No Joke v. West Bend Mutual Settlement

The Court authorized a Class Notice because you have a right to know about the Proposed Settlement of this class action, including the right to claim money, and about your options regarding this Settlement before the Court decides whether to give “Final Approval” to the Settlement. If the Court approves the Parties’ Settlement Agreement, and if any appeals are resolved in favor of the Settlement, then payments will be made to those who qualify and timely submit a valid Claim Form. This Class Notice explains this Action, the Settlement, your legal rights, what benefits are available, who may be eligible for them, and how to get them.

The Tenth Judicial Circuit Court in Peoria County, Illinois is overseeing this class action. The case is titled No Joke, Inc. v. West Bend Mutual Insurance Company, Case No. 2025-LA-0000153. The entity who sued is called the “Plaintiff,” and the company it sued is called the “Defendant.”

To view a copy of the Class Notice, click here.

The lawsuit claims that Defendant improperly deducted Nonmaterial Depreciation when adjusting some Structural Loss claims in the Class States under property insurance policies issued in those states.

Defendant has denied all allegations that it acted wrongfully or unlawfully.

In a class action, the person or entity called the “Representative Plaintiff” (here, No Joke, Inc.) sues on behalf of people and entities who have similar claims. All of these people and entities are “Class Members.” A single court resolves the issues for all Class Members, except for those who exclude themselves from the Settlement Class.

The Court did not decide in favor of the Representative Plaintiff or the Defendant and has not found that Defendant did anything wrong. The Parties agreed to settle, and by settling, the Parties avoid the cost of a trial and potentially an appeal, and the people and entities who qualify will get compensation. The Representative Plaintiff and its attorneys think the Settlement is best for all Class Members. The Settlement does not mean that West Bend did anything wrong, no trial has occurred, and no merits determinations have been made.

If you received a Class Notice, then you have been identified as someone who is possibly a Class Member. The Settlement Class includes the following:

All Persons who (1) had a personal or commercial lines property insurance policy issued by Defendant, (2) made a Structural Loss claim for property located in one of the Class States during the applicable Class Periods, (3) had an Xactimate estimate used in determination of the ACV Payment; and (4) were issued an ACV Payment from which Nonmaterial Depreciation was withheld, or would have been issued an ACV Payment, but for the withholding of Nonmaterial Depreciation causing the loss to drop below the applicable deductible.

“ACV Payment” is calculated by estimating the replacement cost value of the covered damage for a Structural Loss claim and subtracting the estimated Depreciation, including Nonmaterial Depreciation, and any applicable deductible.

“Class Periods” means the following periods: (1) for policyholders with Structural Loss claims in Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia, and Wisconsin, a date of loss on or after March 29, 2020, and on or before June 30, 2022; and (2) for policyholders with Structural Loss claims in Missouri, a date of loss on or after March 29, 2012, and on or before June 30, 2022.

“Nonmaterial Depreciation” means Depreciation of labor costs, overhead and profit, and/or other non-material items (and specifically excluding sales tax) included within Xactimate^® estimating software and specifically includes Depreciation resulting from the application of either the “depreciate removal,” “depreciate non-material” and/or “depreciate O&P” depreciation option settings within Xactimate^® estimating software.

“Structural Loss” means physical damage to a home, building, manufactured home, condo, rental dwelling, or other structure located in the Class States while covered by a personal or commercial lines property insurance policy issued by West Bend.

Excluded from the Settlement Class are: (a) policyholders whose claims arose under policy forms, endorsements, or riders expressly permitting Nonmaterial Depreciation within the text of the policy form, endorsement or rider (i.e., by express use of the words “depreciation” and “labor”); (b) policyholders who received one or more ACV Payments for a claim that exhausted the applicable limits of insurance; (c) policyholders whose claims were denied or abandoned without an ACV Payment for any reason other than that the ACV Payment was not made solely because the withholding of Nonmaterial Depreciation caused the loss to drop below the applicable deductible; (d) policyholders where no Xactimate estimate was generated by West Bend; (e) West Bend and its officers and directors; (f) members of the judiciary and their staff to whom this Action is assigned and their immediate families; and (g) Class Counsel and their immediate families (collectively, “Exclusions”).

If you are not sure whether you are included in the Settlement Class, you may email the Settlement Administrator at info@NoJokeDepreciationSettlement.com or by phone at 1-866-604-6917.

