Los Angeles, CAFor customers who are angry about being charged excessive bank overdraft fees, filing a lawsuit may be the best way to recover lost money. Some banks have already faced bank overdraft fees lawsuits, although there are still banks that allegedly profited off bank overdraft fees by reordering transactions but have not been subject to lawsuits.
A judge's recent decision in a lawsuit involving overdraft fees appears to have bolstered the case against banks, but it remains to be seen whether that decision will have a significant impact on pending lawsuits. The judge ruled that the banks cannot force customers into arbitration to settle a dispute, opening the door for customers to file lawsuits in cases where they are charged excessive fees. That decision can be appealed, however, so until a final decision is reached, it is not certain that the determination in this case will have an effect on upcoming lawsuits.
If an appeals court affirms this decision, it could have a substantial impact on lawsuits alleging excessive bank overdraft fees.
What is important for customers to know is that many banks have reportedly used transaction reordering to push customer accounts into overdraft more quickly than they should have been, providing banks the opportunity to profit off fees collected from overdraft transactions. And those fees reportedly added up to the tune of more than $30 billion last year.
Some banks have announced they are doing away with reordering transactions—a practice in which debits from an account are processed from highest amount to lowest, which can push an account into overdraft far more quickly than the customer realizes.
Although some banks have faced lawsuits alleging they unfairly charged overdraft fees, there are still banks accused of reordering transactions that have not faced such actions. Lawsuits filed against the larger banks seek to recover fees customers were forced to pay for overdraft transactions—in some cases, customers were reportedly charged hundreds of dollars in overdraft fees because their transactions were reordered.
Some banks have already settled their lawsuits. Bank of Hawaii reportedly settled claims for $9 million, while National City agreed to pay $12 million in a settlement. Customers who were charged more than one overdraft transaction fee in a day may have been victims of transaction reordering. They may be able to file a lawsuit—or join a lawsuit—against their bank for charging excessive overdraft fees.
If you or a loved one have suffered losses in this case, please click the link below and your complaint will be sent to a financial lawyer who may evaluate your Bank Overdraft Fee claim at no cost or obligation.