Case 3:11-cv-01372-SI Document 252 Filed 07/11/14 Page 1 of 5 Page ID#: 7735 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT DISTRICT OF OREGON LARRY ARNETT, RONDA ARNETT, ALICE A. BERGER, LEE M. BERGER, SUSAN LASS, MARK LEMMER, PAMELA LEMMER, KARYL RESNICK, ERIC SKANSGAARD, DONNA M. WADE, and EDWARD M. WALLACE, JR., individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated, Plaintiffs, v. BANK OF AMERICA, N.A. in its own capacity and as successor by merger to BAC HOME LOANS SERVICING, L.P., Defendants. 3:11-CV-01372-SI INTERIM REPORT OF CLASS ADMINISTRATOR REGARDING DISTRUBTION OF CLASS NOTICE I, Richard W. Simmons, hereby declare under penalty of perjury pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 1746 that the following is true and correct: 1. I am the President of Analytics Consulting LLC ( Analytics, a firm in Chanhassen, Minnesota that provides class action claims administration services. 2. I am over the age of 18, and I am authorized to speak on behalf of Analytics. 3. If called as a witness, I will competently testify to the following, which is within my personal knowledge and/or is based on information provided by Analytics Personnel. 4. On April 17, 2014, the Court approved the form and manner of the Class Notice set forth in the Settlement Agreement. Since this approval, Analytics has dutifully and thoroughly implemented the notice plan as outlined in the Settlement Agreement. 1
Case 3:11-cv-01372-SI Document 252 Filed 07/11/14 Page 2 of 5 Page ID#: 7736 Experience Relevant to the Case 5. I joined Analytics 1 in 1990, and have twenty-four years of experience in designing and implementing class action settlements and notice campaigns. The settlements I have managed range in size from fewer than 100 class members to more than 40 million, including some of the largest and most complex notice and claims administration programs in history. 6. I have also presented to panels of judges and lawyers on issues regarding class notice, claims processing, and disbursement. In 2011, I was a panelist at the Federal Judicial Center' s workshop/meeting regarding class action notice and settlement administration. I have co-authored and presented CLE programs and whitepapers regarding class notice and class action claims administration. My speaking engagements regarding notice include, without limitation: Class Action Administration: Data and Technology, presented by Richard Simmons, Harris Martin Target Data Breach Conference in San Diego (2014; Developments in Legal Notice, accredited CLE Program, presented by Richard Simmons and Christian Clapp at Susman Godfrey in Dallas (2014, presented by Richard Simmons and Christian Clapp at Shook Hardy & Bacon, LLP in Kansas City (2013, presented by Richard Simmons and Christian Clapp at Halunen & Associates in Minneapolis (2013; and Class Actions 10 I: Best Practices and Potential Pitfalls in Providing Class Notice, CLE Program, presented by Brian Christensen, Gina lntrepido, and Richard Simmons, to the Kansas Bar Association (March 2009. 7. My clients include corporations, law firms (both plaintiff and defense, the Department of Justice, the Securities and Exchange Commission, and the Federal Trade Commission, which since 1998 has retained Analytics (with me specifically as the designated "Contractor' s Representative" to administer and provide expert advice regarding notice and claims processing in their settlements/distribution funds. 1 I am including Analytics' predecessor entities. 2
Case 3:11-cv-01372-SI Document 252 Filed 07/11/14 Page 3 of 5 Page ID#: 7737 Distribution of Class Notice 8. Between May 19,2014 and May 22,2014, Analytics received from Defendants seventeen Excel spreadsheets containing transaction information regarding Settlement Class Members. These data files consisted of 6,10 I, 781 records regarding 711,146 unique loan identification numbers and 682,713 unique properties. 9. This data was consolidated into a single database, and updated using the National Change of Address ("NCOA" database maintained by the United States Postal Service ("USPS"; 2 certified via the Coding Accuracy Support System ("CASS"; 3 and verified through Delivery Point Validation ("DPV". 4 Transaction records were consolidated based upon loan numbers and names/mailing addresses. This process resulted in 663,192 records for mailing. 10. On June 12, 2014, my staff caused Class Notices and personalized Claim Forms to be mailed to 663,192 Class Members. 11. At the request of Class Counsel, we also translated the Court-approved Class Notice and Claim Form into Spanish, and posted the Spanish version of these documents on the settlement website so they can be viewed by Spanish-speaking Class Members who request translation services. 12. As a result of these mailings, Analytics received returned mail from the U.S. Postal Service. As of the date of this declaration, I,033 Notices were returned with forwarding addresses from the USPS. These Notices were promptly re-mailed to the updated address. In addition, 70,328 Notices were returned as undeliverable without a forwarding address. For these Class Members, Analytics conducted an address search based upon commercially available "skip 2 The NCOA database contains records of all permanent change of address submissions received by the USPS for the last four years. The USPS makes this data available to mailing firms, and lists submitted to it are automatically updated with any reported move based on a comparison with the person' s name and last known address. 3 Coding Accuracy Support System is a certification system used by the USPS to ensure the quality of ZIP + 4 coding systems. 4 Records that are ZIP + 4 coded are then sent through Delivery Point Validation to verify the address and identify Commercial Mail Receiving Agencies. DPV verifies the accuracy of addresses, and reports exactly what is wrong with incorrect addresses. 3
