Think you're eligible for part of the Navy Federal Credit Union $23 million settlement affecting hundreds of thousands of customers? If you are, you should be hearing from NFCU soon. 

"Consumers should know that Navy Federal Credit Union will contact you if you are eligible for compensation under the consent order," said Moira Vahey, a spokeswoman for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the federal agency that investigated the credit union's allegedly deceptive debt-collection practices. 

Some consumers have contacted Military Times with questions about who to contact for information about whether they might qualify for compensation. If you believe you've been overlooked, you can contact the credit union at 888-842-6328, NFCU spokesman Brian Parker said, or file a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau at www.consumerfinance.gov/complaint, according to Vahey.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau alleged that the credit union misled its members about its debt collection practices and also unfairly froze customers out of their own accounts without adequate warning, affecting hundreds of thousands of people. In addition to the $23 million in compensation to consumers, the credit union must correct its collection practices and pay $5.5 million to the CFPB civil penalty fund.

Navy Federal officials agreed to the settlement without admitting or denying the allegations, according to the consent order. Officials said earlier in a statement that "where our collection practices have come up short in the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's estimation, we have made all the necessary changes. We have cooperated with the CFPB throughout the process."

Karen Jowers covers military families, quality of life and consumer issues for Military Times. She can be reached at

kjowers@militarytimes.com

.

Karen has covered military families, quality of life and consumer issues for Military Times for more than 30 years, and is co-author of a chapter on media coverage of military families in the book "A Battle Plan for Supporting Military Families." She previously worked for newspapers in Guam, Norfolk, Jacksonville, Fla., and Athens, Ga.

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