Bank customers will now receive money from a $21 million settlement after it was discovered that the institution wrongfully charged fees.
Bank of America customers may be eligible to receive a portion of the bank’s upcoming $21 million settlement.
To qualify for the settlement, customers must be a current or former Bank of America customer.
They should also have had a checking and/or savings account between March 8, 2019, and August 31, 2023.
The final qualification to receive the settlement requires customers to have been charged “certain wire transfer fees on incoming payments,” as reported by Tech.co.
A class action was brought against the Bank of America, after the plaintiff argued that the bank violated account agreements and charged a hidden fee.
It is claimed that the bank charged a $15 fee for incoming wire transactions, and that it purposefully obscured these transactions without consent.
The plaintiff requested that refunds be made where this was the case.
It’s unclear whether impacted customers will receive refunds for every transaction they incurred the $15 fee on, or whether Bank of America will pay out the same lump sum to all affected customers.
About one-third of the $21 million settlement will be going directly to legal fees, reports The-Sun.
Qualifying for the settlement is simple.
Impacted users do not have to take any additional actions, and “will receive a Settlement Class Member Payment from the Settlement Fund so long as [they] do not opt-out of the Settlement,” according to Aaron Aseltine v. Bank of America, N.A.
The case in question is Aaron Aseltine v. Bank of America, N.A., CaseNo. 3:23-cv-00235.
For its part, Bank of America denies any wrongdoing, but has agreed to settle and pay those affected by the fees.
The final approval hearing date for the settlement is scheduled to occur on Monday, October 21, 2024, at 9:15 am ET.
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Also Read: The US Treasury Direct is Now Freezing Customer Accounts
Other Banking News Today
Massive US banks now prepare for millions to default according to Q2 reports, as institutions increase capital to cover insolvencies.
Big banks such as JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo are boosting their financial defenses as they prepare for customer inflow to dwindle, affecting the ability for the average American to pay their bills.
According to the latest Q2 2024 financial reports from major banks, they are significantly increasing the amount of capital they are setting aside to cover potential losses from rising credit card and loan defaults.
Collectively, these banks are allocating billions of dollars into emergency provisions and loan loss reserves to prepare for an anticipated increase in insolvencies and non-performing loans.
This reflects the banks’ growing concerns about the potential for a rise in credit card delinquencies and loan defaults in the coming months.
By bolstering their loss-absorbing capital buffers, the banks are attempting to proactively mitigate the financial risks posed by a potential surge in credit-related delinquencies and insolvencies.
This suggests the banks foresee a deterioration in consumer credit quality and are taking prudent steps to strengthen their balance sheets and resilience against such adverse credit trends.
The significant increase in these emergency loan loss provisions across the banking sector signals that the institutions are bracing for a potential economic downturn that could lead to a rise in loan defaults and credit-related write-offs.
This move underscores the banks’ efforts to position themselves to better withstand any upcoming challenges in the credit markets.
JPMorgan Chase is leading the way, increasing its provisions from $1.88 billion in the first quarter of this year to $3.05 billion – a $1.17 billion jump.
Meanwhile, Bank of America has set aside $1.5 billion, up from $1.3 billion in the previous quarter, and Wells Fargo set aside $1.24 billion, up from $938 million in the previous quarter.
The increasing balances show banks are anticipating increasing economic risk in the months ahead as commercial real estate flounders and as consumers pile up a whopping $1.02 trillion in credit card balances, according to TransUnion.
Delinquency rates across various types of debt are already on the rise, and the New York Federal Reserve says total US household debt hit $17.69 trillion in the first quarter of this year, an increase of $184 billion from the previous quarter.
The number includes mortgage balances, which rose by $190 billion to $12.44 trillion, and auto loans, which increased by $9 billion to $1.62 trillion.
Also Read: A Massive US Bank is Now Closing Credit Cards
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