Source: Housing Wire — 

Wells Fargo will pay $94 million to settle a class-action lawsuit that argued it sent more than 200,000 mortgage borrowers into forbearance during the pandemic unlawfully and without their consent.

The plaintiffs argued that the San Francisco-based bank provided forbearances to customers who made inquiries about their mortgages or expressed hardship, but had not explicitly requested forbearance, Reuters reported this week.

The decision by Wells Fargo damaged borrowers’ credit scores, making it more difficult for them to refinance their mortgages when rates were at their lowest levels in history. The borrowers said Wells Fargo’s actions also violated the CARES Act.

Wells Fargo denied any wrongdoing in its Sept. 9 settlement, which was filed last week in Columbus, Ohio federal court and requires a judge’s sign-off.