The parties in a large wireless autodialer case (Markos v. Well Fargo Bank, N.A.) are asking a Georgia federal court to approve a class action settlement under which Wells Fargo will pay roughly $16,319,000 to settle claims that the bank used an automatic telephone dialing system to call cell phones for marketing purposes without proper written consent.
Individual call recipients will likely receive between $25-$75 each and the plaintiff’s counsel is sure to take a hefty fee from this hard fought case. The case alleges that Wells Fargo used an autodialer to make solicitations regarding loans to about 3,296,755 consumers, without their consent.
The case acts as a reminder that even large brands can make costly compliance mistakes. Here, had the bank accurately identified cell phones and removed them from their campaign (or called manually), they would not be parting with over 16 million dollars for their (alleged) mistake. Approval of the proposed settlement is pending with the Court at this time.