iPhone 4 owners who refused to take a free case can now claim a $15 settlement

Owners of the iPhone 4 received legal notices on Thursday stating that they may claim $15 if they had refused to take a free case from Apple, because of a class-action settlement.

In February, Apple had settled a class-action lawsuit regarding reception concerns with the iPhone 4 antenna. According to the settlement, iPhone 4 owners may either opt for a free iPhone bumper case, worth $29, or to receive $15 in cash.

In a statement made by Apple, the company revealed that the concerned settlement refers to a “small number” of iPhone 4 users who had experienced reception issues with the device, but had not taken advantage of the free case program that the company had offered for a limited period during 2010.

Although technically the iPhone 4 free bumper case program ended on Sept. 30, 2010, Apple continued to discreetly offer free cases after the deadline to customers who called up AppleCare support with reception issues. The customers involved in the lawsuit are being offered an alternative of accepting $15, which is roughly half the price of the bumper case.

An e-mail was sent out on Thursday to iPhone 4 owners notifying them about the settlement. Customers are a “class member” of the suit if they are a U.S. resident who is or was the original owner of an iPhone 4 as of February 17, 2012.