CFPB Orders Installment Lender OneMain to Pay $20 Million for Deceptive Sales Practices

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has ordered installment lender OneMain Financial to pay $20 million in redress and penalties for failing to refund interest charged to 25,000 customers who cancelled purchases within a purported “full refund period,” and for deceiving borrowers about needing to purchase add-on products to receive a loan. OneMain will pay $10 million in refunds to consumers it harmed, and an additional $10 million penalty to the CFPB’s victims relief fund.

Medical Billing and Collections Among Older Americans

Older adults, most of whom have health insurance coverage, are among the millions of Americans who experience problems with reporting and collection of inaccurate medical bills. This spotlight describes how medical billing practices can lead to inaccurate bills and attempts to collect amounts that are not owed from people 65 and older.¹ It also describes the impact of inaccurate medical bills, including coercive credit reporting on older adults.

CFPB to Host Webinar on Financial Caregiving

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is hosting a webinar Thursday, June 1, to discuss long-term services and support, including nursing home debt collection and financial caregiving.

Office of the Attor­ney Gen­er­al Issues Con­sumer Alert Warn­ing Tex­ans of Com­pa­nies that May Appear to Be Gov­ern­ment Agencies

The Office of the Attorney General (“OAG”) issues this consumer alert to help ensure that Texans are not deceived by companies appearing as though they may be government agencies.  

From the Web: Debt Limit Bill Would End Student Loan Pause

The U.S. Department of Education has had the end of the student loan pause on its calendar, and Education Secretary Miguel Cardona confirmed it will happen this summer at a Senate Appropriations Committee hearing earlier this month, ACA International previously reported.

Pennsylvania reaches $11 million settlement with rent-to-own company

On May 15, the Pennsylvania attorney general announced a $11.4 million settlement with a rent-to-own lender and its subsidiaries accused of engaging in predatory practices targeting low-income borrowers and employing deceptive collection practices.

CFPB Sends Approximately $22 Million in Refund Checks to Victims of Credit Card Debt Relief Scams

On May 5, 2023, the CFPB announced it would be sending $22.3 million in refund checks to consumers who lost money in credit card relief schemes. The CFPB sent 6,523 refund checks to damaged consumers.

Former Wells Fargo Senior Executive Carrie Tolstedt Agrees to Settle SEC Fraud Charges for Misleading Investors About Abusive Sales Practices to Inflate a Key Performance Metric

Washington D.C., May 30, 2023 —

The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced its settlement with the former head of Wells Fargo & Co.’s Community Bank, Carrie L. Tolstedt, in which she has agreed to pay a $3 million penalty stemming from charges brought in 2020 for her role in allegedly misleading investors about the success of the Community Bank, Wells Fargo’s core business.

Bankers’ Associations File Challenge to CFPB Small Business Data Collection Rule

Within a little less than four weeks after the publication on March 30, by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) of its nearly 900-page final rule related to small business data collection (the Final Rule) mandated by Section 1071 of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (the Dodd-Frank Act), the Texas Bankers Association and Rio Bank filed suit in federal court in Texas against the CFPB and the agency's director.

“Zombie” Foreclosures Rising But Still Small Presence Around Most Of U.S.

The number of vacant homes in foreclosure is up for the fifth consecutive quarter, according to property data provider ATTOM’s second-quarter Vacant Property and Zombie Foreclosure Report.

Overall US Mortgage Delinquency Rate Drops to All-Time Low in March, CoreLogic Reports

IRVINE, Calif., May 25, 2023--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CoreLogic®, a leading global property information, analytics and data-enabled solutions provider, today released its monthly Loan Performance Insights Report for March 2023.

Strong US consumer spending, inflation readings put Fed in tough spot

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. consumer spending increased more than expected in April, boosting the economy's growth prospects for the second quarter, and inflation picked up, which could prompt the Federal Reserve to raise interest rates again next month.

NYSDFS Fines Lender and Mortgage Servicer $4.25M for Cybersecurity Failures Including Vendor Management

May 25, 2023, New York’s Department of Financial Services (“DFS”) announced another enforcement action under the state’s Cybersecurity Requirements for Financial Services Companies, 23 N.Y.C.R.R. Part 500 (“Reg 500”). 

CFPB Begins to ‘Muscle Up’ AI Regulations

America’s consumer watchdog is among the many organizations beefing up its artificial intelligence (AI) safeguards. In an interview with The Associated Press on Friday (May 26), Consumer Finance Protection Bureau (CFPB) Director Rohit Chopra said his agency has “already started some work to continue to muscle up internally when it comes to bringing on board data scientists, technologists and others to make sure we can confront these challenges.”

New York City is withholding new deposits at five banks accused of inaction on discrimination

Following the first-ever public hearing held by the New York City Banking Commission yesterday (May 25), all three members voted to limit deposits at Capital One—the ninth-biggest bank in the US —and KeyBank. The authorities alleged the two banks not only “failed to submit required plans demonstrating their efforts to root out discrimination,” but also “outright refused to submit required policies,” according to their press release.

