First National Bank TCPA Investigation
First National Bank was notified by the Federal Communication Commission in September that it was being cited for prerecorded message violations. First National Bank is accused of violating the Telephone Consumer Protection Act through these practices. If you or anyone you know has enrolled with First National Bank online, your privacy rights may have been violated. Please contact us using the form on this page or call us at 424-245-5505. You may be part of a class action lawsuit. An investigation is ongoing.
Background
First National Bank is in the banking, lending, credit card, and consumer financial services sectors across multiple states. The financial company holds a top retail deposit share in three of the country’s major metropolitan areas of Cleveland, Pittsburgh, and Baltimore. First National Bank offers consumers a variety of electronic and mobile banking options, including the ability for customers to enroll the company’s credit and debit cards in the Apple Pay mobile banking service, which is offered in partnership with Apple. People who want to use First National Bank’s online banking services do so by accessing the FNB website and enrolling via the Internet. Prior to entering their name and account information to activate online banking, consumers are presented with FNB’s Online Banking Services Agreement. Consumers are directed to “read this disclosure and click on your response at the bottom of the page to continue enrollment.” In the citation, the FCC alerted First National Bank that the agreement was in violation of rules created by the TCPA to protect people from unwanted calls.
First National’s Legal Violations
The FCC’s citation warned First National Bank that it violated the law by infringing consumers’ rights to be free from unauthorized marketing calls. Specifically, First National Bank violated the provisions of the amended Communications Act of 1934, Federal Communications Commission regulations, and the FCC’s rules. The FCC said that the rules which specifically regulate marketing and advertising calls that use autodialers or artificial or prerecorded messages to residential and wireless phones were violated by the company. The FCC threatened First National Bank that if it does not change its agreement and practices to comply with the rules mentioned, as well as the TCPA, the company may be liable for significant penalties. The practices at the heart of the lawsuit violate consumer privacy laws and have become a very common problem in the last few years, with FCC actions being taken against companies like Microsoft and Paypal. For more on investigations involving violations by these companies, click here.
Class Action Investigation
First National Bank has been charged with violations of consumer privacy laws. The FCC has said that the company’s practices and online banking services agreement have and may still be breaking these rules. If you or anyone you know has signed up with First National Bank online, you may be part of this class action. It is a federal offense to force people to consent to robocalls. Please contact us using the form on this page or call The Class Action News at 424-245-5505.
