A Florida man recently filed a lawsuit against Fifth Third Bank, alleging that the bank charges customers excessive overdraft fees in a manner that violates the terms of its own agreement.

The plaintiff, David L., refers in his lawsuit to Fifth Third Bank’s collection of excessive overdraft fees as both “illegal and unconscionable.” The bank allegedly charges a $37 overdraft fee even when the transaction in question is only a few dollars.

David alleges that Fifth Third even chooses to actively mislead its customers by telling them that their debit transactions will be processed in the order they occur, when in reality the bank reorders the transactions from highest to lowest, thereby maximizing the number of times the account will be overdrawn and the number of fees they can charge.

Indeed, overdraft fees are designed to stack on top of each other, and can compound into a substantial sum. Many banks use these fees as a source of revenue — as do credit unions.

The bank overdraft fee lawsuit alleges that this overdraft setup sometimes costs customers hundreds of dollars in just a few days—or even hours—all to maximize overdraft fee–based revenue for the bank.

David filed his lawsuit as a class action on behalf of himself and anyone else who has faced similar excessive overdraft fee practices from Fifth Third Bank.

David’s bank overdraft fee lawsuit notes that problems with excessive fees are by far most likely to target the nation’s lower income people, since they are the most likely to have low balances in the first place. According to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, around 75 percent of all overdraft fees are paid by just eight percent of banks’ customers.

What is Overdraft Protection?

Overdraft protection is something that banks and credit unions offer to help customers cover transactions that overdraw their account. An overdraft fee is charged in order to move money to the customer’s account.

But overdraft protection isn’t just a service meant to protect customers when they hit the bottom of their account—in fact, overdraft fees provide billions of dollars each year to banks. In 2016 alone, U.S. consumers paid $15 billion in overdraft and bounced check fees, according to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Filing a Bank Overdraft Fee Lawsuit

Those who have already been affected by unfair fees may be able to participate in a class action lawsuit investigation looking into banks and credit unions that may have engaged in unfair overdraft practices. A list of some of the major companies involved in this investigation can be found on the TCA overdraft fee investigation page.

If you have been hit with excessive or otherwise unfair overdraft fees, you may be able to file a lawsuit and pursue compensation. Filing a lawsuit can help to compensate for any financial losses that may have occurred, as well as hold companies accountable for their actions.

David’s Bank Overdraft Fee Lawsuit is Case No. 6.19-cv-00775-PGB-DCI, in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.

If you were charged overdraft fees or NSF fees by your bank or credit union that you believe are improper for any reason, the attorneys who work with Top Class Actions are ready to investigate these fees on your behalf.

Learn more by filling out the form on this page.

Learn More

This article is not legal advice. It is presented
for informational purposes only.