Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)

Subscribe to Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) via RSS

Section 612 of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) provides consumers with the opportunity for a free disclosure of their file, with certain exceptions, during any 12-month period.  For file disclosures for which the FCRA allows consumer reporting agencies to charge, the statute sets the price of these disclosures at $8, subject to a yearly…

On November 24, 2015, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a Compliance Bulletin (2015-06), warning companies that they must ensure that consumer authorization is obtained before automatically debiting a consumer’s account and that required notifications to consumers must clearly describe the terms of the preauthorized electronic funds transfers (EFTs).

Importantly, for the first…

On November 20, the CFPB once again released its latest rulemaking agenda update.  The previous update, issued last May, extended debt collection rulemaking pre-rule activities from April 2015 until December 2015.  This latest update extends debt collection pre-rule activities scheduled through February 2016. 

In extending the pre-rulemaking period, the CFPB stated as follows: 

The …

On November 18, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed an administrative action against online lender Integrity Advance, LLC, and its CEO, James R. Carnes, for deceiving consumers about the cost of short-term loans.  

According to a press release, the CFPB alleges that Integrity Advance violated the Truth in Lending Act and the …

According to the October debt collection litigation and complaint statistics report from WebRecon, consumer litigation in October under the FDCPA, TCPA, and FCRA marked the first time since September 2011 that an increase from both the prior month and year-to-date occurred.  “For the first time in several years, overall consumer litigation is up dramatically,”…

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s latest monthly report revealed that credit card complaints represent approximately 11% of total product complaints from consumers.  Late fees and credit report problems due to confusing payment processing schedules are the most frequent complaint topics for consumers.  Other problems identified by consumers include:

  • Billing issues related to surprise late fees

…

On November 3, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced that it has revised its appeals process and issued a new appeals policy.  The announcement was made in conjunction with the release of the CFPB’s Fall 2015 Supervisory Highlights.  According to the Bureau, the “revisions reflect experience gained in the appeals process so far, and…

On October 29, 2015, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) announced the settlement of an enforcement action against two affiliated consumer reporting agencies under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) based on these companies’ employment background screening practices.  The consent order requires these background screeners to pay a total of $13 million in penalties and …

On October 28, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau filed an administrative consent order against Security National Automotive Acceptance Company (“SNAAC”), an Ohio auto lender specializing in loans to service members, for engaging in illegal debt collection practices.  The order requires the company to refund or credit about $2.28 million to service members and other consumers…

On October 30, the American Bankers Association (“ABA”) filed a letter opposing the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s plan, under the Paperwork Reduction Act, to conduct a nationwide web-based survey of 8,000 individuals as part of the Bureau’s study of overdraft protection services.  The ABA urged the CFPB to re-submit its proposed plan with a draft…