On May 23, a federal district judge in Florida preliminarily approved a settlement in a class action alleging that Bank of America had charged excessive overdraft fees on debit cards. The bank reordered the processing of the debit charges from highest to lowest, which resulted in more overdraft fees. Under the settlement, the Bank would pay $410 million.
Bank of America was the first defendant to settle in the case. Roughly 30 defendants remain, including US Bank, Wells Fargo, JP Morgan Chase, and Citibank. Bank of America no longer charges overdraft fees for debit purchases. Instead, it declines the card if there are not sufficient funds.
Click here to see the order preliminarily approving the settlement.