Farmers Insurance $10 Million Labor Class Action Settlement

Danielle Toth

Editor

Published

March 5, 2026 5:54 PM

Updated

March 5, 2026

Who are the class members?

The settlement includes two groups. Individuals may be a member of one or both groups, depending on their circumstances:

FLSA collective members:

Signed a Farmers agent appointment agreement or a Farmers corporate agent appointment agreement that does not include an agreement to arbitrate
Worked as a Farmers agent or supervising agent for an incorporated Farmers agency outside California at any time between March 9, 2020, and Sept. 30, 2025

FEHA class members:

Signed a Farmers agent appointment agreement or a Farmers corporate agent appointment agreement
Worked as a Farmers agent or supervising agent for an incorporated Farmers agency outside California at any time between March 9, 2020, and Sept. 30, 2025
Farmers terminated their appointment in connection with the managing underperforming agents process.
They were 40 years of age or older on the effective date of their appointment’s termination.

FLSA collective members must submit an opt-in form to receive a payment. FEHA class members do not need to take any action.

Who is excluded from the class?

Anyone who:

Previously settled the claims asserted in this action
Released the claims as part of a prior settlement
Received an adverse final judgment or order in a civil or administrative action involving these claims
Received awards through civil or administrative actions for these claims

Additionally, FEHA class members who submit a valid and timely exclusion request will not participate in the settlement or receive payment.

How much is the Farmers payout?

The total settlement fund is $10 million. Of this, the settlement allocates $5.5 million to the FEHA class and $4.5 million to the FLSA collective class. The settlement administrator will distribute payments after deductions for attorneys’ fees, service awards and settlement administration costs.

FEHA class members will receive a pro rata payment based on the number of claims and qualifying class members.
FLSA collective members will receive a pro rata payment based on the number of workweeks each member worked during the class period.

How to claim a class action rebate

Members of the FLSA collective must submit a completed FLSA opt-in form by mail, fax or email to the settlement administrator. There is no online opt-in form.

Settlement administrator's mailing address: Ruffulo v. Farmers Settlement Administrator, P.O. Box 5526, Portland, OR 97228-5526
Settlement administrator's fax: 833-485-7489
Settlement administrator's email: OptIn@Ruffulo-v-Farmers.com

Payout options

The settlement administrator will mail checks to the class member's on-file address and report all payments on IRS Form 1099.

$10 million settlement fund breakdown

The $10,000,000 settlement fund includes:

Settlement administration costs: Up to $114,000
Attorneys' fees and costs: Up to $3,333,000
Service awards to class representatives: Up to $10,000 ($20,000 total)
Payments to class members: Estimated at $6.53 million

Important dates

Deadline to file an FLSA opt-in form: April 9, 2026
Deadline to opt out: April 9, 2026
Final approval hearing: June 4, 2026

When is the Ruffulo v. Farmers Insurance Exchange payout date?

The settlement administrator will issue payments to eligible class members approximately 40 days after the court resolves any appeals and grants final approval to the settlement.

Why is there a class action settlement?

The class action lawsuit alleged Farmers Insurance Exchange and related entities misclassified agents as independent contractors, failed to pay overtime and engaged in age discrimination in violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act, California’s Fair Employment and Housing Act and other state and federal laws.

The defendants deny all allegations but agreed to settle to avoid further litigation costs and risks.