Bank of America Credit Card Class Action Settlement

Bank of America has agreed to settle a class action lawsuit alleging it failed to update credit reporting information for credit card accounts sold to third parties where the accountholder’s debts were discharged in Chapter 7 bankruptcy after they were sold.

If you had a Bank of America Credit Card and your debts were discharged in a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you may be entitled to payment from the $5.5 million class action settlement.

Plaintiff Michael Echevarria filed the BofA class action lawsuit in bankruptcy court on March 31, 2014. Although it was dismissed, Echevarria’s motion to consolidate his action with three other pending class action lawsuits was successful.

The plaintiffs filed an amended BofA class action lawsuit on Nov. 11, 2014, and the litigation survived Bank of America’s motion to dismiss.

According to the Bank of America class action lawsuit, Bank of America’s failure to update credit card information when the accountholder’s debts were sold meant that the tradelines did not indicate that the debts were included in bankruptcy. The tradelines allegedly continued to reflect that the debts were sold, charged off and $0 balance.

The plaintiffs allege that Bank of America’s tradeline reporting practices harmed consumers by adversely affected their ability to obtain credit and access their credit scores.

Bank of America denies the allegations but agreed to settle the BofA class action lawsuit to avoid the risks, costs and uncertainty of ongoing litigation.

The deadline to opt out of or object to the Bank of America class action settlement is Jan. 30, 2018.

Who’s Eligible

Class Members of the Bank of America settlement include “all individual borrowers who (i) maintained a Credit Card Account with [Bank of America NA] that was charged off by [Bank of America NA] and sold to a third-party Debt Buyer on or after January 1, 2008; and (ii) were discharged in Chapter 7 bankruptcy after such debt was sold to a third-party Debt Buyer but before October 1, 2015.”

Potential Award

Varies.

The BofA class action settlement allows for three types of payments:

Automatic Payments to Bank of America Post-Discharge Payors: If you made one or more payments to Bank of America on your credit card account after it was sold to a debt buyer and after you received a Chapter 7 bankruptcy discharge, you will automatically receive a payment in the amount of the last payment you made. You do not need to file a Claim Form to claim this payment.

Reimbursement Claim: You may claim a refund of your post-discharge payment(s) up to the full amount of payments you made on your credit card after you received a Chapter 7 bankruptcy discharge. NOTE: This payment may be subject to a pro rata reduction if the claims exceed the class action settlement fund.

Distribution Claim: You may file a claim to receive a pro rata share of the amount of the settlement fund that remains after all other claims have been paid.

Proof of Purchase

Class Members who file a Reimbursement Claim must submit documentation supporting their claim. Acceptable documentation includes cancelled checks, account statements or similar proof.

Claim Form

CLICK HERE TO FILE A CLAIM »

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.

Claim Form Deadline

1/30/2018

Case Name

Michael Echavarria, et al. v. Bank of America Corporation, et al., Case No. 14-08216, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York

Final Hearing

3/2/2018

UPDATE: The Bank of America Credit Card Class Action Settlement was granted final approval on March 14, 2018.  Let Top Class Actions know when you receive a check in the comments section below or on our Facebook page.

Settlement Website

www.EchevarriaSettlement.com

Claims Administrator

Echevarria v. Bank of America Settlement Administrator
c/o Epiq Systems Inc.
P.O. Box 3145
Portland, OR 97208-3145
1-844-319-9617

Class Counsel

George Carpinello
Adam Shaw
BOIES SCHILLER FLEXNER LLP

Charles Juntikka
CHARLES JUNTIKKA & ASSOCIATES

Defense Counsel

Mary J. Hackett
Jarrod D. Shaw
MCGUIREWOODS LLP