A Nevada-based bank that allegedly oversaw debt collection practices which included harassing calls to consumers in Riverside County and elsewhere reached a legal settlement with the District Attorney’s Office, agreeing to pay $10.2 million in civil penalties and other costs, it was announced Friday.
The consumer protection lawsuit was filed in Riverside County Superior Court by the California Debt Collection Task Force last summer against Credit One Bank, headquartered in Las Vegas.
On Thursday, the task force and the bank’s attorneys submitted a stipulated final judgment that was signed by Superior Court Judge Harold Hopp at the Riverside Historic Courthouse. Under the pretrial settlement, Credit One agreed to pay $9 million in penalties and $1.2 million to cover the plaintiffs’ investigate expenses. Of the total, Riverside County will receive $2.55 million, according to the DA’s office.
The agency was joined by district attorneys offices in Los Angeles, San Diego and Santa Clara counties — representing the statewide Debt Collection Task Force — in pursuing civil action against Credit One.
The bank’s attorneys did not respond to a request for comment.
The suit stemmed from actions taken by its debt collection agents over an extensive period, across the state, according to the plaintiffs.
“They made debt collection phone calls to California residents with unreasonable and excessive frequency,” according to the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office. “The complaint also alleges that, at times, Credit One persisted in calling consumers after they had stated they no longer wished to receive the calls, or when the calls were made to wrong numbers. Credit One denied these allegations.”
The settlement specified future debt collection efforts will “comply with state and federal law relating to consumer debt collection calls,” with a further reorientation in business practices to ensure similar acts aren’t repeated, the DA’s office stated.
The task force has netted previous successes for similar alleged violations, beginning with a settlement involving Allied Interstate in 2018, Synchrony Bank three years later, and Capital One Bank in 2022.