Loblaw has officially opened registration for customers to claim a $25 gift card as compensation for bread price-fixing in the grocery industry, but the fine print shows there will be a catch for anyone who signs up.
The catch isn鈥檛 as major as some feared, as Loblaw says individuals will still be permitted to participate in future class-action lawsuits against the company. However, anyone who does garner a future monetary award from Loblaw will be docked $25 from the payout, the company says.
In other words, taking Loblaw鈥檚 $25 card now means you can still participate in a lawsuit, but $25 will be subtracted from your individual settlement.
Loblaw began accepting for the card online Monday. It also revealed that cardholders will not be able to apply the $25 to the purchase of tobacco, alcohol, gas or anything at Loblaw鈥檚 Mobile Shop or Cooking School.
Additionally, Loblaw said it reserves the right to limit the total number of cards issued.
Anyone who signs up for the card must agree to 鈥渞elease and forever discharge Loblaw鈥� from any and all claims or causes of action... to the extent of twenty-five dollars,鈥� the Loblaw claim site says.
The company says agreeing to the release 鈥渨ill not impact your right to participate in any class actions relating to an overcharge on the price of packaged bread."
In addition to opening up registration, Loblaw revealed the 12 brands involved in the bread overcharging case from Jan. 1, 2002 to Mar. 1, 2015. They are:
- Ben鈥檚 Bread
- Bon Matin Bread
- Country Harvest Bread
- Dempster鈥檚 Bread
- D鈥橧taliano Bread
- Gadoua Bread
- McGavin鈥檚 Bread
- No Name Bread
- Old Mill Bread
- POM Bread
- Weston Bread
- Wonder Bread
Loblaw鈥檚 cardholder agreement indicates that participants will be required to activate and sign their gift cards, and may need to sign a receipt when using the cards in-store.
The grocery chain says personal information collected through the program will not be used for marketing purposes, 鈥渦nless we have already obtained your consent to do so.鈥�
The program is open to anyone 18 or older in Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, P.E.I. and Saskatchewan, and to individuals 19 or older in B.C., New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Northwest Territories, Nova Scotia, Nunavut and Yukon.
