Ally Financial Repossession $788M Class Action Settlement

UPDATE 2:

• Readers reported receiving payments of $41 from this settlement as of Feb. 4, 2022.
• Congratulations to everyone who filed a claim and got PAID!

UPDATE:

• The Court granted final approval to this settlement Aug. 31, 2021.
• Let Top Class Actions know when you receive a check in the comments section below or on our Facebook page.

Ally Financial Inc. has agreed to a settlement worth $787,500,000 benefiting consumers who received notices from Ally that failed to comply with state requirements.

Two Classes have been established:

• Nationwide Class: Anyone who was named as a borrower, co-borrower, obligor, co-obligor, buyer, co-buyer, purchaser, co-purchaser, guarantor, owner, or co-owner in a Covered Contract, whose Covered Contract was secured by Collateral, whose Collateral was repossessed — voluntarily or involuntarily — and whose Collateral was disposed of during the Class Period.
• Missouri Class: Anyone who obtained a Missouri Certificate of Title from a motor vehicle identifying Ally Financial as the lienholder as a result of entering into a Covered Contract, or who was named as a borrower, co-borrower, obligor, co-obligor, buyer, co-buyer, purchaser, co-purchaser, guarantor, owner, or co-owner with a Missouri address in a Covered Contract, whose Covered Contract was secured by Collateral, whose Collateral was repossessed — voluntarily or involuntarily — and whose Collateral was disposed of during the Class Period.

The start date for each state’s Class Period can be found as Exhibit A on the Court’s Order on Disputed Statutes of Limitation; the Class Period for all states ends March 19, 2021.

A class action lawsuit had alleged the notices Ally Financial sent to borrowers before and after their property was repossessed did not comply with each state’s form and content requirements under the Uniform Commercial Code.

Ally denies any liability concerning the issues in the class action lawsuit, but has agreed to the settlement. The Court has not ruled in favor of either party.

Ally Financial provides a variety of financial services, from home and car loans to banking and retirement savings options. The company holds $182 billion in total assets and has about 9 million customers, according to an Ally fact sheet.

The terms of the settlement agreement provide a variety of relief for Class Members.

Ally Financial has agreed to pay $87.5 million in cash to cover payments to Class Members, attorneys’ fees, and incentive awards to the Class Representatives.

Each Class Member will receive an average cash payment of $28.90; the maximum payment will be $686.92, and the minimum will be $1.28.

Ally also has agreed to no longer seek collection on a portion of any deficiency balance reflected as outstanding in Ally’s records after Ally repossessed and sold the property. 

The value of this benefit, called the Gross Deficiency Waiver Amount, will be at least $700 million. The amount of the waiver will vary for each Class Member, but it will be the amount of their deficiency balance or $1,300, whichever is lower.

In addition, Ally Financial has agreed to stop occurring finance and late charges on Class Members’ deficiency balances as of the settlement’s effective date, and will request that Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion delete trade-line information on Class Members’ credit reports that is related to their Ally account that is subject to this settlement.

A final hearing in the Ally Financial repossession settlement will be held Aug. 9, 2021.

The deadline to opt out of the settlement is July 13, 2021.

No claim form is required for this settlement.

Photos: I think there may be an Ally logo in the media library. If not, search “repossession.”

Who’s Eligible

Two Classes have been established:

• Nationwide Class: Anyone who was named as a borrower, co-borrower, obligor, co-obligor, buyer, co-buyer, purchaser, co-purchaser, guarantor, owner, or co-owner in a Covered Contract, whose Covered Contract was secured by Collateral, whose Collateral was repossessed — voluntarily or involuntarily — and whose Collateral was disposed of during the Class Period.
• Missouri Class: Anyone who obtained a Missouri Certificate of Title from a motor vehicle identifying Ally Financial as the lienholder as a result of entering into a Covered Contract, or who was named as a borrower, co-borrower, obligor, co-obligor, buyer, co-buyer, purchaser, co-purchaser, guarantor, owner, or co-owner with a Missouri address in a Covered Contract, whose Covered Contract was secured by Collateral, whose Collateral was repossessed — voluntarily or involuntarily — and whose Collateral was disposed of during the Class Period.

Potential Award

$686.92

Each Class Member will receive an average cash payment of $28.90; the maximum payment will be $686.92, and the minimum will be $1.28.

Proof of Purchase

No proof of purchase required.

Claim Form

No claim form is required for this settlement.

NOTE: If you do not qualify for this settlement do NOT file a claim.

Remember: you are submitting your claim under penalty of perjury. You are also harming other eligible Class Members by submitting a fraudulent claim. If you’re unsure if you qualify, please read the FAQ section of the Settlement Administrator’s website to ensure you meet all standards (Top Class Actions is not a Settlement Administrator). If you don’t qualify for this settlement, check out our database of other open class action settlements you may be eligible for.

Opt Out Deadline

07/13/2021

Case Name

Ally Financial Inc. v. Haskins, Case No. 16JE-AC01713-01 in the 23rd Judicial Circuit Court for Jefferson County, Missouri

Final Hearing

08/09/2021

Settlement Website

AllyNoticeClass.com

Claims Administrator

First Class, Inc./ J14601-Ally
5410 W. Roosevelt Rd., Ste. 222
Chicago, IL 60644-1490

Class Counsel

James G. Onder
Martin L. Daesch
Jesse B. Rochman
ONDERLAW LLC

Defense Counsel

Todd W. Ruskamp 
SHOOK, HARDY & BACON LLP