Wells Fargo class action claims bank discriminates against racial minorities

Wells Fargo class action overview: 

• Who: A group of racial minority plaintiffs asked U.S. District Judge James Donato to certify several classes and subclasses in a class action against Wells Fargo. 
• Why: The plaintiffs claim Wells Fargo discriminated against racial minorities in its loan application process.
• Where: The Wells Fargo discrimination lawsuit is in federal court in California.

A group of racial minority plaintiffs asked U.S. District Judge James Donato to certify several classes and subclasses in a class action against Wells Fargo over racial discrimination in the loan process.

The classes include all minority applicants who paid fees to have a mortgage loan application processed and were denied, those who were discriminated against in the home mortgage loan process and those who received higher interest rates than white applicants.

The subclasses also include minority applicants for home loans, refinance or home equity lines of credit who were initially approved but ultimately denied the loans due to Wells Fargo discrimination.

The plaintiffs accuse Wells Fargo of violating the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, Fair Housing Act, California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act and California’s Unfair Competition Law.

Wells Fargo discrimination lawsuit: Bank offered higher interest rate after customer noted he is Black

Plaintiff Christopher Williams filed a lawsuit in February 2022 that said Wells Fargo used a “unique scoring model” and offered him an interest rate 3% higher than its prime rate after he marked on his application that he was Black, Law360 wrote.

“Yesterday, the plaintiffs in our case took an important step in holding Wells Fargo accountable for its intentional and willful discriminatory policies, which remain in effect today; even including its failing underwriting system that it knows is biased against minorities and yet continues to use,” interim lead counsel Dennis Ellis of Ellis George LLP said in a statement to Law360.

Consumers filed a trio of class action lawsuits in March against Wells Fargo over claims it charged customers unfair bad check fees, failed to notify them about overdraft fees and enrolled them in unwanted financial and insurance products without their consent. 

Have you applied for a loan from Wells Fargo? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiff is represented by Dennis S. Ellis of Ellis George LLP.

The Wells Fargo class action lawsuit is In re Wells Fargo Mortgage Discrimination Litigation, Case No. 3:22-cv-00990-JD, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

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