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Update:
- A Seattle resident who filed a class action lawsuit alleging Wells Fargo and Zelle fail to protect customers from scammers who use Zelle’s mobile payment app has dropped his claims.
- Plaintiff Luke Hartsock filed a notice of voluntary dismissal without prejudice June 28 in a Washington federal court.
- The reasoning behind his withdrawal was not outlined in the notice.
- The case alleged that Wells Fargo and Early Warning Services LLC, which operates Zelle, fail to take enough actions to protect their banking customers.
- Hartsock said thieves who targeted Wells Fargo bank customers through Zelle scammed him out of $7,500, and that the bank would not reimburse him.
Wells Fargo Zelle class action lawsuit overview:
- Who: Wells Fargo and Zelle have been hit with a class action by a customer who says he was scammed out of $7,500.
- Why: The plaintiff says he was scammed by thieves targeting Wells Fargo customers through Zelle.
- Where: The class action lawsuit was filed in Washington federal court.
(June 3, 2022)
Wells Fargo and Zelle fail to protect customers from scammers who use Zelle’s mobile payment app to steal from the bank’s customers’ accounts, a new class action lawsuit alleges.
Plaintiff Luke Hartsock filed the class action lawsuit against the two financial giants June 1 in a Washington federal court, alleging negligence and violations of consumer protection laws.
According to the lawsuit, thieves who target Wells Fargo bank customers through Zelle scammed Hartsock out of $7,500.
On two occasions, Hartsock says a con mimicked Wells Fargo’s identity and the texts and phone calls that the bank uses to communicate with customers in cases of fraud. The scammer even mimicked a Wells Fargo customer service agent, asking him to send money, he says..
Hartsock disputed the transactions with Wells Fargo, but the bank initially refused to reimburse him, he says in the class action. Wells Fargo eventually credited $3,500 to his account, but Hartsock says he is still seeking the additional $4,000.
Wells Fargo, Zelle aware of widespread fraud, class action claims
According to the lawsuit, Wells Fargo and Early Warning Services LLC, which operates Zelle, fail to take enough actions to protect their banking customers.
He says the companies are aware of the widespread fraud and that Zelle is vulnerable to scammers but aren’t willing to invest in further protections.
“The immediacy of Zelle’s service has made it a favorite primarily among consumers, but that has made it a favorite among criminals, who can access bank accounts directly,” the class action lawsuit says. “Once scammers can scare or trick their victims into sending money via Zelle, they can siphon away thousands of dollars in seconds.”
The lawsuit is suing for negligence and violations of the Electronic Fund Transfer Act and the Washington Consumer Protection Act.
Hartsock seeks certification of the class action, damages, fees, costs and a jury trial. He wants to represent all Wells Fargo account holders who have unresolved disputed withdrawals from using Zelle.
Meanwhile, a consumer hit Navy Federal Credit Union with a class action lawsuit alleging it fails to properly inform its account holders that they will not be reimbursed for any financial losses caused by fraud on Zelle.
If you are a Wells Fargo customer and you have been charged an overdraft fee on a debit card purchase within the last year, you may qualify to join a Wells Fargo overdraft fee arbitration action (links to paid attorney content).
Have you been scammed through Zelle? Let us know your experience in the comments!
Hartsock is represented by Laura R. Gerber and Nathan L. Nanfelt of Keller Rohrback LLP.
The Wells Fargo Zelle Class Action Lawsuit is Luke Hartsock v. Wells Fargo & Co. et al., Case No. 2:22-cv-00759, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.
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58 thoughts onWells Fargo class action over Zelle fraud dropped
My daughter was scammed out of $4,000 two weeks ago. Her phone rang on a Saturday morning with the real Wells Fargo caller-id information displaying on her iPhone. She googled the number and went ahead with the call. The person on the phone represented him/herself very professionally and had a lot of information about our daughter and her account. Over the course of a long phone call, the fake WF representative claimed my daughter’s Zelle account had been compromised and that she needed to execute a series of transfers to help Zelle and Wells Fargo trace the problem.
Remember this was on a Saturday when money doesn’t flow between institutions due to FedWire, SWIFT and the ACH system being closed. We called WF that same day, explained the situation and asked them to freeze and cancel the Zelle transfers. They said they would do so, but they did no such thing. This strikes me as absurd. First, the money transfer system doesn’t operate over the weekend. The bank could easily implement a system to allow consumers to put a stop on transfers just like they can do with physical cheques. Second – and this is something I learned from a WF fraud investigator – the fraud investigations unit is also closed on the weekend. I asked: “If you knew your bank was being robbed on a Saturday, would you really wait until Monday to take measures to stop the robbery?”
I’ve been in contact with the head of Wells Fargo’s Washington DC representation office (a long-time friend) who has said there’s nothing the bank can do. He likewise says there is nothing his boss, the CEO of Wells Fargo, can do. Again, this is absurd. We called immediately and provided the bank with ample opportunity to undo the damage. The bank chose, whether actively or through negligence, not to make good. With $1.9 trillion in assets, WF can easily afford to protect its retail customers, but it choses not to.
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On October 28, 2022, I was called by a very professional man from a Wells Fargo number stating that money was being withdrawn form my account. I panicked as this call came in twice. I knew that this was a legitimate call as Wells Fargo called me years ago about my account and saved my account. So, this time I was under the impression I was speaking to my bank of 33 years. I was told by the caller to transfer through my Zelle account. A bank employee’s name was placed on my account. No one can do this but Wells Fargo and myself. So of course I was convinced. I transferred $3,000.00 . However, I saw that $2,461.00 was taken. I then Called Wells Fargo after to make sure find out if my account was safe. I was told that I had just been scammed. I’m devastated. After countless letters and correspondences, Wells Fargo refused to return my funds, even though their system was hacked. Even sent me a letter stating that I should not do business with “questionable people”. I thought I was doing business with my bank of 33 years, not a “questionable person”. This has left me devastated and very distressed. Victimized by the scammer and victimized by my own bank of 33 years. Please count me in the class action lawsuit. Immediately.
I was scammed out of $320 and was told there was nothing that could be done about it.
We were scammed and Wells Fargo admitted it but refused to reimburse us for the $900. they removed from our account through Zelle. We provided pages and pages of documentation, filed a police report, had the support of the local bank branch, and still the national Wells Fargo just kept telling us we needed to drop it after months of us sending documentation to them. Wells Fargo claimed that no one should ever use Zelle unless it is with a family member and therefore we were at fault for selling our motorcycle to a local man in our community. We would love to get this resolved. The man who used Wells Fargo and Zelle still has our motorcycle and got the money back that he paid us for it.