Kohl's Lawsuit: The FBCS Data Breach Class Action and Where It Stands
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The Kohl's lawsuit people search for is a data breach case. Kohl's sent Social Security numbers and account details of credit-card customers to a debt collector, Financial Business and Consumer Solutions (FBCS). FBCS was breached in February 2024. A Kohl's class action lawsuit followed in federal court in Pennsylvania on October 9, 2024. As of October 2026 there is no Kohl's settlement, no claim form and no deadline.
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Reviewed by Leonard Goldberg, Editor · Last updated
What the Kohl's Data Breach Lawsuit Says Happened
Kohl's sells a store credit card, and it used FBCS to collect overdue accounts. According to the complaint, an unauthorized actor was inside FBCS's network from February 14 to February 26, 2024. FBCS announced the incident around April 26, 2024 and told the Maine Attorney General that 4,253,394 people were exposed across all of its clients. Kohl's own notice letters went out around August 15, 2024. The letter quoted in the complaint says the incident did not touch Kohl's own systems. It lists name, Social Security number, date of birth, mailing address, email address and partial account numbers.
The lawsuit alleges Kohl's failed to vet its vendor and waited too long to warn customers. It pleads negligence and negligence per se, breach of implied contract and unjust enrichment. These are allegations; no court has ruled that Kohl's did anything wrong.
Case Details
The case is Martinez v. Kohl's, Inc., No. 2:24-cv-05405-NIQA, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, assigned to Judge Nitza I. Quiñones Alejandro. The plaintiff, an Arizona resident, seeks a nationwide class. The same week, similar FBCS-related suits were filed in the same court against other FBCS clients: CF Medical, Merrick Bank and Elan Financial Services (Nos. 2:24-cv-05443, 2:24-cv-05420 and 2:24-cv-05419). Earlier suits target FBCS itself, including Vines (2:24-cv-02085), Vorburger (2:24-cv-02045) and Kerr (2:24-cv-02075).
Status: Pending Case, No Kohl's Settlement
Other Kohl's class action cases you may see: Johnston v. Kohl's Inc. (No. 2:24-cv-01666, E.D. Wis.) alleges debt-collection robocalls in violation of the TCPA. Mejico v. Kohl's Inc. (No. 3:25-cv-03315, S.D. Cal.) alleges misleading coupon subject lines in marketing emails. Neither has a settlement we could find. A California wage case for hourly workers, Lopes v. Kohl's Department Stores (No. RG08380189), was the subject of a settlement that received preliminary approval on December 11, 2023; we did not confirm the final outcome.
Follow this case
There's no claim deadline yet. We'll email you if a settlement opens a claim period.
Who Is Affected by the Kohl's Data Breach
The proposed class is everyone in the U.S. whose information was exposed in the FBCS breach through Kohl's, including people who got a notice. In practice that means Kohl's credit-card customers whose account was sent to FBCS for collection. Law360 put the Kohl's share at 1.9 million customers. The 4,253,394 figure covers all FBCS clients, not only Kohl's.
The test is your mail. Look for a letter from Kohl's dated around August 2024, or from FBCS. Capital One, which issues the Kohl's card, reported on November 6, 2024 that more people had been identified and would get letters. Keep the letter: it is your proof if a settlement ever opens. You do not need to sign up anywhere to stay in a class.
Is There a Kohl's Settlement Payment?
For context only: breach settlements involving Social Security numbers usually reimburse documented losses, add a small flat payment and offer credit monitoring. Our data breach settlement calculator shows how those payments have worked out. Watch open class action settlements for a Kohl's entry; none exists today.
How cases like this one end
Our copy of the federal courts’ own case database covers 15,171 other personal property damage casesclosed in U.S. federal district courts between 2015 and 2025, 10.4% of them filed as class actions:
- 33.2% ended in a settlement recorded by the court. Another 19.2% were dismissed voluntarily, which often follows a private settlement — so the real settlement share sits between 33.2% and 52.3%.
