Those who may have been dejected when Wells Fargo prevailed in a class action lawsuit alleging that the bank unfairly imposed overdraft fees on its customers may now be elated to know that a federal judge has reinstated the $203 million judgment against Wells Fargo.
Wells Fargo, the original suit alleged, posted debit card transactions not according to the chronological order of the transactions but according to the high-to-low amounts of the transactions, causing more overdrafts to occur and thus more customer overdraft fees. With regard to the injunction and restitution order issued, the appellate court agreed with the bank’s contention that federal law allowed the bank to choose its posting order so long as that order had not been determined for the “sole purpose of increasing the amount of returned check fees charged to the customer.” [Business Link March/April 2013.]
Upon remand as to the fraudulent or misleading representations allegations, this same judge more recently held that Wells Fargo had misled customers to believe the posting order would be chronological and reinstated the $203 million order.
Before jumping for joy at the idea that restitution may once again be within reach, customers who have been assessed the unfair charges should, alas, note that Wells Fargo once again plans to appeal.