On June 24, the Arkansas Attorney General (AG) announced a settlement with three entities and two individuals, resolving allegations that the defendants conspired to offer illegal payday loans to consumers online while claiming to be affiliated with a Native American tribe. The complaint, filed in 2013, alleged that the defendants violated Arkansas state law…
On June 30, 2016, the Iowa Attorney General announced a settlement with a for-profit cosmetology college to resolve alleged violations of the Iowa Consumer Fraud Act. The settlement, which took the form of a consent judgment, settled claims that the college engaged in “deceptive, omissive, and unfair practices in marketing,…
On June 21, 2016, the North Carolina Attorney General announced that two online fast cash lenders have agreed to pay more than $9 million in refunds for allegedly illegal loans issued to North Carolina consumers. The settlement stems from a December 2013 complaint alleging that the lenders violated North Carolina usury…
On June 8, 2016, the Michigan Attorney General announced that a Michigan court entered a default judgment and permanent injunction against an automobile title loan company over alleged usurious loans that violated the Michigan Consumer Protection Act. According to the Attorney General, the company charged usurious interest rates on automobile title loans, engaged…
On June 8, 2016, the Colorado Attorney General announced that several national lenders were ordered to pay approximately $8 million in restitution to Colorado consumers over alleged usurious loans, which violated Colorado’s Consumer Protection Act. The lenders allegedly originated loans with interest rates that reached as high as 355%. In…
On June 6, 2016, the West Virginia Attorney General announced a settlement with a regional online lender over allegations that the lender’s business practices violated West Virginia’s Consumer Credit and Protection Act. The company markets and sells online installment loans, through an alleged “bank-partnership model.” Under the bank-partnership model, a company partners…
On May 25, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the State of Florida announced that they had filed complaints in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida seeking permanent injunctive relief against two debt relief providers. The complaints (available here and here) allege that the companies violated the Federal…
On May 20, the Vermont Attorney General announced a settlement with an Arizona processer of internet payday loans, resolving allegations that the company violated the state’s prohibition on unfair and deceptive acts in commerce. This settlement represents the AG’s fourth and largest settlement against a similar entity. In the settlement…
On May 5, 2016, Nebraska Attorney General (“AG”) Doug Peterson and the Department of Banking and Finance announced a settlement with unlicensed online lenders that allegedly engaged in unfair and deceptive lending practices through a tribal lending scheme. The Nebraska AG brought an action on May 4, 2016 against several online lending…
On May 5, 2016, the Pennsylvania Attorney General announced the filing of a civil lawsuit in the Clinton County (PA) Court of Common Pleas against an Ohio financial services company and its owner for misleading at least four Pennsylvania consumers, including three military veterans. The lawsuit states that the company catered specifically to…
On May 4, 2016, the Kentucky Attorney General announced that it filed a lawsuit against an out-of-state student loan company on May 2, 2016 for failing to turn over key documents in response to a subpoena in an ongoing investigation. The lawsuit alleges that, under the Kentucky Consumer Protection Act, Kentucky…
On May 2, 2016, the North Carolina Attorney General (“AG”) announced that a state court judge temporarily banned online auto lenders from engaging in allegedly deceptive lending practices, including charging unlawful fees. The North Carolina AG filed suit against the unlicensed lenders for allegedly charging excessive interest rates and engaging…
On April 13, 2016, the New York Attorney General announced the filing of a lawsuit against several affiliated companies and individuals who lease credit card transaction processing equipment to small business owners. The Attorney General alleges that the companies engaged in fraudulent and deceptive practices by inducing individuals into signing lease…
On March 23, the Hawaii Attorney General (AG) announced that a consent judgment had been entered in Hawaii state court between a group of state attorneys general and a for-profit education company, under which the company will forgive approximately $118,865 in student loans for former Hawaii students. As previously covered by Enforcement Watch,…
On April 1, 2016, the California Attorney General announced that it filed suit against a prominent investment bank for alleged “misrepresentations about complex investments such as residential mortgage-backed securities, in which large pools of home loans were packaged together and sold to investors.” The eight-count complaint, which was filed in…
On March 30, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced that the Northern District of Illinois granted the FTC and Illinois Attorney General’s request for a temporary restraining order against an Illinois payday loan collection operation. The FTC and AG alleged the payday loan collector was in violation of the FTC Act, Fair Debt Collection…
On March 29, the Ohio Attorney General (“AG”) announced a lawsuit filed in Ohio state court against a Pennsylvania-based attorney, for alleged violations of Ohio’s Consumer Sales Practices Act and Debt Adjuster’s Act. According to the complaint, the attorney contacted Ohio consumers, offering loan modification services. He allegedly represented to consumers that…
On March 28, the Massachusetts Attorney General (“AG”) announced that a lender agreed to resolve allegations that it made predatory and illegal loans to 85 Massachusetts pensioners and veterans. The lender allegedly entered into contracts with consumers, whereby the lender provided loans ranging from $1,800 to $40,000. Every month, the…
On March 28, the Massachusetts Attorney General (“AG”), together with the U.S. Secretary of Education, announced that more than 2,000 students who were allegedly defrauded by a national for-profit college are eligible to have their federal loans forgiven. In November 2015, the AG had submitted an application to the U.S. Department of Education…
On March 21, the West Virginia Attorney General’s office announced that it had settled allegations against a debt collector over alleged violations of the West Virginia Collection Agency Act, W. Va. Code §§ 47-16-1 (“Collection Agency Act”) and the West Virginia Consumer Credit and Protection Act, W. Va. Code §§ 46A-1-101 (“WVCCPA”). The…