DES MOINES, Iowa – Wells Fargo has agreed to a $575 million dollars settlement over claims the bank violated state consumer protection laws.
The settlement covers all 50 states and will result in Iowa getting $6.1 million and Minnesota receiving $9.3 million.
“This agreement is unique and one of the largest multistate settlements with a bank since the National Mortgage Settlement in 2012,” says Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller. “This significant dollar amount, on top of actions by federal regulators, holds Wells Fargo accountable for its practices.”
Wells Fargo was accused of creating unauthorized accounts and enrolling customers into banking services without their consent, affecting millions of people.
“This settlement—on top of other settlements by federal regulators—is aimed to bring some measure of accountability to practices that are unacceptable for a banking institution,” says Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson.
Authorities say Wells Fargo also improperly referred customers for enrollment in third-party renters’ and life insurance policies and improperly charged auto loan customers for force-placed and collateral protection insurance.
As part of previous settlements, Wells Fargo will also pay over $1 billion in civil penalties to the federal government and about $600 million to consumers.
