The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), brainchild of Democrat and economic progressive Sen. Elizabeth Warren (MA), has ordered banking giant JPMorgan Chase to pay out over $300 million to customers.
For nearly a decade, JPMorgan stole hundreds of millions of dollars from customers via monthly fees that customers “didn’t ask for and didn’t receive.” Even though millions of customers never elected to such services as “identity theft protection” and “fraud monitoring,” JPMorgan Chase would still chip $8 – $12 from its customers each month.
Each individual disbursement will equal to around $147 per person, a relatively small amount for each case, but the scale on which JPMorgan executed this heinous scheme is massive. A provision of the ordered payback is that JPMorgan must distribute the checks “in a simple, convenient way.”
Although JPMorgan allegedly halted the scam last year, as of late, the bank has seen some resistance and criticism regarding its company payroll system.
Fast-food mammoth McDonald’s and JPMorgan Chase caught heat by way of a lawsuit filed by a Pennsylvania woman. The woman, a McDonald’s employee, filed a lawsuit against her employer for forcing her to accept her compensation through a JPMorgan-sponsored payroll card. According to the suit, the bank was charging the plaintiff some really bizarre fees.
For cash withdrawals at a store counter, JPMorgan charged her $5, and there was also a $1 charge just to check her balance.
Alongside the money ordered to be refunded to customers, JPMorgan has to pay a $20 million penalty for its crime. The bank will also be audited during the refund disbursement.
Richard Cordray, CFPB director, said “At the core of our mission is a duty to identify and root out unfair, deceptive, and abusive practices in financial markets that harm customers.”
Josh is a writer and researcher with Ring of Fire. Follow him on Twitter @dnJdeli.
