Consumers in the United States who paid banking fees in recent years could benefit from a $21 million class action settlement reached with Bank of America, reached to resolve dozens of claims that its fees violated account agreements.
Bank of America users who have checking and savings accounts, who were charged certain wire transfer fees applied on incoming payments between March 8, 2019 and August 31, 2023.
Bank of America Class Action Lawsuit: $21M Available to Plaintiffs
The class action lawsuit said Bank of America violated its account agreements and charged fees of up to $15 on incoming wire transfers to those accounts.
The plaintiffs alleged that the bank intentionally concealed these fees to benefit from the account owners’ unawareness, something that happened without consent or notice, which would have allegedly caused them financial harm.
Bank of America did not accept guilt, but will still settle the class action lawsuit: Bank of America did not admit guilt but agreed to pay $21 million to settle the class-action lawsuit related to bank fees.
Under the terms of the settlement, class members will receive a proportionate share of the settlement fund based on the wire transfer fees they paid. Those with checking accounts at Bank of America will receive their share as a credit to their accounts, while members without an active account will receive payment in the form of a mailed check.
The amounts to be paid to each member will vary, and no estimates are available at this time. Those who feel affected could go to the official website of the class action settlement and join, since no specific claim form is required to receive benefits from Bank of America.
“Even if the Class Representative was to win at trial, there is no assurance that the Settlement Class Members would be awarded more than the $21,000,000 that BANA is paying in this Settlement, and it may take years of litigation before any payments would be made. By settling, the Settlement Class will avoid these, and other risks, and the delays associated with continued litigation”, can be read in the class action settlement official website.
Who Is Eligible to Receive Payments From the Bank of America Class Action Settlement?
All those who have Bank of America consumer checking or savings accounts, who have received incoming payments between the previously mentioned dates.
If you are one of them, you must have proof of such incoming transfers or payments, and the amount of compensation each claimant can receive varies depending on each particular case.
“You can choose to opt-out of the Settlement which means you are excluding yourself from the Settlement. This means you choose not to participate in the Settlement. You will keep your individual claims against Bank of America, N.A. (“BANA”), but you will not receive a Settlement Class Member Payment. The Opt-Out Deadline for the Settlement is September 21, 2024. If you opt-out but still want to recover against BANA, then you will have to file a separate lawsuit or claim,” explains the official website of the settlement.
Object the Settlement is Also Your Right
If you do not opt-out, but you wish to object of protests against this class action settlement, or any matters included in the Notice, that is also your right. You can do so by filing an Objection with the Court. The Objection Deadline for the Settlement is September 21, 2024.
The final approval hearing date is Monday, October 21, 2024, and will take place at 9:15AM in Courtroom 5A at the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, located at Charles R. Jonas Federal Building, 401 West Trade Street, Charlotte, NC 28202.
Other Class Action Lawsuits Against Capital One Bank
Recently, Capital One has agreed to a $16 million settlement to resolve a class action lawsuit over allegedly improper fees on certain transactions. This settlement is significant for both current and former Capital One account holders.
The lawsuit claimed that Capital One violated its agreements with customers by charging unauthorized fees. These fees, referred to as proxy fees, included unreimbursed NSF (non-sufficient funds) fees or overdraft fees charged for represented checks or ACH debits. These charges occurred after the bank had already returned the items for insufficient funds and previously assessed an NSF fee.
Read the full article about the Capital One Class Action Settlement here.
