payments are not sent until after final approval and any appeals |
Where to file
State Farm Alabama Total-Loss Purchasing Fees Settlement (Dortch v. State Farm) is administered by Kroll Settlement Administration LLC. The only place to file is the official settlement website:
Verify on the official sitealabamafeesettlement.com
Filing is free. No legitimate settlement charges a fee to file a claim.
You cannot file on RecordingLaw.com. We are an independent publisher, not the settlement administrator, and we are not affiliated with any court, agency, or defendant.
The claim window for the State Farm Alabama Total-Loss Purchasing Fees Settlement, known in court as Dortch v. State Farm, closed on July 15, 2026. As of July 2026, the case has already cleared its final approval hearing, and the settlement is in the post-approval, payout-tracking phase. If you filed a claim before the deadline, this page explains what happens next. If you missed it, or never heard about the case at all, it explains why, and what your actual options are now.
What the Purchasing Fees settlement was about
This case, filed in the Circuit Court of Montgomery County, Alabama under case number 03-CV-2024-901729.00, is a class action against State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company. It centers on what the settlement calls Purchasing Fees, amounts tied to first-party total-loss auto claims in Alabama that the lawsuit alleged State Farm did not pay policyholders in full.
The court-approved notice defines Purchasing Fees as four items: Alabama state sales tax of 2%, not counting any city tax; county sales tax at the rate for the class member's county; applicable ad valorem taxes and ad valorem refund credit fees; and state, county, and city license fees, tag fees, and school fees. If you had a total loss, you can compare those categories against the itemization of your own settlement payment.
A first-party claim means you filed against your own State Farm policy, not against someone else's insurance. That distinction matters here because the class is built entirely around people making claims on their own coverage after their vehicle was declared a total loss, meaning State Farm determined the cost to repair it exceeded what the vehicle was worth and paid out its value instead of fixing it.
State Farm did not admit wrongdoing by agreeing to the settlement. As with most claims-practice class actions, the deal resolves the dispute without a trial on the merits.
Where the case stands right now
As of July 2026, the settlement is closed to new claims. The claim deadline was July 15, 2026. Before that, the deadline to exclude yourself from the class (opting out) or to object to the settlement terms was May 15, 2026, and both of those windows have also closed.
The court held its final approval hearing on June 15, 2026. That hearing is where a judge reviews whether the settlement is fair to the class before authorizing payment. Based on what is available, no expected payout date has been published yet. That is normal for this stage: administrators typically process claims, resolve any late disputes, and coordinate with the court before cutting checks, and that process does not run on a fixed public timeline.
If you filed a claim, there is nothing further you need to do right now beyond watching for payment. If you did not file and are just learning about this case, the claim window is shut and there is no mechanism to submit a late claim through the settlement itself.
Who was in the class
According to the court-approved notice, the class is Alabama State Farm policyholders and insureds who submitted a covered first-party private passenger auto physical damage claim during the Class Period, November 7, 2018 through February 10, 2026, that resulted in a total loss claim payment from State Farm which did not include full Purchasing Fees. If you had a State Farm auto policy in Alabama, your private passenger vehicle was totaled on a claim submitted in that window, and State Farm's payout left out some of those fees, you may fit this description.
Membership in a settlement class like this one is normally determined by the defendant's own claims records, not by whether you personally remember a fee being shorted. If State Farm's records showed you had an eligible total-loss claim, the administrator would typically have identified you as part of the class, which is why many class members received a mailed or emailed notice ahead of the deadline.
How much people actually get
The payout structure here was simple: State Farm pays $20.50 in cash to every Settlement Class Member who timely submitted a valid claim, in satisfaction of applicable Purchasing Fees. No documentation or proof of loss was required to receive it.
This is a flat, per-person amount, not a share of a common fund. The official settlement terms state that eligible class members who filed a valid claim on time receive $20.50, full stop; there is no pro-rata formula that shrinks the payment as more people file. This was never a case built around a large individual recovery; the amount reflects a specific, narrow fee dispute, not damages for the total loss of a vehicle itself.
What proof was required
None. This settlement did not ask claimants to submit receipts, repair estimates, or other documentation. Eligibility and payment were tied to State Farm's own claims records showing an applicable first-party total-loss claim with an unpaid Purchasing Fee, which is also why the claim process was described as no-proof.
If you filed a claim
There is no additional step for you right now. Watch for a payment from the settlement administrator, Kroll Settlement Administration LLC, and keep an eye on the official settlement site for any updates on distribution. If your contact information changed after you filed, an outdated address or bank detail is the most common reason a payment gets delayed, so it is worth checking the official site for any instructions on updating your details.
If you missed the deadline or never got notice
The claim window closed July 15, 2026, and there is no late-filing option through this settlement. If you believe you had an eligible State Farm total-loss claim in Alabama and never received notice, your options are narrower than you might expect. According to the court-approved notice, class members who did nothing were bound by the settlement and released any claim against State Farm for full Purchasing Fees on their total-loss claim, even if they never submitted a claim form.
The only way to keep the right to sue State Farm individually over those fees was to request exclusion (opt out) by the May 15, 2026 postmark deadline. The release covers claims relating to State Farm's alleged failure to pay full Purchasing Fees; the notice states class members are not releasing any other claim against State Farm. If you are unsure whether you are a class member or whether a different claim survives, an attorney can review your situation.