Florida Legislature Passes Privacy Law

On May 4, the Florida House passed an amended version of SB 262, a bill establishing the Florida Digital Bill of Rights. The bill now moves to Governor Ron DeSantis’s desk for signature. If enacted, SB 262 would be an important development for certain companies that meet the law’s narrow definition of a “controller” but overall has a narrower scope than the “comprehensive” privacy laws that have passed in other states this year (Iowa, Indiana, Montana, and Tennessee).

Credit Unions Bracing For Delinquency Surge

Over the past year, credit unions in the United States have experienced considerable growth, even in the face of macroeconomic challenges. Credit unions are not-for-profit, member-owned financial cooperatives that aim to provide their members with affordable, high-quality financial services. With their focus on people, not profits, and their commitment to community development, according to NCUA, the credit union system’s net worth increased by $21.4 billion, or 10.1 percent, during 2022 to $232.9 billion. The aggregate net worth ratio — net worth as a percentage of assets — stood at 10.74 percent in the fourth quarter of 2022, up from 10.26 percent in 2021.

Board Approves Proposed Rule Adding “Veterans Organizations” to the Definition of a Qualified Charity

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (May 25, 2023) – The National Credit Union Administration Board held its fifth open meeting of 2023 and approved a proposed rule that would amend the charitable donation accounts section of the NCUA’s incidental powers regulation. In addition, the NCUA’s Chief Financial Officer briefed the Board on the performance of the National Credit Union Share Insurance Fund during the first quarter of 2023.

California Credit Union Earns CDFI Certification

GLENDALE, Calif., May 24, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- California Credit Union announced today that it has been certified as a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) by the U.S. Treasury Department's CDFI Fund. The CDFI certification is available only to organizations that have proven they provide financial services and products in communities that have historically lacked access to traditional banking services.

What is the NCUA, and how does it work?

The National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) is a federal agency that oversees credit unions and insures the money people deposit in credit union accounts. In that way, it plays a very similar role to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the agency that insures bank deposits.

Regulatory Recap: CFPB Opposes Stay of CashCall Loan Case Until Supreme Court Issues Decision on Bureau’s Funding Structure

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Rohit Chopra is expected to testify on the bureau’s semiannual report to Congress in the coming weeks. ACA International will provide updates on the director’s testimony, in the meantime, here are a few of the bureau’s actions you should know about this week.

Mortgage demand drops again as rates cross back over 7%

The average rate on the popular 30-year fixed mortgage crossed over 7% on Tuesday, according to Mortgage News Daily. That is the highest level since early March. Rates have been rising on a combination of concerns among investors. First, uncertainty over what the Federal Reserve will do with interest rates, given a still strong economy; second, the battle over raising the debt ceiling and the possibility of a U.S. default.

Mortgage data shows that borrowers could save $100 a month (or more) by choosing cheaper lenders

In this blog we take a look at how mortgage rates paid by consumers vary across lenders. This phenomenon, called price dispersion, exists in virtually every segment of the mortgage market, including loans backed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, Federal Housing Administration loans, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (Veterans Affairs) loans, as well as jumbo loans.

US debt collector breach exposed 1M+ people

NCB has started sending breach notification letters to affected users about a data breach that exposed nearly 1.1 million people. The US company claims that attackers penetrated its systems on February 1st. It took NCB three days to notice that the company’s systems were breached.

PenFed Credit Union Dedicates Concourse C Connector at Washington Dulles International Airport to Fallen Military Heroes for Memorial Day Weekend

TYSONS, Va., May 26, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- PenFed Credit Union, the nation's second largest federal credit union, will dedicate the PenFed Tunnel in the Concourse C Connector at Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) to our nation's military heroes who made the ultimate sacrifice during Memorial Day weekend. 

Biden nominates telecom attorney Anna Gomez to FCC after more than two years of deadlock

President Joe Biden nominated telecom attorney Anna Gomez to the Federal Communications Commission, his second attempt to fill an empty seat on the typically five-member panel that has left the agency in a 2-2 deadlock for his entire presidency thus far.

Sentara Healthcare Patient Data Leaked as a Result of a Data Breach at Credit Control Corporation

On May 13, 2023, Sentara Healthcare posted a “Data Incident Notice” on its website after learning that a data breach at R&B Corporation of Virginia, which does business under the name Credit Control Corporation, compromised confidential information belonging to Sentara patients. Based on an official filing from Credit Control Corporation (“CCC”), the incident resulted in an unauthorized party gaining access to patients’ names, addresses, Social Security numbers, account numbers, account balances, and dates of service.

RMAi 2023 Executive Summit

RMAi

Debt Connection Symposium & Expo 2023 – DCS2023

Debt Connection Symposium & Expo has returned for 2023! We are headed back to Las Vegas, September 27th - 29th to network and connect with clients, service providers, product suppliers, agencies, and attorneys - at a whole new level.

CA Credit Union Collectors Council – 36th Annual Conference

CCUCC