Kohl’s and Capital One Ask Judge to Toss Credit Card Sign-Up Suit

On Wednesday, an attorney for Kohl’s and Capital One asked a federal judge to toss a proposed class action lawsuit that was filed against the companies collectively by consumers.

The plaintiffs in the lawsuit said they were forced into purchasing unnecessary payment protection and credit monitoring services when they applied for Kohl’s branded credit cards. The attorney argued that the lawsuit was filed too late.

The attorney for the companies told U.S. District Judge Wendy Beetlestone that, under Virginia state law, the suit was governed by a three-year statute of limitations. According to the attorney, when the consumers first were charged for the services was the time that triggered the statute, and more than three years have passed.

Plaintiffs Jennifer Gordon, Valerie Tantlinger and Jennifer Underwood filed the lawsuit against the companies in February 2015 over the service offered to Kohl’s customers called Privacyguard credit monitoring, a collaborative service known as “Kohl’s Account Ease.” All of the named plaintiffs allege that they were charged for and paid more than $100 in fees for these services.

The lawsuit claimed that only certain applicants for the Kohl’s credit card services were eligible for benefits. Kohl’s customers who were self-employed, unemployed, work part-time, are retired or disabled do not qualify for payment protection. The Kohl’s lawsuit further stated that even if customers were eligible for additional benefits, they were not likely to file a claim since the companies “failed to meaningfully apprise those class members of the program.”

Gordon and the other plaintiffs claim that when the program changed hands from Chase Bank NA in 2011 and went to Capital One, the new agreement did not allow Capital One and Kohl’s to charge for the additional services. The defendants’ attorney said the first charge occurred in 2011, exceeding the statute of limitations for filing the lawsuit.

Counsel for the plaintiffs said that the statute was not triggered in 2011 and that the issue at hand was the differing charges the plaintiffs were charged each month while they were in the program, counting as a new fee each time it was processed.

After hearing arguments from both sides who cited multiple cases, Judge Beetlestone said, “It’s a complicated area. I have to do what I’m paid to do.”

The oral arguments also centered on the change in bank management of the cards from Chase to Capital One as being a key point to consider, with the plaintiffs’ attorney noting that at the change, new cards were issued to consumers in the new bank name.

“You can’t have these changes without getting customers’ assent. They cannot continue to argue that the Chase agreement somehow continued to live on after these changes.”

After the defense attorney stated that those arguments were not previously made in the pleadings. As a result, Judge Beelestone requested to schedule additional briefing.

Kohl’s and Capital One tried to push the dispute into arbitration in August, but the judge denied the bid.

The plaintiffs are represented by Patrick Howard of Saltz Mongeluzzi Barrett & Bendesky PC, Lee S. Shalov and Wade C. Wilkinson of McLaughlin & Stern LLP, and Angela M. Edwards of Law Office of Angela M. Edwards.

The Kohl’s Credit Card Class Action Lawsuit is Jennifer Gordon, et al. v. Kohl’s Corporation, et al., Case No. 15-CV-730, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

UPDATE: On March 12, 2019, a $1.8 million settlement was proposed to resolve claims that Kohl’s and Capital One deceptively charged consumers for credit monitoring.

Join a Free Kohl’s Credit Card Fees Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you were billed for Kohl’s Account Ease and/or PrivacyGuard on your Kohl’s credit card from February 2011 until the present, you may qualify to participate in this class action lawsuit investigation. Get help now by filling out the form on this page for a FREE case evaluation.

Join Now