Case 3:11-cv-01372-SI Document 252 Filed 07/11/14 Page 4 of 5 Page ID#: 7738 trace" databases (which includes data derived from various sources such as utility records, property tax records, motor vehicle registration records (where allowed and credit bureaus on the Notices that were returned as undeliverable. To date, 49,291 addresses have been updated, and we are re-mailing the notices as the addresses become available. 5 We anticipate receiving additional undeliverable mail. This information will be updated prior to the final approval hearing in a supplemental declaration. Settlement Website 13. Under my supervision, my staff developed a dedicated website "Settlement Website" (www.floodinsurancesettlementbana.com where Class Members can review the Complaint, Settlement Agreement, Class Notice, and other case documents, find additional information about the Settlement and upload completed Claim Forms. The Settlement Website was made operational on or before June 12, 2104, and is accessible 24 hours per day, seven days per week. 14. Recognizing the increasingly mobile nature of advertising and communications, Analytics also deployed a mobile optimized version of the Settlement Website for Class Members visiting the website via smart phone or tablet. 15. Each page on the website contains a prominent link for Class Members to request support regarding the Settlement. These links and the supporting email address became operational on or before June 12, 2104. Toll Free Phone Support 16. On June 12, 2014, a toll-free number dedicated to the Settlement became operational. By calling this number, Class Members are able to listen to answers to frequently asked questions or request to have a copy of the Long-Form Notice mailed to them. The toll-free number is prominently displayed in all Notice documents. 5 The original estimate of Claims Administrator fees and expenses assumed that 50,000 notices would be returned as undeliverable and that we would locate updated addresses for 12,500 Class Members. 4
Case 3:11-cv-01372-SI Document 252 Filed 07/11/14 Page 5 of 5 Page ID#: 7739 17. At the request of Class Counsel, we extended the scope of the claimant support by: a. translating the recorded messages into Spanish and set up a separate dedicated Spanish call center; and b. implementing bilingual (English/Spanish live agent support so that Class Members whose questions are not answered by the recorded messages can speak directly with an agent trained on the Settlement regarding the litigation. 18. The toll free support number has been accessible to Class Members 24-hours a day, 7-days a week since the implementation of the Notice Plan. SETTLEMENT ADMINISTRATOR'S FEES AND COSTS 19. Analytics' fees and costs to date are $630,328.15. A true and correct copy of Analytics' cumulative invoice to date is attached hereto as. This invoice reflects the expanded scope of services, the actual class size and the class mailing. This does not include costs associated with mailing checks to class members beyond the original estimate submitted by Analytics to Class Counsel, and any additional fees and expenses incurred by Analytics for those services will be submitted to the Court for approval. Dated: July 11, 2014 RICHARD W. SIMMONS 5
Case 3:11-cv-01372-SI Document 252-1 Filed 07/11/14 Page 1 of 2 Page ID#: 7740 Shanon Carson Berger & Montague, P.C. 1622 Locust Street Philadelphia, PA 19103 Engagement: Arnett v. Bank of America, N.A. Description Quantity Rate Amount Mailing of Class Notice Project Management: Initial Project Design, Implementation, and Supervision of Initial Class Mailing. Information Systems: Receive, Load, and Process Database of Class Members. Initial Application Customization to Address Specifics of Settlement. 30.00 $110 $3,300.00 30.00 $115 $3,450.00 Translation of Notice Documents into Spanish $1,179.91 Print and Mail Class Notice Print, Personalize and Mail Class Notice Formatted as a Self Mailer 663,192 $0.100 $66,319.20 First Class Postage (Presort 663,192 $0.400 $265,321.65 Process Mail Returned as Undeliverable by the USPS 70,328 $0.120 $8,439.36 Process Address Corrections Provided by the USPS (Includes Postage 1,033 $0.460 $475.18 First Class Postage 1,033 $0.400 $413.20 Class Member Location Services Skip Trace Research New Addresses for Class Members Whose Notices 70,328 $0.30 $21,098.40 are Returned as Undeliverable Remail Notices To Updated Addresses 49,291 $0.76 $37,461.16 First Class Postage (Presort 49,291 $0.40 $19,716.40 Toll Free Phone and Email Support Call Center and Email Support (English/Spanish - Fixed Fee $140,623.64 Internet Support Website Design and Implementation $600.00 Website Hosting at Tier III Data Center Waived Page%1%of%2 Page 1 of 2
Case 3:11-cv-01372-SI Document 252-1 Filed 07/11/14 Page 2 of 2 Page ID#: 7741 Description Quantity Rate Amount Claims Processing Project Management: Oversight of Claims Processing and Quality Control 15 $125 $1,875.00 Information Systems: Claims Processing Applications Development, Ongoing 15 $115 $1,725.00 Support, and Reporting; Programming, Customization, and Testing of Online Claims Filing Online Claims Processing: Review, and Determination of Status 3,283 $0.35 $1,149.05 Paper/Email/Fax Claims Processing: Review, and Determination of Status 57,181 $1.00 $57,181.00 Total Fees and Expenses, This Invoice $630,328.15 Page%2%of%2 Page 2 of 2