Overdraft Fee Class Actions Help Consumers

We reported here a while back an unscrupulous and secret practice where banks use hidden internal systems to maximize the number of overdraft and NSF (Not Sufficient Funds) fees charged to customer's accounts.  Consumers were (and still are) complaining that banks are deceptively charging them as many as 10 overdraft and NSF fees per day.   The number of complaints made about banks to federal regulators has just about doubled in the last year. 

The curtain hiding the inner workings of one of these banks was lifted in the case of Gutierrez v. Wells Fargo when a Califonia federal court judge ruled that Wells Fargo's overdraft and NSF charges were deceptive and ordered the bank to pay back $203 million to its customers.  The judge's findings were disturbing because they demonstrated an orchestrated written plan by Wells Fargo to manipulate the order in which it posted customer's daily debit transactions. In the "wee hours" of the morning, Well Fargo's computer systems would re-order customer transactions from chronological order, the manner typical tracked by customers, to a priority system where the largest debits were deducted from customer accounts first.  This practice depleted the account of all monies as quickly as possible with the posting of as few debits as possible.  The result:  numerous small debit charges were posted when the funds were already depleted by the bank causing a series of overdraft and NSF fees. 

Under this practice, Wells Fargo reaped millions of dollars in illegal charges from a targeted segment of its California customers.  As the judge's opinion noted, Wells Fargo profited immensely from the illegal fees it charged its customers in California.

Phillips & Garcia is continuing to work with consumers to file cases against banks charging illegal overdraft fees.  If you believe that you have been charged illegal overdraft or NSF fees, just fill out the contact form on our website to reach us.