(The Center Square) – Mariner Finance has been sued by 11 attorneys general, including North Carolina’s Josh Stein, amid accusations of unlawful business practices.
The lawsuit was first filed in 2022 and amended earlier this week in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. Mariner had sought earlier this year to have all claims dismissed.
The term often used in description is predatory lending. In most cases, it involves aggressive tactics and unfair loan terms like high-interest rates and fees. Not all are obvious at time of signing by borrowers.
The prosecutors say Mariner, headquartered in Baltimore with 55 locations in seven states, charged customers for “hidden add-on products that they either didn’t know about or didn’t agree to buy,” a release says. The lawsuit says Mariner employees didn’t mention the add-ons or misrepresented them when talking to consumers.
Mariner is accused of illegal sales tactics with new borrowers, including same-day check-in-hand lending. It uses the unsolicited “live checks” mailings to draw in new customers, prosecutors say.
In 2019, Mariner charged consumers $121.7 million nationwide in premiums and fees for add-on products.
“We will not tolerate predatory lenders charging hidden fees to take advantage of North Carolinians,” Stein said.
Mariner has 39 locations in North Carolina. It is owned by a Wall Street private equity fund managed by Warburg Pincus.
In prosecutors’ request for relief, Mariner is being asked to stop charging consumers for add-on products, and to cease other harmful practices.
Additionally, Mariner is asked to make full restitution to borrowers; repay unlawfully gained profits; be assessed civil penalties; and rescind or reform all contracts or loan agreements with consumers affected by the company’s unlawful practices.
Michelle Henry, of Pennsylvania, leads the list of attorneys general that in the first filing included the District of Columbia, New Jersey, Oregon, Utah and Washington. The amended complaint now includes Illinois, Indiana, New York, North Carolina, Tennessee and Wisconsin.
For Stein, it’s the second time in about six weeks he’s taken action against a business he believes is hurting North Carolinians. The gubernatorial candidate filed suit against Auto Money North, which has stores in South Carolina and customers in both states.
In that case, one example cited was a loan of $18,186 that with added interest and additional charges required repayment of $98,339.75.
