Banking trade groups are challenging a request for information (RFI) issued by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) regarding customer service at large financial institutions. In a joint letter dated August 22, the Bank Policy Institute, Consumer Bankers Association, and the American Bankers Association objected to the CFPB’s insinuation that big banks are providing a
On August 4, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) Director Rohit Chopra spoke at the Philadelphia Federal Reserve Bank’s Sixth Annual Fintech Conference, arguing that enforcement actions rather than financial literacy efforts were necessary to prevent consumer abuse.
Chopra said that while there is value in educating consumers to spot risks and find
Please join Consumer Financial Services Partner Chris Willis and his guests and colleagues Stefanie Jackman and Sarah Reise as they discuss the intersection of fair lending with collections. They cover which types of third-party debt collection processes could be subject to a fair lending review, the difference between disparate treatment and disparate impact, how the CFPB may review collection-related decisions, what a basic fair lending analysis may look like for collectors, the processes likely to be targeted for a fair lending review, and what collectors can do now to update their compliance management system and assess their operations to identify and mitigate potential fair lending issues.
On July 15, the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) issued an invitation for comments on proposed additions to regulations implementing the Debt Collection Licensing Act (DCLA). According to the invitation, the new provisions pertain “to the scope, annual report, and document retention requirements of the DCLA.” For example, the proposed regulations define
“Convenience” fees charged to consumers for the use of certain debt payment options have come under increased scrutiny, as regulators have sought to limit charges and other back-end fees that may come as a surprise to consumers. Also known as “pay-to-pay” fees, such convenience charges are typically imposed by debt collectors and/or loan servicers where
On June 28, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce (Chamber) launched a focused campaign to highlight what it describes as unlawful regulatory overreach by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) and, specifically, new CFPB Director Rohit Chopra. “At every turn,” writes Chamber Executive Vice President and Chief Counsel Daryl Joseffer, the CFPB is pushing
When the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) unveiled its UDAAP exam manual at the end of March 2022, announcing that it had decided to interpret the word “unfair” in Dodd-Frank to prohibit discrimination, even where specific statutes like the Equal Credit Opportunity Act do not apply, we expressed skepticism about the viability of
On June 29, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB or Bureau) issued an advisory opinion focused on consumer debt collectors and the convenience fees they charge for some payments, such as online or by phone.
Convenience fees — common in many types of financial transactions — have recently been categorized as “junk fees” by the
Please join Troutman Pepper Partner Chris Willis and his guest and fellow Partner Stefanie Jackman as they discuss recent trends in Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) litigation, including how the landscape has changed since the Facebook decision, the increase in challenges to text and automated messaging, state law analogs and mini TCPA laws, and best practices for companies going forward.
In a keynote address at the Consumer Federation of America’s 2022 Consumer Assembly, CFPB Deputy Director Zixta Martinez squarely took aim at “rent-a-bank schemes” in some of the first (if not the first) such comments by a senior CFPB official. Historically, the CFPB has confined itself to “true lender” litigation against participants in high-rate