More broadly, if you have an open or future total-loss claim with any insurer in Alabama, it is worth understanding how these claims are supposed to work. An Alabama Department of Insurance regulation, Ala. Admin. Code r. 482-1-125-.08, sets standards for settling first-party automobile total losses. When an insurer pays cash based on the cost of a comparable vehicle, the rule requires the settlement to include all applicable taxes, license fees, and other fees incident to the transfer of ownership, limited to what would have been paid on the totaled vehicle. The Department also publishes consumer guidance on total-loss claims. If you think an insurer left money on the table on a current claim, that is a question for the insurer directly, or for the Alabama Department of Insurance's consumer complaint process, not something this closed settlement can address.
A note on taxes
Whether a settlement payment like this is taxable depends on what it is meant to replace, not on the fact that it came from a class action. The IRS generally looks at the nature of the underlying claim the payment resolves. For a small fee-reimbursement payment like this one, consult a tax professional about your specific situation rather than assuming either way.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the State Farm Alabama Purchasing Fees settlement still accepting claims?
No. The claim deadline was July 15, 2026, and that date has passed. As of July 2026, the settlement is not accepting new claims.
What was the State Farm Alabama Purchasing Fees settlement about?
The case, Dortch v. State Farm, is a class action in the Circuit Court of Montgomery County, Alabama alleging State Farm did not pay certain Purchasing Fees owed to Alabama policyholders on first-party total-loss auto claims. State Farm did not admit wrongdoing.
Who was eligible for the State Farm Alabama Purchasing Fees settlement?
Alabama State Farm policyholders and insureds who submitted a covered first-party private passenger auto physical damage claim between November 7, 2018 and February 10, 2026 that resulted in a total-loss payment not including full Purchasing Fees. A first-party claim means it was filed against your own policy.
How much did the State Farm Purchasing Fees settlement pay?
A flat $20.50 in cash, paid to every eligible Settlement Class Member who timely submitted a valid claim, in satisfaction of applicable Purchasing Fees. This was a fixed per-person payment, not a pro-rata share of a common fund.
Did I need to submit proof to claim the State Farm Purchasing Fees payment?
No. This was a no-proof claims process. Eligibility and payment were based on State Farm's own claims records rather than documentation submitted by the claimant.
When will State Farm Purchasing Fees settlement payments go out?
No expected payout date has been published as of July 2026. The final approval hearing was held June 15, 2026, and distribution timing has not been announced beyond that.
Can I still file a claim if I missed the July 15, 2026 deadline?
No, this settlement's claim window is closed. There is no late-filing process through the settlement itself. Under the court-approved notice, class members who did not opt out by May 15, 2026 released their claims against State Farm for full Purchasing Fees on their total-loss claims, even without filing a claim form. Other claims were not released; an attorney can review any separate options.
Who administered the State Farm Alabama Purchasing Fees settlement?
Kroll Settlement Administration LLC administered the settlement through the official site, alabamafeesettlement.com.
Is the State Farm Purchasing Fees settlement connected to a data breach?
No. This case involves an insurance claims-handling dispute over fees on Alabama total-loss auto claims, not a data breach or exposure of personal information.
How to tell a settlement notice is real
Check the case name, case number, and court against the official settlement site. Go to that site directly instead of clicking a link in an email or text. Nobody legitimate will call, text, or email out of the blue asking for your Social Security number, bank account, or card details, and nobody will charge you to file. Report anyone who does at ReportFraud.ftc.gov.
Already have a notice with a link or sender address? Paste it into our settlement notice checker to compare it with the official claim sites we track.
Informational only. Not legal, tax, or financial advice, and not affiliated with any settlement.
RecordingLaw.com is an independent legal-information publisher. We are not a law firm, not a settlement administrator, and not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of any court, government agency, defendant, or claims administrator described on this page. Reading this page does not create an attorney-client relationship.
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Deadlines, amounts, and approval status change and are set by the court. We verify against the official administrator and court records, but confirm the current details on the official site before acting. Nothing here guarantees eligibility, a payment, or any amount. Settlement payments may be taxable. See IRS Publication 4345. and consult a tax professional. For advice about your specific situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state. Affiliate disclosure.
Updates
We added the settlement's official class period and Purchasing Fees definition, explained that class members who did not opt out released their fee claims, and named the Alabama insurance regulation that governs total-loss payouts.
Sources and References
- Dortch v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, Official Settlement Website(alabamafeesettlement.com)
- Alabama Department of Insurance, Automobile Insurance FAQs (total loss and actual cash value)(aldoi.gov).gov
- Alabama Department of Revenue, What Is a Salvage Vehicle (Total Loss)?(revenue.alabama.gov).gov
- IRS, Tax Implications of Settlements and Judgments(irs.gov).gov
- Notice of Class Action Settlement, Dortch v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company, Case No. 03-CV-2024-901729.00, Circuit Court of Montgomery County, Alabama(cdn.prod.website-files.com)
- Ala. Admin. Code r. 482-1-125-.08, Standards for Prompt, Fair and Equitable Settlements Applicable to Automobile Insurance(admincode.legislature.state.al.us)