CFPB v. Global Tel Link Corporation

Global Tel Link Corporation allegedly engaged in unfair acts or practices in violation of the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) by blocking consumers’ accounts when a money transfer was charged-back, which prevented friends and family consumers from sending, and incarcerated consumers from receiving, funds via debit card or credit card transfer, according to CFPB. To get an account unblocked, friends and family consumers had to pay the amount of the chargeback plus, in some circumstances, a fee, even though they had not filed the chargeback. Global Tel Link Corporation allegedly engaged in unfair acts or practices in violation of the CFPA when they failed to disclose to consumers complete fee schedules for money transfers, depriving consumers of information that would allow them to understand how the payment channel, payment method, or amount they deposit may impact the fee they are charged for the money-transfer transaction, according to CFPB. Global Tel Link and Telmate allegedly engaged in abusive acts or practices in violation of the CFPA by, between 2019 and 2023, emptying and then retaining the funds from consumers’ Unified Accounts after a period of inactivity, without sufficiently notifying them, according to CFPB.

Summary generated from official Consumer Financial Protection Bureau press release