Discover Merchant Settlement
Discover Misclassified Interchange Fee Settlement · Case 1:23-cv-14250, N.D. Ill. (MDL)
If your business accepted Discover cards between 2007 and 2023, you may be entitled to a share of a settlement fund of at least $500 million — and up to $1.09 billion. Discover allegedly misclassified consumer credit cards as commercial cards, charging merchants inflated interchange fees for years.
| Settlement fund | $500M–$1.09B — Preliminarily approved fund |
|---|---|
| Class period | 2007 – 2023 |
| Defendants | Discover Financial Services |
| Filing status | Court-set deadlines apply — contact us to confirm the current filing window |
| Cost to file with VMC | $0 upfront — contingency only, paid from recovered funds |
The case
Discover Financial Services has agreed to a settlement resolving allegations that it misclassified certain Discover-issued consumer credit cards as commercial credit cards. Because commercial cards carry higher interchange rates, merchants who accepted those cards were overcharged on every affected transaction.
The court has preliminarily approved a settlement with a minimum of $500 million, scaling up to approximately $1.09 billion depending on the volume of claims filed. The final amount each merchant receives will depend on its Discover transaction volume during the class period.
Who qualifies
- Businesses that accepted Discover cards as payment at any time from 2007 through 2023
- Merchant acquirers and payment intermediaries that processed Discover transactions during the class period
- Both current and former businesses — a company that has since closed or been sold may still hold a claim
Eligibility rules are set by the court and the claims administrator. The fastest way to know for sure is a free eligibility review — we'll tell you plainly whether you have a claim worth filing.
What you'll need
- Business legal name and Tax ID (TIN/EIN)
- Merchant account or processing statements covering the class period (we can help reconstruct volume if records are incomplete)
- Authorized signer for the service agreement
How filing works
- Free eligibility review. We confirm your business fits the class definition — no cost, no commitment.
- Sign the service agreement. One signature. Our fee is a percentage of recovery, paid only if you're paid.
- We assemble the claim. You receive a short claims worksheet; our analysts compile and verify the supporting data.
- We file and defend it. We submit before the deadline and respond to any administrator deficiency notices.
- You get paid. Funds are distributed by the administrator; we track your claim through to payment.
Official case information is available from the court-approved settlement website and the claims administrator. VMC Group is not the claims administrator and is not affiliated with the court; class members may always file directly at no cost.
Discover Merchant Settlement FAQs
How much could my business recover from the Discover settlement?
Recoveries are proportional to your Discover transaction volume during 2007–2023. High-volume merchants stand to recover substantially more, but there is no minimum size — small businesses qualify too.
Do I need my old processing statements to file?
Complete records help, but they are not always required. Our analysts routinely reconstruct eligible volume from partial records, processor data, and the administrator's own records.
Is third-party help required to file a Discover claim?
No. No-cost assistance is available from the Class Administrator and Class Counsel, and class members may always file directly. Many businesses choose VMC Group because we handle documentation, maximize the claim value, and only get paid if you recover.
Find out what your business is owed — in one call.
No upfront cost. No obligation. If you don't recover, you don't pay.