The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has ordered Atlantic Union Bank to refund at least $5 million in illegal overdraft fees to consumers and pay a $1.2 million penalty to the CFPB’s victims relief fund.
The CFPB alleges that, from 2017 to 2020, the bank illegally enrolled thousands of customers in checking account overdraft programs, misleading those who enrolled by phone about the terms and costs of overdraft coverage. Atlantic Union's employees also failed to clearly explain which transactions were covered by the overdraft coverage and, in some cases, omitted key information about the service cost, including the possibility of a "hefty" overdraft fee for each transaction, according to the CFPB.
