Credit Union Loan Account Balances Rising; Fewer Members Making Payments Above Monthly Minimums

CHICAGO, June 01, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The newly released Q2 Credit Union Market Perspectives Report from TransUnion (NYSE: TRU) shows that stubbornly-high inflation continues to put pressure on the monthly budgets of consumers, credit union members among them. This has led to increasing reliance on credit cards and personal loans as borrowers seek ways to make ends meet.

Auto loan delinquencies for young Americans at highest level since 2009

More young Americans are late paying their car loans – approaching levels not seen since the Great Recession, according to a report from the New York Fed.

House Education Subcommittee Examines Federal Student Loan Policies

The hearing was held as part of ongoing student loan discussions in D.C. and as the industry awaits a U.S. Supreme Court decision on two cases on student loan forgiveness.

Colorado Approves DIDMCA Opt-Out, Raising Concerns for Consumer Credit Access

Earlier this month, the Colorado legislature voted to approve HB23-1229, which would opt the State out of Section 521 of the Depository Institutions Deregulation and Monetary Control Act of 1980 (“DIDMCA”), a federal law enacted to create competitive equality between state-chartered banks and national banks.

Sen. Cramer Cosponsors Bill to Claw Back Failed Bank Executive Pay

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Kevin Cramer (R-ND) joined Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) in introducing the Failed Bank Executives Clawback Act, bipartisan legislation requiring federal regulators to claw back up to three years of compensation given to bank executives, board members, controlling shareholders, and other key decision-makers in the event of a failure or resolution.

Agencies Request Comment on Quality Control Standards for Automated Valuation Models Proposed Rule

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Six federal regulatory agencies today requested public comment on a proposed rule designed to ensure the credibility and integrity of models used in real estate valuations

Dollar Bank Files Notice of Data Breach Impacting Standard Bank Customers

On May 31, 2023, Dollar Bank filed a notice of data breach with the Attorney General of Maine after learning that an unauthorized party was able to access confidential information belonging to Standard Bank customers before the two banks merged.

CFPB Finds that Billions of Dollars Stored on Popular Payment Apps May Lack Federal Insurance

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) published an issue spotlight on digital payment apps heavily used by consumers and businesses. The analysis finds that funds stored on these apps may not be safe in the event of financial distress, since the funds may not be held in accounts with federal deposit insurance coverage. The CFPB also issued a consumer advisory for customers holding funds in these apps and how they can make sure their funds remain safe.

Analysis of Deposit Insurance Coverage on Funds Stored Through Payment Apps

In recent years, transaction volumes on payment apps have substantially increased. For example, total person-to-person (P2P) payment dollar volume quadrupled between 2018 and 2022.¹ Importantly, many U.S. consumers and businesses are not simply using these services to transfer funds.

WEBRECON APRIL 2023 STATS: EVERYTHING DOWN AGAIN

Quick analysis: In April, everything was down again (mostly by double digits) after a short March rebound. How far down? FDCPA was down -16.2% for the month and -18.3% YTD. FCRA was down -10.1% for the month and -30.2% YTD. And TCPA was down -16.9% for the month, but was the only one still up a bit YTD – +2.5% over April 2022. CFPB complaints were also down, -16.2% for the month and -18.3% YTD.

Justice Department Secures Over $3 Million Redlining Settlement Involving ESSA Bank & Trust in Philadelphia

The Justice Department announced today that ESSA Bank & Trust (ESSA) has agreed to pay over $3 million to resolve allegations that it engaged in a pattern or practice of lending discrimination by redlining majority-Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in and around Philadelphia.

CFPB Targets Specialty Financial Products Used to Pay for Medical Care

Earlier this month, the CFPB published a report on specialty financial products, such as medical credit cards and installment loans, which are sold to patients as a way to address the growing costs of medical care.

Florida Legislature Rolls Back Mini-TCPA While Florida Courts Make TCPA Claims Harder to File

May was a difficult month for plaintiffs and potential plaintiffs with alleged Telephone Consumer Privacy Act and Florida Telephone Solicitation Act (“FTSA,” aka Florida’s “Mini-TCPA”) claims in Florida.

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.

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.”

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