Wells Fargo is facing a class action lawsuit for allegedly enrolling customers into various financial products and services without their consent. The lawsuit, filed in the Northern District of California, accuses the bank of enrolling customers into programs such as Credit Defense or Identity Theft Protection and charging them fees, costs, interest, and other considerations for these unwanted services.
The named plaintiffs include Matt Huber, Natalya Kashirina, Christopher Barker and Nazia Barker who are filing on behalf of all others similarly situated. They allege that Wells Fargo's actions are part of a series of abusive, fraudulent, and unlawful practices aimed at extracting additional fees and revenues from customers.
This is not the first time Wells Fargo has been accused of such practices. In 2016, the bank was forced to acknowledge that it had created 1.5 million fake deposit accounts and more than 500,000 fake credit card accounts in customers' names without their knowledge or approval. Additionally, in 2022, Wells Fargo paid over $2 billion to consumers and $1.7 billion in civil penalties after the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau found the bank was mismanaging loan accounts by charging illegal fees and interest.
The lawsuit seeks compensation for violations of various laws including California Unfair Competition Law, Fair Credit Reporting Act, Minnesota Consumer Protection Act among others.
Plaintiffs are represented by attorney Alisa Rose Adams, of The Dann Law Firm, of Foothill Ranch.