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National bank to challenge CFPB on cards suit
On January 30, the CFPB announced that it filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island against a national bank (defendant) based upon alleged violations of the Truth in Lending Act (TILA) and its implementing Regulation Z, the Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA), and the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act (CARD Act). The CFPB claims that among other things, when servicing credit card accounts, the defendant did not properly manage consumer billing disputes for unauthorized card use and billing errors, and did not properly credit refunds to consumer accounts resulting from such disputes. Specifically, the complaint alleges that violations included the defendant’s (i) “practice of automatically denying billing error claims or claims of unauthorized use for failure of the consumers to provide Fraud Affidavits, including agreeing to testify as witnesses”; (ii) “failure to refund related finance charges and fees when it resolved billing error notices or claims of unauthorized use in consumers’ favor”; (iii) failure “to provide written notices of acknowledgement or denial in response to billing error notices”; and (iv) failure “to provide credit counseling referrals.” The CFPB is seeking injunctive relief, monetary relief, disgorgement of defendant’s ill-gotten gains, civil money penalties, and costs of the action.
The defendant issued a response to the suit on January 31, stating that it self-identified the issues to the Bureau five years ago while simultaneously correcting any flawed processes. According to the defendant’s statement, “the CFPB’s action is misguided” and “well beyond the expiration of the statute of limitations. The defendant vows to “vigorously challenge” the suit.
CFPB releases TILA, EFTA, and CARD Act annual report
On December 18, the CFPB issued its mandated annual report to Congress covering activity in 2016 and 2017 pertaining to the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), the Electronic Fund Transfer Act (EFTA), and the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act (CARD Act). The report describes enforcement actions brought by the Bureau and federal agencies related to TILA, EFTA, the CARD Act (and respective implementing Regulations Z and E), as well as data on required reimbursements to consumers. The report also includes a compliance assessment of TILA and EFTA violations. Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC) member agencies report that more institutions were cited for violations of Regulation Z than Regulation E during the 2016 and 2017 reporting periods, and that the most frequently reported Regulation Z violations include (i) failing to disclose, or to accurately disclose, the finance charge on closed-end credit; (ii) failing to disclose good faith estimates on disclosures for closed-end credit; and (iii) failing to provide consumers with specific loan cost information on closing disclosures. The most commonly cited Regulation E violations include (i) failing to comply with investigation and timeframe requirements when resolving errors in electronic fund transfers; and (ii) failing to provide applicable disclosures. In addition, the report recaps FFIEC outreach activities related to TILA and EFTA, such as workshops, blogs, and other outreach events.
CFPB releases 2019 Card Report
On August 27, the CFPB released its fourth biennial report on the state of the credit card market as required by Section 502 of the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act (CARD Act). The 2019 report covers the credit card market for the 2017-2018 period. In opening remarks, CFPB Director Kathy Kraninger notes that with the passage of time, it has become “increasingly difficult to correlate the CARD Act with specific effects in the marketplace that have occurred since the issuance of the Bureau’s last biennial report, and, even more so, to demonstrate a causal relationship between the CARD Act and those effects,” and therefore, future reports will focus more on overall market conditions. Key findings of the report include, (i) total outstanding credit card balances continue to grow; (ii) total cost of credit stood at 18.7 percent at the end of 2018, which is the highest overall level observed by the Bureau in its biennial reports; (iii) total credit line across all consumer credit cards reached $4.3 trillion in 2018, which is largely due to the increase in unused credit lines held by superprime score consumers; and (iv) consumers are increasingly using their cards through digital portals, including those accessed via mobile devices.
Regarding current trends, the report notes that over the last few years, the total amount of credit card spending has grown “much faster” than the total volume of balances carried on the cards. In addition, while cardholders with prime or superprime credit scores still account for most debt and spending, lower credit score consumers have been increasing their debt at a faster rate than cardholders with higher credit scores. Notably, delinquency and charge-off rates still remain lower than they were prior to the recession, even though they have slightly increased in recent years. Additionally, since the last report, issuers have lowered their daily limits on debt collection phone calls for delinquent accounts and average daily attempts remain “well below” stated limits. Issuers are also beginning to supplement communications for account servicing with email and text messages.
