CFPB Enforcement

Subscribe to CFPB Enforcement

A federal District Judge for the Northern District of Georgia, Victoria Marie Calvert, awarded a default judgment to the CFPB against USASF, a car loan servicer of loans originated by U.S. Auto Sales Inc., a buy-here, pay-here dealership. The claim was based on alleged violations of myriad consumer protection rules.

However, Judge Calvert did not accept the estimates of damages the alleged violations caused, saying they were flawed because a CFPB data scientist used figures suggested by bureau attorneys. … Continue Reading

The CFPB earlier this month filed suit against Horizon Card Services and its CEO and sole shareholder Robert Kane for allegedly tricking subprime consumers into signing up for a high-fee credit card that only allowed them to purchase goods from the company’s overpriced online store.  

The outlet that consumers were required to use had a limited selection of overpriced or off-brand goods.… Continue Reading

On August 7, 2024, the CFPB published an Issue Spotlight on the solar lending industry. In conjunction with the CFPB’s Issue Spotlight, the CFPB, U.S. Department of Treasury, and the Federal Trade Commission also issued a Consumer Advisory in connection with solar energy sales. All of this comes on the heels of states increasing scrutiny of solar sales practices.… Continue Reading

We recently reported that on August 15, 2024 Solo Funding, Inc. (“Solo”) filed a motion to dismiss in its entirety an enforcement complaint brought by the CFPB against Solo (a company that facilitates peer-to-peer small dollar lending) in Federal District Court for the Central District of California (Los Angeles). The motion to dismiss was predicated in part on Solo’s argument that since September, 2022, the CFPB has been unlawfully funded by the Federal Reserve Board because the Federal Reserve System incurred losses starting then.… Continue Reading

The Introduction to the Complaint which was filed by the CFPB on May 17, 2024 against Solo Funding, Inc. in the United States District Court for the Central District of California – Western Division Los Angeles (Judge R. Gary Klausner) describes the CFPB’s claims as follows:

INTRODUCTION

  1. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“Bureau”) brings this action under §§ 1031, 1036(a), 1054, and 1055 of the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 (CFPA), 12 U.S.C.
… Continue Reading

On July 30, 2024, Heights Finance Holding Co. f/k/a Southern Management Corporation and a group of its wholly-owned, state-licensed subsidiaries (collectively, “Southern”) filed a motion for judgment on the pleadings (the “JOP Motion”) in the lawsuit filed by the CFPB against Southern in South Carolina federal district court. That lawsuit alleges that Southern violated the Consumer Financial Protection Act’s (“CFPA’s) prohibition on UDAAPs by “churning payment-stressed borrowers in fee-laden refinances.”… Continue Reading

CFPB Director Rohit Chopra on Thursday defended his agency’s proposed rule to prohibit the listing of medical debt on credit reports, contending that such debts are not a fair indication of a person’s financial health.

“We’ve done extensive research on whether medical bills on credit reports are predictive of whether a consumer repays their other loans,” Chopra said on Reddit, where he took questions about the proposed rule.… Continue Reading

FirstCash, a national pawnshop chain, is asking a federal judge to confirm that it has a statutory defense to all of the CFPB’s claims that it violated the Military Lending Act (MLA) while also asking the judge to drop three of the CFPB’s MLA claims for lack of jurisdiction—contending that the bureau has conceded that it does not have the authority to enforce those claims..… Continue Reading

The CFPB warned on July 24, 2024,  that confidentiality agreements that employees of a company are required to sign likely violate federal law if those agreements imply that employees could face retaliation from their employer or co-workers if they report what they perceive as unlawful behavior or wrongdoing at the company.… Continue Reading

As we recently reported, the CFPB issued its final rule, titled the Registry of Nonbank Covered Persons Subject to Certain Agency and Court Orders Final Rule on June 3, 2024. The CFPB touts the registry as something that will help detect and deter repeat offenders of consumer financial protection laws, even though the registration requirements apply to an entity subject to a single consent order and in full compliance with the order.… Continue Reading