City of San Diego single-family water rate refund settlement
Patz v. City of San Diego
Also known as San Diego water settlement; SD Water Settlement; San Diego water rate refund; City of San Diego water rates; 37-2015-00023413
The lawsuit claimed San Diego's single-family water rates were not proportional to the cost of service.
Copied from the official notice. Last compared Nov 7, 2026.
- You could get
- A share of the fund $40 million fund, split among everyone who files.
Source
“Share of $40 million, only if you were overcharged”
From the administrator site: Official settlement site home page. Last compared Nov 7, 2026.
- Claims
- No claim form needed
Source
“You may confirm your contact information and select your preferred payment method here.”
From the administrator site: Official settlement site home page. Last compared Nov 7, 2026.
- Who can file
- San Diego single-family water customer, Aug 2014 to Dec 2023
Source
“Excluded from the Class are: officers and directors of the City of San Diego, Class Counsel, Judge Michael T. Smyth, and any members of Judge Smyth’s immediate family and judicial staff.”
From the court record: Settlement Agreement and Release, hosted on the official site. Last compared Nov 7, 2026.
- Where
- Anywhere in the U.S.
Source
“all single-family residential customers of the City of San Diego who received water service between August 14, 2014, and December 1, 2023. Excluded from the Class are: officers and directors of the City of San Diego, Class Counsel, Judge Michael T. Smyth, and any members of Judge Smyth’s immediate family and judicial staff. Also excluded from the Class are individuals who timely submitted valid opt-outs by the Response Deadline when the class was originally certified.”
From the court record: Settlement Agreement and Release, hosted on the official site. Last compared Nov 7, 2026.
Quick answers
How much is the City of San Diego single-family water rate refund settlement payout?
A share of the fund. $40 million fund, split among everyone who files.
Do I need to file a claim for the City of San Diego single-family water rate refund settlement?
No claim form. Payment is automatic. To confirm your contact information or choose how you are paid, log in on the official site with the ID and Passcode from your notice. No deadline for this is stated.
When will the City of San Diego single-family water rate refund settlement pay?
Payment can only happen after the court gives final approval and any appeals are over.
The final approval hearing is set for Dec 11, 2026.
Is the City of San Diego single-family water rate refund settlement legit?
The settlement administrator (the company that handles claims) is CPT Group, and the official site is www.sdwatersettlement.com. Real notices point there; if a link in a message goes anywhere else, do not use it.
The official site never asks you to pay to file.
Also ending this week
Related settlements
Confirm with the administrator before you act.
Case details
- Case
- Patz v. City of San Diego
- Court
- Superior Court of California, County of San Diego
- Case number
- 37-2015-00023413-CU-MC-CTL
- Administrator
- CPT Group
- Official site
- www.sdwatersettlement.com
- Settlement fund
- $40 million
- Full payout terms
- Share of $40 million, only if you were overchargedA refund only for customers who were overcharged under the court-adopted refund calculation, as a prorated share of the net settlement fund based on the refund calculated for each account. Before that, the fund pays court-approved attorneys' fees (up to $13,333,333.33 requested), expenses (not to exceed $500,000), $7,500 to each Class Representative and administration costs (expected to be no more than $199,000). No per-person amount is published.
Other dates
- Opt-out (exclusion) deadline
- (ahead) source document
- Objection deadline
- (ahead) source document
- Final approval hearing
- (ahead) source document
The court’s exact words
all single-family residential customers of the City of San Diego who received water service between August 14, 2014, and December 1, 2023. Excluded from the Class are: officers and directors of the City of San Diego, Class Counsel, Judge Michael T. Smyth, and any members of Judge Smyth’s immediate family and judicial staff. Also excluded from the Class are individuals who timely submitted valid opt-outs by the Response Deadline when the class was originally certified.
Quoted from the official notice. Read the notice for the full definition.
Our notes: The class is every single-family residential water customer of the City of San Diego who received water service between August 14, 2014 and December 1, 2023 (about 436,069 current and former customers). Only those who were overcharged under the refund calculation the trial court adopted and the Court of Appeal affirmed (the City's expert's method, updated through the end of the class period) get a refund; the site and notice say not all customers were overcharged. Excluded: officers and directors of the City of San Diego, Class Counsel, Judge Michael T. Smyth and his immediate family and judicial staff, people who opted out of the litigation class by May 30, 2020, and people who opt out of this settlement by November 12, 2026.
You may be included if you were a City of San Diego single-family residential water customer from August 14, 2014 to December 1, 2023.
It covers refunds only for customers overcharged under the refund calculation the Court of Appeal affirmed; not all were.
You are not included if you are a City officer or director, Class Counsel, the judge or his family or staff, or opted out.
Sources and checks (6)
Every fact people act on was copied from the official source and compared with it. How we check
- Official settlement site home page administrator site
- Official Important Dates page administrator site
- Official Submit Payment Method login page administrator site
- Long Form Notice (Class Action Notice authorized by the San Diego Superior Court), hosted on the official site administrator site
- Settlement Agreement and Release, hosted on the official site court record
- Order Granting Preliminary Settlement Approval (filed July 31, 2026), hosted on the official site court record
What changedLast change Nov 3, 2026
- Page created. No claim form: payment is automatic. source document
Questions
I already filed. What now?
There is no claim form, so there was nothing to file. The administrator pays class members automatically, usually after final approval and any appeals. Never pay anyone to check on a payment.
Opting out
To leave the settlement and keep your right to sue on your own, follow the official notice by Nov 12, 2026. If you opt out, you get no payment. Opting out and objecting have separate rules; we cannot tell you which is right for you.