Settlement Stock Art. Photo by John Disney/ALM
A federal judge will decide in September whether to approve a Washington credit union’s $1.75 million proposed agreement to a settle class action lawsuit, which alleged members were improperly charged multiple nonsufficient funds fees and/or overdraft fees, according to court filings.
The $4.3 billion TwinStar Credit Union in Lacey did not dispute that it charged members these fees but denied that the practice constitutes grounds for damages. The credit union, which serves more than 262,000 members, maintains all fees were assessed properly and lawfully in accordance with its agreements, disclosures and applicable laws, court filings showed.
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Still, TwinStar opted to settle the 2021 lawsuit to avoid further litigation costs, distractions and potential risks.
Members charged the fees between Feb. 25, 2015 and Feb. 28, 2021 do not need to file claims to receive payments. The settlement administrator has the data to identify eligible recipients. However, the number of affected members has not been disclosed in court filings.
Payments will be made to members who were charged multiple fees for the same payment transaction. Payments also will be issued for overdraft fees on one-time non-PIN debit card transactions that were authorized when accounts had a positive balance but were not settled until later when accounts showed a negative balance.
Regardless of the number of fees they were charged, eligible members will receive equal payments from the net settlement fund, which is the amount remaining after legal fees, administrative costs and class representative awards are paid. The final payment amount depends on the total number of qualifying members, according to court filings.
Under the proposed agreement, attorneys will receive $583,333. Class representatives Jason Oatis and Megan Garrettson will each receive $5,000. The settlement administrator’s cost has not been finalized.
Members have the choice to opt-out of or object to the settlement by Aug. 1. A final approval hearing is scheduled for 9 a.m., Sept. 26, at Thurston County Superior Court in Olympia.
Peter Strozniak can be reached at [email protected].
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Peter Strozniak
Credit Union Times reporter covering credit union operations, fraud, M&As, leagues, business continuity, and breaking news.
