Capital One class action alleges credit denials violated ECOA

Capital One class action overview:

• Who: Plaintiff Sharon Woolever filed a class action lawsuit against Capital One N.A.
• Why: Woolever claims Capital One failed to provide lawful notices that comply with the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA).
• Where: The Capital One class action lawsuit was filed in Virginia federal court.

A new class action lawsuit alleges Capital One failed to provide lawful notices that comply with the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and Virginia Equal Credit Opportunity Act (VECOA) when taking adverse actions against consumers.

Plaintiff Sharon Woolever filed the class action complaint against Capital One on June 4 in Virginia federal court, alleging violations of federal and state credit laws.

According to the Capital One class action lawsuit, the bank regularly accepts and processes credit applications, extends credit and services existing accounts.

However, the lawsuit alleges Capital One fails to provide consumers with lawful notices when taking adverse actions, such as revoking account access based on false reasons like a “deceased” notation.

The complaint alleges that Capital One’s failure to provide adverse action notices is not a mistake but a deliberate policy.

The lawsuit argues that the lack of notice deprives consumers of the information needed to understand and respond to credit decisions, potentially leading them to conclude that the adverse action was based on illegal discrimination.

Capital One closed accounts due to ‘deceased’ notation, plaintiff claims

Woolever, a Capital One customer with a positive credit history, claims her accounts were closed due to a false “deceased” notation.

Despite Capital One agreeing to reopen her accounts, the bank allegedly refused to reinstate her accumulated reward points, which Woolever argues is also an adverse action.

The class action lawsuit claims Capital One “has been the target of government agency enforcement of the federal anti-discrimination laws, including the ECOA,” and that it “paid millions in money damages and undertook process changes in order to settle a discrimination lawsuit brought by the Department of Justice.”

The plaintiff proposes to represent all those whose Capital One credit accounts were terminated or suspended without a written adverse action notice within the two years preceding class certification for the VECOA class, and within five years for the ECOA class.

The class action lawsuit is seeking a declaration that Capital One violated both the ECOA and VECOA, certification of the proposed classes and statutory punitive damages of $10,000 per class member per violation.

Another class action filed in Virginia claims Capital One frequently cancels credit card accounts and rewards earned on those accounts when the cardholder is not at fault.

What do you think of the allegations made in this Capital One class action lawsuit? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiff is represented by Susan M. Rotkis of Consumer Justice Law Firm PLC.

The Capital One class action lawsuit is Woolever v. Capital One N.A., Case No. 3:26-cv-00516, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Richmond Division.

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