CFPB adjusts annual dollar amount thresholds under TILA regulations
On August 1, the CFPB published in the Federal Register the final rule amending Regulation Z, which implements the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), including as amended by the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 (CARD Act), the Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act of 1994 (HOEPA), and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act’s ability-to-repay and qualified mortgage (ATR/QM) provisions. The CFPB is required to make annual adjustments to dollar amounts in certain provisions in Regulation Z, and has based the adjustments on the annual percentage change reflected in the Consumer Price Index in effect on June 1, 2019. The following thresholds will be effective on January 1, 2020:
- For open-end consumer credit plans under TILA, the threshold for disclosing an interest charge will remain unchanged at $1.00;
- For open-end consumer credit plans under the CARD Act amendments, the adjusted dollar amount for the safe harbor for a first violation penalty fee will increase from $28 to $29, and the adjusted dollar amount for the safe harbor for a subsequent violation penalty fee will increase from $39 to $40;
- For HOEPA loans, the adjusted total loan amount threshold for high-cost mortgages will be $21,980, and the adjusted points and fees dollar trigger for high-cost mortgages will be $1,099; and
- The maximum thresholds for total points and fees for qualified mortgages under the ATR/QM rule will be: (i) 3 percent of the total loan amount for loans greater than or equal to $109,898; (ii) $3,297 for loan amounts greater than or equal to $65,939 but less than $109,898; (iii) 5 percent of the total loan amount for loans greater than or equal to $21,980 but less than $65,939; (iv) $1,099 for loan amounts greater than or equal to $13,737 but less than $21,980; and (v) 8 percent of the total loan amount for loan amounts less than $13,737.
CFPB releases RFI on consumer credit card market
On January 31, the CFPB published a request for information (RFI) on the consumer credit card market. Section 502 of the Credit Card Accountability and Responsibility Disclosure Act (CARD Act) of 2009 requires the Bureau to conduct a review of the consumer credit card market every two years and to seek public comment to assist in that review. While the Bureau seeks feedback on all aspects of the consumer credit card market, the RFI specifically seeks comments related to, among other things, (i) the terms of credit card agreements and the practices, such as collection efforts, of credit card issuers; (ii) the effectiveness of disclosures related to rates, fees, and other cost terms; (iii) prevalence of unfair, deceptive, or abusive acts or practices in the market; and (iv) credit card product innovation. Comments must be received by May 1, 2019.
CFPB publishes final rule adjusting annual dollar amount thresholds under TILA regulations
On August 27, the CFPB issued a final rule amending Regulation Z, which implements the Truth in Lending Act (TILA), including as amended by the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 (CARD Act), the Home Ownership and Equity Protection Act of 1994 (HOEPA), and the Dodd-Frank ability-to-repay and qualified mortgage provisions (ATR/QM). The CFPB is required to make annual adjustments to dollar amounts in certain provisions in Regulation Z, and has based the adjustments on the annual percentage change reflected in the Consumer Price Index in effect on June 1, 2018. The following thresholds will be effective on January 1, 2019:
- For open-end consumer credit plans under TILA, the threshold for disclosing an interest charge will remain unchanged at $1.00;
- For open-end consumer credit plans under the CARD Act amendments, the adjusted dollar amount for the safe harbor for a first violation penalty fee will increase from $27 to $28, and the adjusted dollar amount for the safe harbor for a subsequent violation penalty fee will increase from $38 to $39;
- For HOEPA loans, the adjusted total loan amount threshold for high-cost mortgages will be $21,549, and the adjusted points and fees dollar trigger for high-cost mortgages will be $1,077; and
- The maximum thresholds for total points and fees for qualified mortgages under the ATR/QM rule will be: (i) 3 percent of the total loan amount for loans greater than or equal to $107,747; (ii) $3,232 for loan amounts greater than or equal to $64,648 but less than $107,747; (iii) 5 percent of the total loan amount for loans greater than or equal to $21,549 but less than $64,648; (iv) $1,077 for loan amounts greater than or equal to $13,468 but less than $21,549; and (v) 8 percent of the total loan amount for loan amounts less than $13,468.
