Senate Dems demand answers from Wells Fargo over treatment of military

Eleven Senate Democrats on Thursday demanded answers from Wells Fargo over the seizure of hundreds of cars owned by members of the military.  

Led by Sens. Jack Reed (R.I.), Richard Blumenthal (Conn.) and Sherrod Brown (Ohio), the group wrote a letter to Wells CEO John Stumpf calling on the bank to step up compliance with the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA), which protects troops from financial stress while they are serving.

{mosads}”It appears to us that rather than going beyond what the SCRA requires, Wells Fargo has systematically, over the past 10 years, failed to live up to the basic requirements of the statute,” the lawmakers wrote. 

The letter comes following Wells Fargo being fined $24.1 million by the Justice Department and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency for as many as 413 alleged violations of the law between from 2008 and 2015. Of that, the bank agreed to pay more than $4 million to compensate borrowers.

The senators demanded answers to several questions, including when Wells became aware of the most recent violations, how many of the potentially 2 million deposit and checking accounts opened involved military members, detailed information about Wells’ branches located on military bases and why Wells Fargo should be allowed to keep its branches on U.S. military bases.

The lawmakers noted that in 2012, Wells Fargo settled over foreclosure violations that included violations of the SCRA.

“Combined, these abuses indicate that Wells Fargo has actually made it more difficult and stressful for our service members and their families by violating the very rights they have fought and continue to fight so hard to secure,” the lawmakers wrote.  

They also expressed concern about potential compliance issues related to the Military Lending Act, including new rules that took effect on Oct. 3.

The fine on the repossessions came a couple of weeks after Wells paid a $185 million penalty plus $5 million to pay back consumers for losses occurred on fake accounts created by employees.

The letter also was signed by Sens. Chuck Schumer (N.Y.), Dick Durbin (Ill.), Patty Murray (Wash.), Maize Hirono (Hawaii), Bob Menendez (N.J.), Jeff Merkley (Ore.), Elizabeth Warren (Mass.) and Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).