Mississippi Attorney General Reaches Settlement with Auto Lender to Resolve Claims of Deceptive Practices

On July 21, 2021, the Mississippi Attorney General announced that it had reached a settlement with a national auto lender to resolve claims that the company placed borrowers into auto loans with a high probability of default.  The Attorney General also alleged that the auto lender engaged in aggressive collection practices in violation of state law.

The settlement agreement requires the company to pay $3.7 million to the state of Mississippi, including $1.8 million in consumer restitution.  The settlement also requires the company to changes its practices to account for a consumer’s ability to pay a loan and set a reasonable debt-to-income threshold to evaluate the borrower’s ability to repay the loan.