Plaintiffs Seek Approval of Wells Fargo Inspection Fee Settlement

The homeowners who brought a class action lawsuit against Wells Fargo are asking an Iowa federal court to grant final approval to the proposed $25.7 million settlement that would end a seven-year litigation against the fourth-largest bank in the United States.

The Wells Fargo class action lawsuit claims that Wells Fargo violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) by repeatedly ordering property inspections for delinquent borrowers without justification.

Often times, homeowners would receive property inspections every 25 to 35 days as long as they remained delinquent in payments, according to the Wells Fargo lawsuit.

In addition, the Wells Fargo inspection fee class action lawsuit claims that the bank hid the fees in relation to the home check-ups by concealing it under “other charges” on a borrowers’ monthly statement.

Wells Fargo argued that the inspections were necessary in order to protect their assets, adding that borrowers who agreed to the terms of loan modification agreements could not challenge inspection charges. Wells Fargo denies all liability and wrongdoing in this inspection fee class action lawsuit, but has agreed to settle the case in order to avoid the cost of further litigation.

According to the terms of the Wells Fargo class action settlement, Class Members have already been given the opportunity to object or to opt out. The proposed settlement agreement claims that out of the 2.7 million potential Class Members, only four objected to the terms. “The very low numbers of objections and exclusions indicate an overwhelming level of approval for the Settlement.”

By the plaintiffs’ estimates, Wells Fargo collected between $100 to $115 million dollars in fees for property inspections. Both parties agreed to the $25.7 million Wells Fargo settlement claiming that it is “fair, reasonable, and adequate and in the best interests of the Class Members.”

The Wells Fargo inspection fee class action settlement claims that in order to qualify for certificattion, a class action must meet two requirements: Common questions must “predominate over any questions affecting only individual members”; and class resolution must be “superior to other available methods for the fair and efficient adjudication of the controversy.” The plaintiffs believe they have satisfied both requirements and should be given final approval.

The federal court granted preliminary approval of the Wells Fargo class action settlement in September and the majority of Class members find the terms favorably.

Wells Fargo property inspection class action settlement Class Members are U.S. residents who have a mortgage through Wells Fargo bank and were informed that they owed the bank an inspection fee between Aug. 1, 2004, and Dec. 31, 2013.

It is not too late to submit a claim for the Wells Fargo class action settlement. Class Members have until March 16, 2016 to file a claim.

The final fairness hearing will be held on Jan. 21, 2016.

The plaintiffs are represented by Deborah Clark-Weintraub of Scott & Scott LLP, Todd S. Garber of Finkelstein, Blankinship, Frei-Pearson & Garber LLP and Roxanne Barton Conlin of Roxanne Conlin & Associates.

The Wells Fargo Inspection Fee Class Action Lawsuit Settlement is Young, et al. v. Wells Fargo & Co., et al, Case No. 4:08-cv-00507, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa.