Kohl’s Privacy Guard Fees

A federal judge has denied Kohl’s request to dismiss a class action lawsuit over ancillary credit card services like Kohl’s Privacy Guard.

The class action lawsuit alleges Kohl’s and Capital One charged account holders of Kohl’s branded credit cards for services they didn’t ask for – specifically Kohl’s Privacy Guard and Payment Protection, referenced together as Kohl’s Account Ease.

Kohl’s and co-defendant Capital One moved for dismissal in March 2016, arguing that the plaintiffs had filed their lawsuit too late to satisfy a three-year statute of limitations under Virginia law.

In moving for dismissal, Kohl’s and Capital One argued that the limitations clock began ticking in April 2011, the first time Capital One charged the plaintiffs for the controversial services.

At that time, Capital One had recently acquired Chase Bank’s portfolio of private label credit card accounts, including Kohl’s branded credit card accounts. Account holders had been paying Kohl’s credit card fees for the extra services under agreements previously made with Chase.

Attorneys for the plaintiffs countered that the limitations period could not have begun running in April 2011 since the defendants continued to charge the plaintiffs a different fee each month.

Plaintiffs argued the difference made the charge a new fee each time it was assessed.

Plaintiffs also argued that Capital One’s acquisition of Chase’s private label credit card accounts in 2011 invalidated prior agreements between Chase and the account holders.

Therefore, they said, Capital One did not have the right to continue charging Kohl’s credit card fees for the extra account services.

Suing Over Kohl’s Privacy Guard Fees

This class action lawsuit began in February 2015
. Plaintiffs allege that Kohl’s and Capital One have been imposing ancillary services on Kohl’s credit card holders, and that they had been charging Kohl’s credit card fees for both services.

They alleged the two companies had been enrolling account holders in Kohl’s Privacy Guard and Payment Protection services without their consent – a practice referred to as “slamming.”

Kohl’s Privacy Guard purportedly protects consumers’ identity through credit monitoring and credit report retrieval, in exchange for a monthly payment of $14.99.

Also at issue is Kohl’s Payment Protection, a service designed to cancel an account holder’s balance up to a certain amount in case of qualifying events like job loss or disability.

Kohl’s and Capital One allegedly charged $1.60 for each $100 of the ending monthly balance for Payment Protection.

Kohl’s Privacy Guard fees and Payment Protection fees show up on Kohl’s account statements as “Kohl’s Account Ease.” Each of the named plaintiffs claim they were charged over $100 in fees for these services.

The plaintiffs say that in addition to signing customers up for these services without their consent, Kohl’s and Capital One failed to notify them that the services were not required as a condition of using a Kohl’s credit card, or that they could be cancelled at any time.

They also say that Kohl’s and Capital One continue to bill the account holder for the services after the account is closed or the service is cancelled.

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

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.

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