On January 5, 2016, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced that two online payday lenders reached a settlement with the FTC to resolve charges that payday lenders illegally charged consumers undisclosed and inflated fees. As part of the settlement, each company agreed to a penalty of $2.2 million and combined waived $68 million in uncollected consumer…
On December 16, 2015, the CFPB announced a consent order and settlement with a small-dollar lender concerning its debt collection practices in 15 states. According to the consent order, the lender’s unlawful conduct allegedly included: in-person collection visits at consumers’ homes and workplaces and phone calls to supervisors, landlords, and…
On November 18, 2015, the CFPB announced that it had initiated an enforcement action against an online finance company. The company offered personal loans in amounts ranging from $100 to $1,000, which consumers applied for using an online application on the company’s website. When consumers applied for the loans, the…
On July 23, 2015, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) filed a complaint and proposed consent order in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of California in connection with a settlement reached with a student loan lender that offered fee-based assistance to consumers filling out the federal government’s Free Application…
On July 7, 2015, the FTC announced that it reached two stipulated settlements (available here and here) with payday lenders who allegedly deceived customers by signing them up for loans without their permission and then withdrawing “finance” charges indefinitely. The settlements stem from allegations in a complaint filed last year that defendants “purchase consumers’ sensitive financial information from online lead generators or data…
On June 9, 2015, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) announced that it provided its 2014 Annual Financial Acts Enforcement Report (the “Report”) to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) and the Federal Reserve Board. The 23-page Report, dated May 29, 2015, provided information about enforcement and related activities involving Regulation Z (Truth in…
On April 28, 2015, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced a consent decree with a national bank regarding improper overdraft fees in violation of Regulation E, the implementing regulation of the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (“EFTA”). When a consumer does not have sufficient funds to cover a purchase or withdrawal,…