A remittance provider has been ordered to refund fees and pay a penalty after allegedly failing to provide refunds on thousands of transactions, the consumer financial protection agency said Thursday.
The order against Servicio UniTeller, an international remittance company, was for multiple violations of requirements governing electronic money transfers, including failing to refund customers after the company made money transfer errors, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) said in a release.
The agency said it found that the company, based in Rochelle Park, N.J., failed to comply with many Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA) requirements, including failing to provide accurate disclosures to senders.
The agency order requires Servicio UniTeller to bring its business practices into compliance with the law, to reimburse harmed consumers, and to pay a $700,000 penalty.
According to a bureau release, the bureau found that between 2013 and 2021, the firm failed to comply with EFTA requirements under the bureau’s Remittance Transfer Rule (part of of Regulation E) related to error resolution, customer disclosures, policy and procedure, and document retention. The CFPB also found that in thousands of instances, Servicio UniTeller failed to timely refund certain fees to senders.
The agency said it was ordering several actions against the firm, including:
- Refund approximately $30,000 to harmed consumers who did not receive remittance fee refunds.
- Update its disclosure and key transfer information that is provided to customers as well as update its error-resolution policies and procedures.
- Pay a civil money penalty to CFPB of $700,000, which will be deposited in the CFPB’s victims relief fund.
CFPB Orders Servicio UniTeller to Refund Fees and Pay Penalty for Failing to Follow Remittance Rules