Credit Card Payment Protection Plan National Class Action

+ - Documents (7)

CONSUMER LAW GROUP is investigating the launch of a Canada-wide class action lawsuit out of Ontario and Quebec against Bank of Montreal (BMO), Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank), Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC), Fédération des Caisses Desjardins du Québec (Caisse Populaire), Laurentian Bank of Canada, National Bank of Canada (NBC), Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) and Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD) as a result of their prohibited practices relating to their "Payment Protection" plans or insurance.

“Payment Protection” plans or insurance are fee-based products marketed and sold by banks and credit card companies as services that would pay minimum amounts due on credit cards for consumers in certain circumstances (i.e. illness, accident, unemployment, disability, etc…) for a limited period of time, thus providing protection of a subscriber’s credit rating during periods of financial uncertainty and preventing the account from becoming delinquent. The consumer is charged a monthly premium or fee, the cost of which is calculated pursuant to a rate formula based upon the outstanding balance on the credit card monthly account statement.

In reality, however these plans provide little, if any, value to consumers and are expressly designed and marketed to target the most vulnerable populations, including the poor, minorities, and the elderly.

Specifically, the class action lawsuit alleges that the banks and credit card companies act unlawfully by: (a) misrepresenting and omitting many important facts regarding the terms of the “protection;” (b) enrolling and charging customers without their consent (“slamming”); (c) enrolling and charging consumers for the “payment protection program” despite the fact that the consumer could never be eligible for the benefits; (d) misrepresenting the fees to customers and/or charging excessive fees; and (e) devising a procedure for obtaining benefits that was so confusing and difficult that it rendered the product worthless.

Examples of wrongful conduct include:

• Indicating that add-on products would improve a customer’s credit score;
• Telling customers that they could enroll at no additional charge, when in fact the products were not free;
• Failing to obtain sufficient consent from customers prior to enrollment; and
• Failing to determine whether customers were eligible for payment protection benefits before enrollment (i.e. you are self-employed, you have a pre-existing medical condition, etc…)

In Canada, Credit Card Protection services are offered by the following institutions:

1) Bank of Montreal (BMO)
[Called “Credit Card Balance Protection”]
Manufacturers Life Insurance Company (Manulife)
First North American Insurance Company

2) Bank of Nova Scotia (Scotiabank)
[Called “Scotia Credit Card Protection”]
ScotiaLife Financial

3) Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC)
[Called “CIBC Payment Protector Insurance”]
Canadian Premier Life Insurance Company

4) Fédération des Caisses Desjardins du Québec (Caisse Populaire)
[Called “Credit Balance Insurance”]
Desjardins Financial Security Life Assurance Company

5) Laurentian Bank of Canada
[Called “Assur-Payment”]
The Industrial Alliance

6) National Bank of Canada (NBC)
[Called “Credit Card Payment Insurance”]
National Bank Life Insurance

7) Royal Bank of Canada (RBC)
[Called “Balance Protector Premiere” and “Balance Protector Premiere Plus”]
American Bankers Life Assurance Company of Florida (ABLAC)
American Bankers Insurance Company of Florida (ABIC)
Assurant Solutions

8) Toronto-Dominion Bank (TD)
[Called “TD Balance Protection” and “TD Balance Protection” Plus”]
American Bankers Life Assurance Company of Florida (ABLAC)
American Bankers Insurance Company of Florida (ABIC)
TD Life Insurance Company

If you or someone you know has been unfairly enrolled in a Credit Card Payment Protection Plan operated by any of the banks or insurance companies anywhere in Canada, Quebec or Ontario, and you wish more information on potential compensation or to be kept advised of the status of the Credit Card Payment Protection Plan Class Action litigation or any resulting compensation from the Credit Card Payment Protection Plan Lawsuit in Canada, Quebec or Ontario, please provide your contact information to our law firm using the form below.

IF YOU WISH TO JOIN THE CLASS ACTION OR TO SIMPLY GET MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE COMPLETE THE FORM BELOW. Please note that providing your information creates no financial obligation for you. You are not charged any fee or cost for joining this class action. Our law firm is paid a contingency fee from the compensation recovered, only if the class action is successful. All information contained in this transmission is confidential and Consumer Law Group agrees to protect this information against unauthorized use, publication or disclosure.