A US regulator has announced a settlement with Goldman Sachs and Apple that will send almost $20 million to Apple customers.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) says Goldman Sachs and Apple “illegally mishandled transaction disputes” from Apple Card users – accusing Apple of failing to forward a significant number of reported issues to the Wall Street banking giant.
According to the CFPB, Goldman also failed to comply with federal dispute investigation requirements when receiving complaints from Apple customers.
“These failures caused consumers to wait a long time to get refunds for disputed charges, and some had incorrect negative information added to their credit reports.”
Additionally, the CFPB says Goldman Sachs and Apple misled consumers regarding interest-free payment plans for device purchases.
“Many customers thought they would automatically receive interest-free monthly payments when they purchased Apple devices with their Apple Card. Instead, interest was charged.
In some cases, Apple did not even show the interest-free payment option on its website in certain browsers. Goldman Sachs also misled consumers about the application of some refunds, causing consumers to pay additional interest charges.”
Apple Card launched in August 2019 with Goldman Sachs as the issuing bank, Mastercard as the payment network and Apple as the developer.
The CFPB orders Goldman Sachs to pay at least $19.8 million in damages to affected customers and a civil penalty of $45 million. Apple will pay a civil penalty of $25 million.
The US government agency says it plans to “closely monitor” Goldman Sachs if the trillion-dollar lender initiates other credit card ventures to prevent a repeat of these violations.
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