Original owners and lessees of a new 2023 or 2024 Ford Transit Trail who bought or leased it for personal, family or household use before June 1, 2024 have until Jan. 15, 2027 to claim $6,000 for each van in a class action settlement with Ford Motor Company. The lawsuit says the vans do not leave enough clearance for the tires inside the wheel wells under certain driving conditions. Ford denies wrongdoing and agreed to settle to avoid the cost and uncertainty of a trial.
The payment is $6,000 for each qualifying van with a valid, timely claim, and it comes as a paper check, according to the settlement notice. The check is mailed to the address given on the claim, and nothing is paid yet. Checks go out only after the court grants final approval and any appeals are resolved.
Anyone who bought or leased a Transit Trail new from a Ford dealer has to file a claim to be paid, because the money does not arrive on its own. Each van needs its own claim form. Owners who have since sold the van can still qualify, Open Class Actions reports, and the claim can be filed online with the unique ID and PIN printed on the postcard notice or by mail, with a form that has to be postmarked by Jan. 15.
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Which Transit Trail owners are covered
The class covers model year 2023 and 2024 Ford Transit Trails originally sold or leased by an authorized Ford dealer, the court-approved notice says. Private-party purchases do not qualify, and neither do vans bought for business use. ClaimDepot reports that a van bought new from an outfitter or upfitter that acquired it new can also count.
The purchase or lease has to have happened before June 1, 2024. Owners who already received compensation from Ford for the van or the alleged defect are left out, ClaimDepot reports.
What to send with a Transit Trail claim
The notice asks for the van’s VIN, a completed IRS Form W-9, and proof of purchase or lease such as the agreement, or other documents if the paperwork is gone. The proof has to show the seller or lessor, the buyer or lessee, the VIN and the date. The claim is signed under penalty of perjury.
Online filers also need the unique ID and PIN from the postcard. The settlement website, run by the administrator Epiq, is where eligibility can be checked, and the administrator takes questions at 1-877-525-1779. Anyone who lost the postcard can start there.
Claims and questions can also go by mail to the administrator at Ford Transit Trail Settlement, Settlement Administrator, PO Box 5470, Portland, OR 97228-5470, the notice says. Owners who want to mail a claim should confirm the claim-form address on the website first, because the notice does not show separate addresses for claims, opt-outs and objections.
The four dates on the notice
Owners who want to keep the right to sue Ford on their own must mail an opt-out request postmarked by Jan. 13, 2027, with their own signature. Opting out means no payment from this settlement. Objections must be filed with the court by the same Jan. 13 date, with copies sent to both sides and the administrator.
The claim deadline comes two days later, on Jan. 15. The final approval hearing is March 16, 2027, at 10 a.m. Eastern time at 844 North King Street in Wilmington, Delaware, before U.S. District Judge Richard G. Andrews in Provo v. Ford Motor Company, No. 1:25-cv-00569. The notice warns that the date, time or format may change, so the website is the place to confirm it.
The fees are a separate item. Class counsel, the law firms Capstone Law APC and Berger Montague PC, will ask the court for up to $625,000 in fees and expenses, and Ford pays that on top of the $6,000 payments. The two named plaintiffs may receive $3,500 each as service awards if the judge approves.
The tire-rub recall behind the lawsuit
Ford already recalled the vans. In recall 24V-226, reported to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in March 2024, federal records list 1,902 vehicles potentially involved. The report says insufficient clearance can let the front tires touch the front wheel arch liner and body flange during certain loading, steering and braking conditions. Repeated contact can cause rapid air loss and tread-belt separation, the report says, which raises the risk of a crash.
The recall remedy is free. Owners take the van to a Ford or Lincoln dealer, where the tires, tire placard and certification label are replaced and vehicle calibrations are updated. The replacement tires are size 235/65R16C. The settlement does not change owners’ rights under Ford’s new vehicle limited warranty or the recall remedy, ClaimDepot reports.
The suit claims the clearance problem caused economic loss to buyers, ClaimDepot reports, and Ford says it did nothing wrong. Only a valid claim filed by Jan. 15 earns the $6,000 for a van.
Did a Transit Trail postcard notice arrive?
A postcard about a van settlement is easy to tuck in a drawer, and this one has an opt-out date, an objection date, a claim date and a hearing date. Missing the Jan. 15 claim date means missing the $6,000 for that van, and a missing VIN or lease paper can stall a claim.
The Settlement & Refund Recovery System teaches the four-date rule for reading a settlement notice, so each date lands on a calendar before it passes. It also has a step-by-step filing walkthrough and a claim log and payment tracker, a place to record what was filed for each van and when a check arrives.
Log the Transit Trail claim with the notice-reading guide and payment tracker →
This article was produced with AI assistance and edited for accuracy against the sources linked above.