Under the Settlement, Defendant has agreed to pay Class Members as follows:

1. Class Members with Policies Issued in Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Ohio, or Tennessee. Subject to the terms, limits, conditions, coverage limits, and deductibles of the policies, Claim Settlement Payments for members of the Settlement Class in Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Ohio, and Tennessee who timely file valid and completed Claim Forms by the Claims Deadline shall be equal to 100% of the Nonmaterial Depreciation that was withheld from ACV Payments and not subsequently paid, or that would have resulted in an ACV Payment, but for the withholding of Nonmaterial Depreciation causing the loss to drop below the applicable deductible, plus simple interest of 5.00% per year from the date of the final ACV payment through July 1, 2025.
2. Class Members with Policies Issued in Virginia or Wisconsin. Subject to the terms, limits, conditions, coverage limits, and deductibles of the policies, Claim Settlement Payments for members of the Settlement Class in Virginia and Wisconsin who timely file valid and completed Claim Forms by the Claims Deadline shall be equal to 80% of the Nonmaterial Depreciation that was withheld from ACV Payments and not subsequently paid, or that would have resulted in an ACV Payment, but for the withholding of Nonmaterial Depreciation causing the loss to drop below the applicable deductible, plus simple interest of 5.00% per year from the date of the final ACV payment through July 1, 2025.
3. For Class Members identified under subsection (a) or (b) for whom all Nonmaterial Depreciation that was withheld from ACV Payments was subsequently paid, payment shall be according to the below schedule:

The deadline to file a claim passed on February 6, 2026.

Award disbursement to eligible class members is expected to occur in Summer 2026.

Unless you excluded yourself, you are staying in the Settlement Class, and you cannot sue West Bend and the Released Persons over the claims settled in this Action. It also means the Court’s orders will apply to you and legally bind you.

If you submit a Claim Form, or simply stay in the Settlement Class, you will agree to release all “Released Persons” of all “Released Claims.” “Released Persons” and “Released Claims” are defined in the Settlement Agreement, which you can request a copy of by calling 1-866-604-6917, or you can view the Settlement Agreement here.

The deadline to opt-out of the settlement passed on December 8, 2025.

No. Unless you excluded yourself, you gave up any right to sue West Bend for the claims that this Settlement resolves. You must have excluded yourself from the Settlement Class to sue West Bend over the claims resolved by this Settlement.

No. If you excluded yourself, you will not receive a payment from this Settlement.

The Court appointed the following law firms to represent you and other Class Members as “Class Counsel”: Erik Peterson of Erik Peterson Law Offices, PSC; Brandon McWherter of McWherter Scott Bobbitt PLC; and T. Joseph Snodgrass of Snodgrass Law LLC. You do not have to pay Class Counsel. If you want to be represented by your own lawyer and potentially have that lawyer appear in court for you in this case, you may hire one at your own expense.

The Court awarded Class Counsel $1,392,500 for attorneys’ fees and reimbursement of their expenses. The Court also awarded the Representative Plaintiff a service award of $7,500 for representing the Settlement Class. These payments will not reduce the amount distributed to Class Members. Defendant will also separately pay the costs to administer the Settlement.

The deadline to object to the Settlement passed on December 8, 2025.

Objecting is simply telling the Court that you do not like something about the Settlement. You can object only if you stay in the Settlement Class. Excluding yourself is telling the Court that you do not want to be part of the Settlement Class or the Settlement. If you exclude yourself, you have no basis to object because the case no longer affects you. If you object, and the Court approves the Settlement anyway, you will be legally bound by the result.

The Court held a Final Approval Hearing on January 7, 2026, during which they approved the Settlement.

If you do nothing, you will not get any payment from this Settlement. Unless you exclude yourself from the Settlement, you will not be able to sue West Bend for the claims resolved in this Action.

The Class Notice and this website summarize the Proposed Settlement. More details are provided in the Settlement Agreement here. If you have questions or if you want to request a copy of the Settlement Agreement, call 1-866-604-6917 or email the Settlement Administrator at info@NoJokeDepreciationSettlement.com.

PLEASE DO NOT CALL OR WRITE THE COURT, THE JUDGE OR HIS OR HER STAFF, OR WEST BEND OR WEST BEND’S COUNSEL FOR INFORMATION OR ADVICE ABOUT THIS SETTLEMENT.