On June 30, 2026, the Substitute Settlement Administrator mailed final award payments in relation to valid Direct Payment (also known as Property Damage) Claim submissions. Following review of all submitted eligible Claim submissions, it was determined that the final pro rata single point valuation was $643.47. If you received a payment from Norfolk Southern, your final award may have been reduced by some or all of the payment(s) received from Norfolk Southern, as required in the Plan of Distribution. Award payments were issued on a household basis. Additional details about the Direct Payment distribution can be found here.
If you have not received your Voluntary Exposure (“Personal Injury”) Claim submission payment or would like the check reissued, please contact the Substitute Settlement Administrator to request a check reissue. Minor, deceased, incapacitated, or power of attorney payments have not been mailed, but the Substitute Settlement Administrator is working to receive necessary approvals to proceed with those payments. Further updates for any non-issued payments will be added to the Settlement Website when available.
The Settlement Website details the class action lawsuit that involves the Persons and Businesses harmed by the Norfolk Southern Corporation and Norfolk Southern Railway Company (collectively “Norfolk Southern”) for losses they suffered from the February 3, 2023, derailment of Norfolk Southern Train 32N, including the “vent and burn” of five railcars on February 6, 2023. The Honorable Benita Y. Pearson of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio is the judge overseeing this case, called In re East Palestine Train Derailment, Case No. 4:23-cv-00242. In the lawsuit, the Plaintiffs allege that Norfolk Southern (among others) caused the Incident and, as a result, the Settlement Class suffered real property damage, personal property damage, displacement expenses, lost wages, loss of business income, diminution of property value, increased risk of disease, emotional distress, disruption, inconvenience, loss of use and enjoyment of property and loss of goodwill. Norfolk Southern denies the claims asserted in the lawsuit and denies any wrongdoing, including that it violated any law.
You are a Settlement Class Member if you lived, worked, owned property, or owned or operated a business within 20-miles of the Derailment Site from February 3, 2023, to April 26, 2024. You are excluded from the Settlement Class if you are a director or duly elected and approved officer of Norfolk Southern, or any of its parents, subsidiaries, or affiliates; Norfolk Southern employees, and contractors of Norfolk Southern and their employees, who were specifically sent by Norfolk Southern to the area in and around the Derailment Site to respond to the Incident and do not otherwise fall within the definition of Settlement Class; Norfolk Southern’s Counsel; Class Counsel; a government, political subdivision, public entity, or public agency; and the judge presiding over this Action and the judge’s staff.
This Website explains important rights you may have. These rights and options, and the deadlines to exercise them, are further explained in the Notice you may have received, or you may review the Frequently Asked Questions page of this website for additional information. Your legal rights were affected whether you acted or not.