The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau made news last week by announcing that it settled a wide-scale consumer protection dispute with Wells Fargo.  The bank admitted to opening more than two million deposit and credit card accounts that may not have been authorized by consumers.  As part of a consent decree, Wells Fargo will pay fines of more than $185 million to the CFPB, the city of Los Angeles, and the Office of Comptroller Currency.  A copy of the consent decree can be accessed here: http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/documents/092016_cfpb_WFBconsentorder.pdf

This is a great result for the CFPB, but the order does not address the credit reporting implications of Wells Fargo’s conduct.  If Wells Fargo made reports to credit reporting agencies regarding unauthorized credit cards, Wells Fargo can be held liable pursuant to the Fair Credit Reporting Act.  That law prohibits the bank from willfully or negligently making false reports to credit reporting bureaus.

If you have been the victim of such conduct, please call us to discuss how the Fair Credit Reporting Act can be used to resolve your dispute.