PayWave mass arbitration
PayWave customers who paid instant-transfer or currency-conversion fees between November 2021 and February 2025 may be owed compensation. Registering commits you to nothing.
PayWave mass arbitration
A coordinated program of individual arbitration demands alleging that PayWave charged instant-transfer and currency-conversion fees above the rates it disclosed, then relied on a class-action waiver to keep those claims out of court.
The program runs as 14,900 individual demands rather than a class action, because PayWave’s customer agreement forbids a class action. Read as written, the same agreement obliges PayWave to arbitrate every one of them — and to pay the respondent-side filing fee the AAA charges for each.
- Program reference
- WG-US-2026-0411
- Respondent
- PayWave, Inc. (Delaware)
- Forum
- AAA · Mass Arbitration Supplementary Rules
- Class period
- Nov 1, 2021 – Feb 14, 2025
- Registration closes
- Nov 30, 2026
- Fee basis
- Contingency — no fee unless recovery
- Funder
- Ardsley Legal Capital LP
Registering commits you to nothing. No fee is payable unless the program recovers damages.
What was published, and what was charged
Both figures come from PayWave, Inc.'s own records. The claim is a subtraction.
Instant transfer
Charged per transfer, and charged again on a transfer that failed and was retried.
Currency conversion
The spread appeared nowhere on the fee schedule, the receipt or the monthly statement.
On February 14, 2025, PayWave amended both disclosures. It has not refunded the difference, and it has not accepted that any difference was owed. Our modeling of the disclosed fee volumes across 250,000 affected customers puts the total at approximately $750 million.
- Class period
- Nov 1, 2021 – Feb 14, 2025
- Affected customers
- 250,000
- Modeled exposure
- $750m
- Source
- PayWave 10-K and fee schedules
The waiver forecloses a class action. It does not foreclose a claim.
- Rules
- Mass Arbitration Supplementary Rules
- Filing
- Individual demands, in tranches
- Common issues
- 25 bellwether demands
- Consumer fee
- Capped; balance on respondent
- Hearings
- Documents only for most claimants
On November 1, 2021, PayWave added an arbitration clause and class-action waiver to its customer agreement by in-app notice. The notice offered a 30-day right to opt out, referenced in a changelog entry that the great majority of customers never saw.
The clause does what it was drafted to do: it forecloses a class action. It does not foreclose a claim. Read as written, it obliges PayWave to arbitrate every customer's claim individually, and to pay the respondent-side filing fees the AAA charges for each one.
So that is what we are doing. Each demand is separately pleaded, separately verified, and capable of being heard on its own facts — 14,900 of them, and counting.
Refund of the fee difference
The difference between the disclosed rate and the rate charged, for every affected transaction in the class period.
Statutory and interest components
Interest on the sums withheld, and any statutory amounts available under applicable state law.
Prospective disclosure relief
A binding statement of how fees are disclosed, at the point of transaction rather than in a schedule.
The eligibility test, in full
This is the published class test. The questionnaire on this site applies exactly these criteria and tells you the reason for its answer.
- PayWave employees, officers and their immediate families
- Accounts opened after February 14, 2025
- Customers who validly opted out of the arbitration clause in December 2021
- Anyone who has already released these claims
Validly opted out in December 2021? You may be able to sue in court instead, which is a stronger position. Tell us and we will explain your options.
Everything that has happened, dated
The record is published in full. Registered claimants see the same timeline in the portal, with their own claim marked on it.
The matter on the record
Everything a claimant, funder or journalist needs to check what we say against what we filed.
Case updates
Published whenever the position changes, and emailed to registered claimants the same day.
Registration extended to November 30
Following the bellwether selection, PayWave has agreed to a standstill on limitation for claimants registering before November 30, 2026. Registration was previously due to close on September 15.Twenty-five bellwether demands selected
The pool was drawn to represent the book rather than its strongest claims. If your demand is in the pool you have been contacted directly and no action is required from anyone else.AAA fee determination in the claimants' favor
The AAA confirmed respondent-side filing fees for the first tranche and refused PayWave's application to defer them pending a challenge to the clause it drafted.First 4,300 demands filed
Filing is proceeding in tranches so that each demand is individually verified before it is submitted. Registered claimants are told their tranche in the portal.This matter, answered
The questions claimants ask most often about this matter.
Do I need to have kept my statements?
No. Statements make your claim easier to value, but where a claimant cannot obtain records we seek them from PayWave in the arbitration. Missing documents may affect the evidenced value of a claim, not your eligibility.
Will PayWave close my account if I register?
Retaliation for bringing a claim would be unlawful and we have seen no evidence of it. Tell the case team immediately if your account is restricted after you register.
I opted out of arbitration in 2021. Can I still claim?
Not through this program, but you may have a better claim than the people in it — a valid opt-out leaves you free to sue in court. Contact the case team and we will tell you plainly what your options are.
What if I live outside the United States?
This program is a US arbitration and requires US residency at account opening. Non-US customers affected by the same fees may be covered by a separate action; register your interest and we will tell you when there is something to join.
How much will I receive, and when?
There is no settlement yet, so no honest answer to the first part exists. Our modeling puts the mean recovery at $3,000 per registered claimant before deductions. On timing: a settlement framework is expected in the first quarter of 2027, with distribution following approval.
What does it cost me?
Nothing unless the program recovers money. The firm's fee is 40% of the sum recovered for you, the funder's return is a multiple of its committed capital, and administration is charged at $18 per claim. Every figure is in the claimant agreement before you sign it.
Four minutes now, and nothing else until we ask
Check your eligibility, register your claim, and we will do the rest. Registration closes on November 30, 2026.