Texas Office of the Attorney General issued the following announcement on Feb. 28.
Attorney General Ken Paxton today announced the start of Wells Fargo’s consumer redress review program, which is a key requirement of the bank’s recent $575 million settlement with Texas, 49 other states and the District of Columbia over violations of consumer protection laws.
Under the program, aggrieved Wells Fargo customers can call the following phone numbers to have their inquiry or complaint reviewed by the bank’s escalation team for possible relief, provided they have not taken advantage of other remediation programs already in place:
-Unauthorized Accounts / Improper Retail Sales Practices: 1-844-931-2273
-Improper Renters and Life Insurance Referrals: 1-855-853-9638
-Force-Placed Collateral Protection Auto Insurance ("CPI"): 1-888-228-9735
-Guaranteed Asset/Auto Protection ("GAP") Refunds: 1-844-860-6962
-Mortgage Interest Rate Lock Extension Fees: 1-866-385-5008
Eligibility requirements for Wells Fargo’s consumer redress review program and contact numbers for more information are available to consumers online at https://www.wellsfargo.com/commitment/redress. The bank will provide periodic reports to Texas and the other states about ongoing remediation efforts.
Between 2009 and 2016, Wells Fargo opened as many as 3.5 million bank accounts, transferred funds, filed credit card applications and issued debit cards without customers’ knowledge or consent. The bank disclosed that it found 528,000 unauthorized enrollments of customers in its online bill payment service.
In addition, Wells Fargo improperly referred customers for enrollment in third-party renters and life insurance policies; charged auto loan customers for insurance they did not need; failed to ensure that customers received refunds of unearned premiums on certain optional auto finance products; and incorrectly charged customers for mortgage rate-lock extension fees.
Texas’ share of the $575 million multistate settlement with Wells Fargo amounts to approximately $47 million. The agreement represents the most significant engagement involving a national bank by state attorneys general acting without a federal law enforcement partner.