Wells Fargo customers have officially sued the banking giant in what is considered to be the first of many lawsuits over illegal sales practices. Under pressure from absurdly high sales quotas, Wells Fargo employees resorted to creating unauthorized accounts to boost the bank’s fees, which led to customers’ money being transferred to new accounts without their knowledge, with extra fees being charged for opening those accounts. “Wells Fargo quotas are difficult for many bankers to meet without resorting to the abusive and fraudulent tactics. Those failing to meet daily sales quotas are approached by management, and often reprimanded and/or told to ‘do whatever it takes’ to meet their individual sales quotas,” the customers stated in their lawsuit. The California-based bank has not admitted or denied any wrongdoing, but has agreed to pay $185 million in fines and penalties to federal regulators. They also have fired 5,300 employees as a result, and promised to eliminate sales goals. The plaintiffs are seeking a class action lawsuit in which at least $5 million in damages will be recovered from the bank, and claim that the company should be ordered to pay punitive damages for failure to alert customers of the abuses for over a year after it was sued by the Los Angeles City attorney. The lawsuit accused executives of being aware of the fraudulent practices, and failing to correct their employee’s behavior. Instead of coming to the aid of their customers, Wells Fargo promoted and rewarded executives, refusing to acknowledge or do anything about the problem until it became public scandal. Even then, the damage control was merely cosmetic and unapologetic. The class action lawsuit is expected to cover 1 million customers, stating Wells Fargo failed to protect and safeguard their clientele’s confidential information, and invading customers’ privacy.
If you feel you are the victim of misleading and fraudulent marketing tactics, the lawyers at Hodes Milman are there for you in your time of need. Contact us today online at verdictvictory.com or call (949) 640-8222 for a complimentary case evaluation.
