California Woman Sues Credit Union Over Alleged Loan Discrimination
Saray Ortiz, a DACA recipient, claims University CU denied her credit for a new car because of her immigration status.
A California woman sued the $1.1 billion University Credit Union in Los Angeles, claiming she was denied an auto loan because of her immigration status.
The proposed class action lawsuit was filed Thursday in U.S. District Court by Saray Ortiz, 39, of Los Angeles, claiming she suffered discrimination when UCU denied her an auto loan after the credit union initially approved it.
When reached Friday, UCU said it declined to comment at this time.
Ortiz arrived in the United States from Morelos, Mexico when she was eight years old and currently works at the J. Paul Getty Museum as a project administrator. In 2013, Ortiz received a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) status. This program issues DACA recipients a Social Security number and authorizes them to work in the U.S.
Luiz Lozada, her attorney with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF), said UCU told Ortiz that her loan had been approved on more than one occasion. But after she provided her Employment Authorization card, UCU reversed its approval and denied the loan. Her lawyer alleged the credit union’s decision to deny her the loan because of her DACA status violated California and federal laws prohibiting discrimination based on citizenship and immigration status.
Last February, Ortiz obtained a checking account and membership with UCU through her employer. The following day, she applied online for an auto loan. A credit union representative phoned Ortiz that same day to get her driver’s license number and expiration date, information on her employment and her Social Security number.
After the call, Ortiz received an email telling her the loan was approved for $18,000. However, the next day, she received another email from UCU asking her to provide her DACA employment authorization document, which she provided.
The lawsuit stated that she then received an email from the credit union informing her that the loan was not approved. UCU sent Ortiz an “adverse action notice” confirming that credit would not be extended on the terms she requested.
Ortiz eventually bought a car but at a substantially higher rate of interest than if she had received the loan from UCU, according to the lawsuit.