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Wells Fargo mortgage settlement overview:
- Who: Wells Fargo agreed to pay $94 million to settle a class action lawsuit with certain mortgage holders.
- Why: The plaintiffs claimed Wells Fargo automatically put struggling mortgage holders in a forbearance program during the pandemic without their consent.
- Where: The Wells Fargo settlement was filed in an Ohio federal court.
Wells Fargo agreed to pay $94 million to end claims the bank put the mortgages of borrowers struggling during the pandemic into forbearance without their consent, hurting their credit scores.
Lead plaintiff Brian Echard filed the motion for preliminary approval of the settlement Sept. 9 in an Ohio federal court.
The Wells Fargo settlement is the result of a nationwide class action filed Jan. 2021 on behalf of customers of Wells Fargo Bank whose mortgages were allegedly placed into Wells Fargo’s Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act Forbearance program without adequate informed consent, the motion states.
Echard and plaintiffs Stephen and Heather Shimp alleged that Wells Fargo breached its contracts and violated the CARES Act and other laws by automatically placing borrowers into forbearance if they contacted the bank and said they were experiencing financial distress during the pandemic.
A section of the federal CARES Act allowed mortgage holders struggling financially during COVID-19 to ask for a temporary forbearance.
But the class action alleged Wells Fargo placed those who contacted the bank in forbearance without asking them, negatively affecting their credit.
Wells Fargo defended itself by saying the bank sought to make sure that every customer who needed help with their mortgage got it in the form of a forbearance, the motion says.
“While plaintiffs had an argument that Wells Fargo’s actions were profit-driven, that argument was far from a certainty,” the Wells Fargo settlement states.
Wells Fargo settlement compensates loan holders
The deal seeks to give about $165 each to owners of about 212,000 loans that were put in forbearance without their consent.
The remaining $59 million in the settlement would be set aside for those who can claim harm from being placed in forbearance, the Wells Fargo settlement states.
Attorneys seek up to a quarter of the settlement for fees and expenses. The agreement allows named plaintiffs to seek $12,500 in compensation each.
In May, Wells Fargo agreed to a $32.5 million Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) class action lawsuit settlement resolving claims it mismanaged the company’s retirement plan.
Were you affected by Wells Fargo mortgage forbearance decisions during the pandemic? Let us know your experience in the comments!
The plaintiffs are represented by Nathan Andrew Hunter of Hunter & Hunter LLC and Alyssa Koepfgen, Knoll Lowney, Marc Zemel, Meredith Crafton and Savannah Lee Rose of Smith & Lowney PLLC.
The Wells Fargo settlement is Echard v. Wells Fargo Bank NA et al., Case No. 2:21-cv-05080, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio.
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41 thoughts onWells Fargo settles class action over mortgages for $94M
I’m close to an unlawful detainer court date. I was put in a forbearance during covid without my consent although the home was in my deceased parents name. After forbearance I could not provide notarized signatures on the loan modification that was offered. After sending in the death certificates I was no longer allowed access or allowed to make payments on the mortgage so I was foreclosed on and am facing unlawful detainer hearing. Every payment was made prior to forbearance from 2010-2020. Please add me to this lawsuit. My brother was the beneficiary of my last living parents will then deeded the home to me and Wells Fargo says I am ineligible for any heir related law even though I occupied the home with both parents and had all living will poa for my mother the last living parent. Again please add me to this class action lawsuit. I am told my home has been sold in a non judicial foreclosure.
Please include me as well. Ihave stuggles with Wells Fargo since my husband passed in 2010. Recently, I sold my home only to have Wells Fargo take a large sum oft he funds. After reveiwing all the documents, I discovered that in 2015 I had a modification and they added my late husband back to the mortgage along with a line credit that was once closed. I would like to see all families tha thave been hurt financially or otherwise, by Wells Fargo, get the justice they deserve. And therest of the world needs to be aware ALL the criminal actions these large banks arre doing to destroy true, real hardworking American families . The way I see it is that, only these Top Floor Bankers and Politicians are getting rich and really not doingany work.
Please include me in the class action lawsuit
Is it too late to get on this class action?
Wellsfargo told us we would be deffering our payments. Then sold our loan to shellpoint servicer and we now found out that they put us in forbearance. And won’t let us make our next payment with out a loan modification.
Wells Fargo still owes me nearly 40,000.00 over the predatory mortgage they sold me,then refused my house payments and pay off to escrow for taxes,forcing me into foreclosure and complete home loss in retaliation for filing complaints against them. They are still trying to get away with the lies,misrepresented facts, fraud and theft. Freddie Mac forced them to buy back my and so many other loans because of fraud and predatory loans being sold to them. I 2as never a day late on payments in spite of Wells Fargos bad faith,dishonest and deceptive business practices. I could not afford a lawyer. Wells Fargo knew this and had a full advantage over me in setting the bad loan up to trying to save my home from foreclosure. I never had a fair chance…
I have a mortgage with Wells Fargo and want to be included
Add me
They won’t let me start paying on my mortgage for 2 years now. Hoop after hoop and going nowhere.
I sold my house years ago but when I originally got my mortgage I did not have 20% down so I had to pay PMI. The problem is I paid PMI for 14+ years even after the 20% was satisfied. I truly believe that wants to 20% was satisfied the PMI would go away, but it never did.
Please add me and my mom. We have a laundry list of issues.
Wells Fargo put me on Foreclosure back in 2014 I was making my Mortgage payments when I received a letter from the Court’s about Foreclosure when I spoke to Wells Fargo about this they told me that I was 8 months behind on my payments had to go to the bank get all my bank statements showing the payment’s that were made what I was told by Wells Fargo is that those payment’s that I was make they were putting it on a Special Account for them to use because behind on my payments but I really were not behind because they never were applying it to my Mortgage so that is why they put me on Foreclosure. So I Finally had to go to a Friend of mine so that she could talk to them about the Foreclosure they told her the same thing that they told me but she told them that they cant be doing to me because she has all the payment’s that were being made and they told her that they could do what ever the want to do then she told them that I had just made a another payment but that’s we were not going to spend it because they can’t be doing that to there Customers then after all that I had to pay $1800.00 just so that I wouldn’t lose my place then after all that they put me on an Loan Modifications which really messed me up even more because had paid for 12yrs on my other Loan put because I did they Loan Modifications it put me back on a 30 year loan again and after that then they sold my Loan to Specialized Service Loan can I check to see what can be done on this Please