On October 6, the New York State Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) announced a consent order with Rhinebeck Bank (Rhinebeck) to resolve allegations that, in violation of New York Executive Law Section 296-a, the bank instituted discretionary dealer markup policies that resulted in a disparate impact that negatively affected members of minority groups.
In addition
On October 20, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, seeking public comment on the harms stemming from what it characterizes as “junk fees,” i.e., fees that are allegedly unnecessary, unavoidable, or unexpected, and that inflate costs while adding little value. The term also encompasses “hidden fees,” which are fees
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) reached a $3.38 million settlement with Passport Automotive Group (Passport) and two of its officers over allegations that the automotive group violated the Equal Credit Opportunity Act and the FTC Act by adding “junk fees” onto the cost of its vehicles and discriminating against Black and Latino consumers by charging
On September 27, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 1311, the Military and Veteran Consumer Protection Act of 2022 (the Act), into law. The Act takes direct aim at, among other things, the Military Lending Act’s (MLA) exceptions for loans obtained to purchase motor vehicles and other forms of personal property. It goes
A recent federal court decision from the Northern District of Texas offers some useful lessons and insights for creditors relying on the Military Lending Act’s (MLA) safe harbors for verifying whether a consumer is a “covered borrower.”
In Greenwood v. Cottonwood Financial, Ltd., 2022 WL 3754706 (N.D. Tex. 2022) (see also court decision
On July 29, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a joint letter to auto finance companies, reminding them of the protections the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA) affords to servicemembers and their dependents during periods of military service. These protections include several related to auto lending and leasing, which
On September 19, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released a blog post, exploring the potential relationship between rising car prices and changes in auto loan performance. The CFPB found that the rate of delinquency, especially for low-income borrowers, has risen over the past year. For example, auto loans for consumers with deep subprime
As we previously posted on June 23, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC or Commission) released a proposed Motor Vehicle Dealers Trade Regulation Rule. This new rule could allow the FTC to regulate dealers exempt from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) jurisdiction under Section 1029(a) of the Dodd-Frank Act and would impose significant limits on
The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection (CFPB) ordered Hyundai Capital America (Hyundai) to pay $19.2 million for allegedly providing inaccurate information to consumer reporting agencies, including, the CFPB alleged, wrongly reporting that consumers were delinquent on loans and leases, in violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).
In its press release, the CFPB
On July 18, a New Jersey district court ruled that a customer’s contract termination with a merchant does not also terminate the “established business relationship” (EBR) exception for purposes of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA). The decision sheds light on an exception to the TCPA that likely will take on increasing importance, following the