LOS ANGELES — Bank patrons have filed a class-action lawsuit against a business for allegedly deducting funds from their bank account without permission.
Melissa Meyer filed a complaint individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated on Aug. 31 in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California against Exeter Financial Corp. and Does 1-20, alleging that they violated the Electronic Funds Transfer Act by deducting funds without their consent.
According to the complaint, the plaintiffs allege that in February, named plaintiff Melissa Meyer cancelled an agreement with the defendants, so that no more funds would be deducted from the plaintiff's account on a reoccurring basis. However, the defendants allegedly continued to deduct funds from the plaintiff’s account without the plaintiff’s authorization, which caused an overdraft on the plaintiff’s bank account and generated damages from additional fees.
The plaintiffs hold Exeter Financial Corp. and Does 1-20 responsible because the defendants allegedly failed to secure a written or electronic authorization for automatic deduction and debited accounts without consent from the consumers.
The plaintiffs request a trial by jury and seek judgment against the defendants, be certified as a class action, damages, statutory damages of $1,000 per class-action member, litigation costs, attorneys’ fees, interest and other relief the court deems appropriate. They are represented by Todd M. Friedman, Adrian R. Bacon and Meghan E. George of Law Offices of Todd M. Friedman in Woodland Hills.
U.S. District Court for the Central District of California case number 16-cv-06552