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Attorney General Rob McKenna and Scott Jarvis, director of the Department of Financial Institutions (DFI), announced that more than 12,000 Washington residents are eligible for an estimated $9.1 million in restitution from Ameriquest Mortgage Company and its related companies. The money comes from last year’s $325 million national settlement, in which states alleged widespread fraud by Ameriquest as part of a high-pressure scheme to sell mortgages that trapped consumers into debt and put them at risk of losing their homes.
Letters and claim forms were sent to eligible Washington consumers recently. To receive restitution, consumers must mail a completed, signed form to the settlement administrator by Sept. 10.
“Most of the Washington families who were harmed by Ameriquest’s unfair and deceptive lending practices will receive restitution,” McKenna said. “And many will receive larger payments than borrowers in other states.”
“Washington received more money for legal costs than most states because of our leadership role in the investigation and settlement negotiations,” McKenna explained. “The Attorney General’s Office and DFI agreed to add $1.85 million of the $2.5 million we received for investigative and attorneys’ costs into the restitution pool. With interest, that brought the total amount available to consumers to $9.1 million.”
Under the settlement, more than 481,000 borrowers nationwide who were customers of Ameriquest Mortgage Company, Town and Country Credit Corporation, and AMC Mortgage Services, Inc. (formerly known as Bedford Home Loans) between Jan. 1, 1999, and Dec. 31, 2005, are eligible to receive restitution.
Washington consumers who participate in the settlement will receive payments as little as $100 to as much as $4,400, depending on when they applied for a loan and individual circumstances. |