- 5.9% were decided on a motion before any trial.
- 1 in 90 reached a trial (1.1%), after a median of 27.4 months.
- Median time from filing to the end of the case: 8.5 months.
- Only 236 of them (1.6%) record a money award at all; the median of those is $496,000.
These are base rates for this type of case (federal other personal property damage cases) — not a prediction about this lawsuit, and not legal advice. Source: Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (civil), analysed by Settlement Insight. Cases heard in state courts are not included.
Kohl's Data Breach Timeline
- 1
February 14–26, 2024 — FBCS Is Breached
An unauthorized actor accesses the debt collector's network. FBCS discovers it on February 26.
- 2
April 26, 2024 — FBCS Goes Public
FBCS announces the incident. Its Maine filing later counts 4,253,394 people across all clients.
- 3
August 15, 2024 — Kohl's Letters Go Out
Kohl's begins notifying customers whose credit-card account data was with FBCS, about six months after discovery.
- 4
October 9, 2024 — Kohl's Class Action Filed
Martinez v. Kohl's, Inc., No. 2:24-cv-05405, is filed in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
- 5
November 6, 2024 — More People Notified
Capital One, issuer of the Kohl's card, tells the New Hampshire Attorney General that more affected consumers were identified.
- 6
October 2026 — Still No Settlement
No settlement, claim form or deadline has been announced. We could not verify the latest docket entries.
Three Things to Watch For
A well-known store name, a real breach and no claim form are exactly what imposters use:
“Claim your Kohl's settlement” sites
There is no Kohl's data breach settlement and no claims portal. A page asking for your Social Security number or Kohl's card number to “file” is collecting data, not filing a claim.
Calls about your overdue Kohl's account
The leaked data came from a debt collector, so a fake collector can quote your name, address and part of your account number. Do not pay over the phone. Call the number on the back of your card or on your statement.
Fake Capital One or Kohl's breach emails
Real notices went out by mail. An email linking to a “verify your identity” page or asking you to log in to your Kohl's Charge account is phishing. Go to the site yourself instead of clicking.
Kohl's Lawsuit — Questions People Actually Ask
What is the Kohl's lawsuit about?
Mostly the FBCS data breach. Kohl's used the debt collector FBCS for its credit card. Hackers got into FBCS from February 14 to February 26, 2024. A class action filed on October 9, 2024 alleges Kohl's failed to vet FBCS and protect customer data.
Is there a Kohl's settlement or claim form?
No. As of October 2026 there is no Kohl's data breach settlement, fund, administrator, claim form or deadline. If one is approved, class members get notice directly.
Was my data in the Kohl's data breach?
Only if your Kohl's credit-card account was sent to FBCS for collection. Those people received a letter from Kohl's from about August 15, 2024, or from FBCS or Capital One. No letter usually means you were not in it.
What information was exposed?
Per the notice quoted in the complaint: name, Social Security number, date of birth, mailing address, email address and partial account numbers. Kohl's says its own systems were not breached.
Where is the Kohl's class action lawsuit filed?
In the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania: Martinez v. Kohl's, Inc., No. 2:24-cv-05405-NIQA, before Judge Nitza I. Quiñones Alejandro.
Are there other Kohl's class action cases?
Yes. Johnston (No. 2:24-cv-01666, Wisconsin) is about debt-collection robocalls. Mejico (No. 3:25-cv-03315, California) is about marketing emails. Neither has a settlement we could find.
Do I need to sign up or hire a lawyer to be included?
No. If a class is certified or settled, you are included unless you opt out. The official notice will name the administrator and the deadline.
What should I do right now?
Freeze your credit at all three bureaus; it is free and reversible. Watch your Kohl's card and other accounts for charges you do not recognize. Keep any breach letter you received.
Separate from this case: were you injured in the last 2 years?
Class-action payouts are fixed amounts through an administrator. A personal injury claim is a different case — and often worth far more. Free estimate, no obligation.
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Separate case against the bank that issues the Kohl's card