The CFPB has released this report about debt collection complaints made by older consumers (those identifying themselves as 62 or older). The report reveals that older consumers suffer similar collection problems to consumers generally. Nearly 50% of complaints are about the collection of debts that older consumers do not owe, and in nearly 30% of… Read More »CFPB Report: Older Consumers Face Debt Collection Problems
The CFPB’s Fall 2014 supervisory highlights, covering supervisory activity between March and June, points to failings by student loan servicers and debt collectors. The highlights identified six failings by student loan servicers, including misleading statements to consumers and telephone harassment. Debt collectors’ misconduct included charging illegal convenience fees to consumers paying by credit card, false threats of litigation and improper disclosure to third parties.
Read More »CFPB Supervision Reports Highlights Failings by Student Loan Servicers and CollectorsThe CFPB’s Student Loan Ombudsman has issued a report on consumer complaints about student loans. Of particular interest is situation of private student loan borrowers, whose loans were securitized (bolding added by me for emphasis): While securitization is often closely associated with the mortgage market, securitization activity in the student loan market has also been… Read More »CFPB’s Student Loan Ombudsman Report Reveals Private Student Loan Securitization Problems
The Department of Defense is proposing to expand the reach of the Military Lending Act’s interest rate cap. The Act caps the interest rate on some kinds of loans to servicemembers at 36%. At present the Act’s cap applies to relatively few loans.
Read More »Military Lending Act Amendment ProposedThe CFPB started collecting consumer complaints regarding debt collection in July, 2013. Fourteen months later, the data for Maryland paint an interesting picture of the collection industry’s activities in the state.
Read More »CFPB Consumer Complaints Database: A Portrait Of Collection Misconduct In Maryland
CFPB has fined U.S. Bank over its sale of two identity & credit protection add-on products they offered credit card customers. “Privacy Guard” and “Identity Secure” were paid services sold to credit card customers between 2003 and 2012. Sold as add-ons for credit protection, CFPB found that some customers didn’t get the protections they were… Read More »U.S. Bank Fined Over Identity & Credit Protection Add-Ons
On September 16, 2014, The CFPB announced that it would sue Corinthian Colleges, which runs over 100 school campuses for falsely advertising of job prospects and illegal debt collection practices. CFPB has issued this notice to past and current students. The CFPB’s complaint is here.
Read More »The CFPB’s Action Against Corinthian Colleges, Inc.In July the CFPB sued Frederick J. Hanna & Associates, a Georgia law firm, for its debt collection practices (complaint here), calling the firm a “lawsuit mill.” Hanna & Associates filed a Motion to Dismiss (copy hosted by CFPB monitor) in September, and the CFPB’s response (copy hosted by Consumer Financial Services blog) elegantly explains what Hanna was doing wrong:
Read More »CFPB Enforcement Division Responds to Motion to Dismiss Filed by “Lawsuit Mill” Frederick J. Hanna & AssociatesSeptember 28, 2014
USA Discounters, a business that targets service members, has been fined $400,000 by the CFPB for misleading its customers. The CFPB’s action comes less than two months after a joint Washington Post/ Pro Publica report detailed USA Discounters’ collection practices.
Read More »CFPB Fines USA DiscountersSeptember 27, 2014 We’ve all seen promotions for credit cards offering special introductory rates and interest free periods. But when exactly do these promotions expire? The CFPB thinks that credit card offers don’t always make that clear, and has issued a bulletin stating that “[c]redit card offers that lure in consumers and then hit them… Read More »CFPB Warns About Deceptive Credit Card Promotions
