Saccoccio v. JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A.

297 F.R.D. 683, 2014 WL 808653, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26002
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. Florida
DecidedFebruary 28, 2014
DocketNo. 13-21107-CIV
StatusPublished
Cited by24 cases

This text of 297 F.R.D. 683 (Saccoccio v. JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. Florida primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Saccoccio v. JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A., 297 F.R.D. 683, 2014 WL 808653, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26002 (S.D. Fla. 2014).

Opinion

ORDER GRANTING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION FOR FINAL APPROVAL OF CLASS ACTION SETTLEMENT, APPLICATION FOR SERVICE AWARDS, AND CLASS COUNSEL’S APPLICATION FOR ATTORNEY’S FEES AND EXPENSES

FEDERICO A. MORENO, District Judge.

THIS CAUSE came before the Court upon Plaintiffs Motion for Final Approval of Class Action Settlement, Application for Service Awards, and Class Counsel’s Application for Attorney’s Fees and Expenses (D.E. No. 108), filed on January 27, 2014. This case stems from premiums arising out of Defendants’ lender-placed insurance arrangements. Previously, on October 4, 2013 the Court preliminarily approved the settlement and certified the class for the purpose of settlement. This Court held a final fairness hearing on February 14, 2014. As discussed more fully below, Plaintiffs Motion for Final Approval of Class Settlement is GRANTED. Class Counsel’s application for attorneys’ fees is GRANTED. Class Counsel’s Application for Service Award is GRANTED.

I. Background

A. Defendants’ Force-Placed Insurance Practices

This action concerns force-placed hazard insurance. Defendant Chase’s standard mortgage agreement required borrowers to maintain hazard and wind insurance on the property that secured their mortgages loans. The agreements provided that the lender or servicer of the loan may force insurance coverage on the property at the homeowner’s expense if there was a lapse in coverage. Under the mortgage, the lender may obtain coverage to protect itself against the risk of loss, and either advises the borrower that the cost of coverage may be significantly higher than the cost of voluntary coverage or provides that the lender may pay the necessary costs to protect itself from loss.

Plaintiff Saccoccio had hazard coverage force placed on his property by a Chase defendant. Plaintiff, on behalf of the class, questions not Chase’s right to place the insurance, but rather its practice of artificially inflating the cost of coverage in a scheme with Defendant Assurant and its subsidiaries. Plaintiff alleged that Chase purchased master insurance policies from Assurant and its subsidiaries to cover its entire mortgage portfolio. In exchange for this policy, Chase granted Assurant the exclusive right to force new coverage on borrowers’ properties in the event of lapse or the detection of insufficient coverage. In turn, Assurant provided with commissions or “kickbacks” on the policies and entered into exclusive reinsurance agreements with Chase. Assurant would monitor the loan portfolio, and, when a lapse was identified, one of its subsidiaries, American Security Insurance Company (“ASIC”), Standard Guaranty Insurance Company (“Standard Guaranty”) or Voyager Indemnity Insurance Company, (“Voyager”) would send notice to the borrower that the a new lender-placed policy will be placed on the property if the voluntary coverage is not continued. When the borrower did not correct the coverage lapse, the insurer would notify that borrower that the new coverage was being placed at the borrower’s expense. Plaintiff has alleged that the letters were inaccurate, as the force-placed insurance became effective immediately and automatically on the day of the lapse under Chase’s umbrella policy. Premiums for the new coverage were deducted from the borrower’s escrow account or added to the balance of the mortgage loan.

B. Procedural Background

Plaintiff Saccoccio filed suit in June 2012 challenging the Chase and Assurant defen[689]*689dants’ force-placed hazard insurance practices. The case was styled Barreto v. JP Morgan Chase Bank, N.A. No. 12-cv-22053-Moore (S.D.Fla.). In that action, Plaintiffs sought to centralize all force-placed insurance litigation pending nationwide in a multidistrict proceeding. The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, however, denied the motion. Thereafter, Plaintiffs filed Hall v. Bank of America N.A, 12-cv-22700-Moreno (S.D.Fla.). That case brought nationwide forced-placed insurance claims against five lenders and their respective forced-placed insurers. Those five lenders were (1) Bank of America, (2) JPMorgan Chase Bank, (3) Wells Fargo, (4) HSBC Bank USA, and (5) Citibank, N.A. The class-action complaint was filed on November 23, 2012. In March 2013, this Court ordered Plaintiffs to re-file in five separate pleadings so that there would be a separate action pending against each lender and its respective force-placed insurer.

This case was thus filed against the Chase and Assurant Defendants. The case was originally styled Herrick v. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A Plaintiffs alleged breach of contract, breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, unjust enrichment, breach of fiduciary duty, tortious interference with a business relationship, violations of the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, the Federal Bank Holding Company Act, and the Federal Truth in Lending Act.

Plaintiff Saccoccio’s claims arose out of force-placed hazard insurance on his property; the other named plaintiffs, including Plaintiff Herrick, made claims based upon force-placed wind insurance. This Court stayed and eventually severed all claims arising out of force-placed wind insurance claims after preliminary settlement was approved as to wind claims in a companion case, Pulley v. JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. 12-cv-60936 (S.D.Fla.) (Cohn, J.).

The parties began mediating the hazard insurance claims in May 2013. The parties participated in three in-person mediation sessions overseen by Rodney Max between May and July 2013. They also continued to exchange documents and negotiate outside of formal meeting sessions with the participation of the mediator. On July 12, 2013, Plaintiff Saccoecio announced the settlement with Defendants of all nationwide hazard claims.

II. The Settlement Agreement

The settlement agreement covers all borrowers nationwide who had a hazard insurance policy force-placed on residential property by Chase Defendants between January 1, 2008 and October 4, 2013, the preliminary approval date, who either paid the premium of the policy to Chase or were charged a premium and still owe at least some portion of the premium. The settlement class included approximately 762,390 people. The class will receive monetary relief on a “elaims-made” basis. Any class member who submits a valid claim form will recovery 12.5% of the net premium charged to the class member during the class period, less any refund credited to them, regardless of whether the class member paid the premium to Chase. Under the settlement agreement, class members can receive more than $300 million in monetary relief.

To provide notice to class members, the Settlement Administrator, Garden City Group, established a website in both English and Spanish and set up a 24/7 toll-free telephone number. Class members were also sent information on the settlement through the mail. Settlement Administrator Garden City Group obtained 1,468,929 class member records from Assurant, including names, current or last-known addresses, and policy numbers for all people meeting the class definition. The Settlement administrator mailed 1,454,658 notice packets to class members. It further remailed notice packets to any class member for whom it received a change of address form from the U.S. postal service. Finally, notice was published in the November 14, 2013 print edition of USA Today.

The settlement agreement also provides injunctive relief.

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Bluebook (online)
297 F.R.D. 683, 2014 WL 808653, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 26002, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/saccoccio-v-jp-morgan-chase-bank-na-flsd-2014.