Outcome: $222,000 Settlement
Stahl v. Bank of the West, Case No. BC673397, in the Superior Court of the State of California for the County of Los Angeles
In February 2019, Tycko & Zavareei LLP won final approval of a $222,000 settlement against Bank of the West related to Bank of the West’s overdraft practices. In Bank of the West’s Deposit Acount Disclosure, Bank of the West promised customers that it would not charge overdraft fees on everyday, non-recurring transactions unless the customer opted in to Debit Card Overdraft Service. However, the complaint alleged that Bank of the West charged all customers overdraft fees on a specific type of non-recurring transaction—Uber and Lyft rides. Although customers did not pay for Uber and Lyft rides on a set schedule and paid different amounts each time, Bank of the West still charged a $35 fee if an Uber or Lyft ride overdrafted a customer’s account.
The settlement, negotiated by Hassan Zavareei, required Bank of the West to distribute $90,400 among all customers who paid an overdraft fee on a transaction with Uber or Lyft between August 2013 and April 2018. Tycko & Zavareei continues to fight against unreasonable and unfair fees in the banking industry through settlements such as this one won for Bank of the West’s customers.