$1M Equity Bank Settlement Ends Overdraft Fee Class Action Lawsuit

New to ClassAction.org? Read our Newswire Disclaimer

Equity Bank has agreed to a $1,000,000 settlement to resolve a class action lawsuit that alleged the bank improperly assessed certain overdraft fees on customer accounts.

Get class action lawsuit and class action settlement news sent to your inbox – sign up for ClassAction.org’s free weekly newsletter.

The $1 million Equity Bank class action settlement received preliminary court approval on March 20, 2026. The deal covers all current and former holders of an Equity Bank checking account who were charged one or more of the “challenged fees.” Specifically, the class action settlement covers:

• Individuals who, from January 1, 2017 to December 7, 2019 and from November 8, 2020 to September 1, 2024, were assessed overdraft fees by Equity Bank on a debit card transaction authorized when there was enough money in the account but later caused or posted to a negative balance (“Authorized Positive, Settled Negative or ASPN Fees”);
• Individuals who, from February 22, 2018 to December 31, 2023, were assessed overdraft or non-sufficient-funds fees by Equity Bank on the second or third presentment of what plaintiffs have alleged to be the same item that had previously been returned for insufficient funds (“Retry Fees”); and/or
• Individuals who, from February 2, 2017 to November 21, 2025, were assessed overdraft fees by Equity Bank on a day when the end-of-the-day balance was not overdrawn (“Sufficient Funds Fees”).

The court-approved website for the Equity Bank class action settlement can be found at MerrellFeesSettlement.com.

Equity Bank class members do not need to do anything to receive a pro rata cash payment, which will be based on the amount of fees they paid.

Class members will not receive more than the amount of the challenged fees they paid during the relevant class period.

Class members who are current Equity Bank accountholders at the time of settlement benefits distribution will receive their payment as an automatic account credit to the checking account that was assessed the challenged fees. If that account is inactive, the credit will be applied to any open checking or savings account at Equity Bank that is individually held by the class member.

If a class member does not have an active account at Equity Bank when payment is distributed, they will receive their cash payout via check, which will be sent to the same address to which the settlement notice was sent. For joint accounts, checks will be made payable to all members and will be mailed to the first member named on the account.

Furthermore, Equity Bank has agreed to forgive and charge off $225,000 in challenged fees that were charged but not collected.

Class members who wish to exclude themselves from the settlement and retain the right to litigate the same claims must send a written request to the settlement administrator stating their desire to be excluded and their name, address, telephone number, and signature.

All requests for exclusion from the Equity Bank settlement must be postmarked by June 7, 2026.

The court will determine whether to grant the Equity Bank settlement final approval following a hearing on June 29, 2026. Compensation will begin to be distributed to class members only after final approval has been granted and any appeals have been resolved.

The Equity Bank class action lawsuit alleged that the Kansas-based community bank improperly assessed excessive ASPN, retry, and insufficient funds fees on customer bank accounts.

 Check out ClassAction.org’s free legal resources to learn how to file a class action lawsuit.