AAFCU GAP SETTLEMENT

District Court for Denver County, Colorado
Case No. 2020CV32226

IF YOU RECEIVED A POSTCARD NOTICE ABOUT THIS SETTLEMENT
YOU HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED AS A CLASS MEMBER

• A proposed Settlement has been reached in a class action lawsuit that may affect your rights.

• The Settlement resolves a class action lawsuit against Air Academy Federal Credit Union (“AAFCU”).  The lawsuit alleges that AAFCU failed to provide customers with a partial refund of the fees paid for Guaranteed Asset Protection (“GAP”) after customers paid off their Finance Agreements early. Plaintiff contends that AAFCU was required to automatically issue the refund after the early payoff under Colorado law and owes interest on any refunds that were not timely issued.  AAFCU denies any wrongdoing.

• You are a member of the Class if (1) you entered into a Finance Agreement with GAP protection that was governed by Colorado law and that was made with or assigned to AAFCU; (2) you paid off your Finance Agreement before the maturity date (an “Early Payoff”); (3) the Early Payoff occurred during the period July 1, 2014 to March 31, 2021; and (4) you did not receive a GAP Refund within 45 days after the Early Payoff. Excluded from the Class are any persons whose vehicles were repossessed by AAFCU due to the failure to pay the money owed to AAFCU under the Finance Agreement.

•You do not need to do anything to receive money under this Settlement. After the filing of the lawsuit, AAFCU paid you the full amount of your GAP refund, which you either received in the mail or was deposited into your account with AAFCU.  In total, the Class received approximately $1,149,422.78 in GAP refunds.

• AAFCU has also agreed to deposit $344,945.39 into a Settlement Fund to pay for: (a) the cost of providing notice and administration of this Settlement ($30,000); (b) a Service Award of $500 to Plaintiff Tim Mazza for serving as the Class Representative; and (c) an Award of Attorneys’ Fees and Costs in the amount of approximately $315,000 to reimburse Class Counsel for the time and expense incurred representing the Class, subject to final approval by the Court.

•In addition, AAFCU has also agreed to continue a Business Practice Change it made after the filing of the lawsuit that provides that from April 1, 2021 forward, AAFCU will ensure that GAP refunds are paid to customers within a reasonable time after an Early Payoff of the Finance Agreement in conformance with 4 Colo. Code Regs. § 902-1:8(h).

•You must decide whether to: (1) “Opt-Out;” (2) Object; or (3) Do Nothing.

THESE OPTIONS AND THE DEADLINES TO EXERCISE THEM ARE FURTHER DETAILED IN THE LONG FORM NOTICE.

YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS WILL BE AFFECTED WHETHER YOU ACT OR NOT. PLEASE READ THE ENTIRE NOTICE CAREFULLY.