Disparate Impact

The article “Disparate Impact in Lending” in the March-April 2013 ABA Bank Compliance issue stated that a bank could face disparate impact if it charges a fee for paper statements and not e-statements because it could have an adverse effect on low-income folks who don't have a computer.

Has a bank been cited for disparate impact because of this?

The statements would have to be related to a loan account and how many low-income folks have lines of credit? I have never heard of this and I think it may have been part of the active imagination of the author. Plus, I have never seen a bank impose a charge (which would be a finance charge) on an open-end credit for the delivery of paper statements to begin with.

Thanks - the article states "it's worth noting that disparate impact investigations seem to be going beyond lending practices to other aspects of banking or "fair banking.""

--- but I do not recall hearing of any investigations on paper versus e-statements in regards to disparate impact.

disparate impact investigations seem to be going beyond lending practices to other aspects of banking or "fair banking."

If this is true, I would be curious as what they plan to use to prosecute such cases - The Civil Rights Act??? Because, I can't imagine any bank in their right mind rolling over on such a claim without testing it in a court of law, as it would set a precedent for a landslide of civil cases on everything from the offering of deposit products, to the sale of monetary instruments to customers only (as the unbanked might be low-income).

Besides, if they really used the term low-income in the article, it really is not very well written. Last I checked, income level was not a protected basis found in Regulation B for the FHA.