BofA hit with millions of dollars in penalties for double charging on overdraft fees

July 11 (UPI) -- After more than $200 million in penalties last year, the U.S. government on Tuesday imposed penalties on Bank of America for imposing excessive fees and withholding credit card bonuses.

The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ordered BofA to pay more than $100 million to its customers for "double-dipping" on overdraft fees. The bank has a $35 charge for a transaction declined due to non-sufficient funds and investigators found the bank imposed those fees repeatedly for the same transaction.

Elsewhere, the institution was penalized for withholding bonuses that were "explicitly promised" to its credit card customers and for using personal information to open accounts without customer consent or knowledge.

"These practices are illegal and undermine customer trust," said CFPB Director Rohit Chopra. "The CFPB will be putting an end to these practices across the banking system."

BofA had no public comment on the charges. The company last year faced a combined $235 million in fines and penalties to financial regulators, in part for not properly dispersing state unemployment support during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The charges follow a series of executive actions from President Joe Biden that are designed to rein in surprise fees and other charges. His administration on Friday ticked off the different industries that his administration has cracked down for junk fees: banking, hotels, concerts, tickets, airlines, cable and the Internet.

Biden is also calling for new limits on bank fees for bounced checks and account overdrafts, which would save consumers more than $5 billion a year.