Brent Adams & Associates Blog

Bank Of America Wins Lawsuit Involving Taking Fees From Social Security Disability Deposits

For over a decade, many Bank of America (BOA) customers have wondered whether or not it was legal for the banking behemoth to cut into their direct-deposit social security benefits in order to collect banking fees. In fact, a class action case involving BOA customers dating back to 1994 attempted to reclaim money taken from their SSDI and other social security deposits to pay overdraft fees.

In 2004, a court judge listened to a case involving over one million customers - many of them elderly or disabled - who wanted their money back. The judge ruled that the Charlotte, North Carolina bank repay $284.4 million in damages in addition to $1,000 to each customer who went through emotional or economic hardship.

However, this week a different judge ruled that Bank of America is not responsible for repaying similar fees to other customers in similar situations - fees that add up to over $1 billion.