CFPB Submits Request for Information on Consumer Credit Card Market
On March 10, in accordance with the rules of the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure Act of 2009 (CARD Act), that mandates the CFPB prepare a report every two years examining developments in the consumer credit card marketplace, the Bureau submitted a Request for Information to solicit feedback from the public. As previously covered in InfoBytes, the first review occurred in October 2013 and the second review in December 2015. In preparation for the next report, the Bureau is focusing on several aspects of the consumer credit card market, as follows:
- The terms of credit card agreements and the practices of credit card issuers
- The effectiveness of disclosure of terms, fees, and other expenses of credit card plans
- The adequacy of protections against unfair or deceptive acts or practices or unlawful discrimination relating to credit card plans
- The cost and availability of consumer credit cards, the use of risk-based pricing for consumer credit cards, and consumer credit card product innovation
- Deferred interest products
- Subprime specialist products
- Third-party comparison sites
- Innovation
- Secured credit cards
- Online and mobile account servicing
- Rewards products
- Variable interest rates
- Debt collection.
Comments are due by June 8, 2017.
CFPB Releases Student Banking Report Examining Credit Card Marketing Deals Targeting College Students
On December 14, the CFPB released a student banking report analyzing roughly 500 marketing agreements between colleges, universities and affiliated organizations, and large banks in an effort to identify trends in the school-sponsored credit card market. The report found in part that while credit cards offered in conjunction with educational institutions have declined since the CARD Act was enacted in 2009, many similar offers and deals still exist and may include features that lead students to rack up hundreds of dollars in fees. As explained by CFPB Student Loan Ombudsman Seth Frotman, “Colleges across the country continue to make deals with banks to promote products that have high fees, despite the availability of safer and more affordable products.” According to Mr. Frotman, “Students shouldn’t get stuck with the bill when their school inks a deal for an account that’s not in their best interest.”
In conjunction with the publication of this report, the Bureau also published a new compliance bulletin to assist colleges in understanding their obligations under the CARD Act and Regulation Z related to college credit card agreements. This bulletin noted, among other items, that many of the largest colleges and universities do not publish credit card agreements on their websites or make them available to students and the public upon request, creating increased risks of non-compliance. The complete set of credit card agreement data collected by the Bureau in accordance with its obligations under the Credit CARD Act of 2009 can be accessed here.
CFPB Amends Annual Dollar Thresholds in TILA Regulations
On June 17, the CFPB announced that it adjusted dollar threshold amounts for provisions in Regulation Z, which implements TILA, under the CARD Act, HOEPA, and the Dodd-Frank Act. The CFPB is required to make adjustments based on the annual percentage change reflected in the Consumer Price Index effective June 1, 2016. For 2017, the minimum interest charge will remain $27 for the first late payment and the subsequent violation penalty safe harbor fee for 2016 was amended to $38 for the remainder of 2016 and all of 2017. The CFPB is increasing the combined points and fees trigger-threshold for compliance with HOEPA to $1,029, and the amount threshold for high-cost mortgages in 2017 will be $20,579. To satisfy the underwriting requirements under the ATR/QM rule, a covered transaction will not be considered a QM unless the combined points and fees do not exceed 3% of the total loan amount for a loan greater than or equal to $102,894; $3,087 for a loan amount greater than or equal to $61,737 but less than $102,894; 5% of the total loan amount for a loan greater than or equal to $20,579 but less than $61,737; $1,029 for a loan amount greater than or equal to $12,862 but less than $20,579; and 8% of the total loan amount for a loan amount less than $12,862. The final rule is effective January 1, 2017, except that the amendment to the subsequent violation penalty safe harbor fee amount of $38 for the remainder of 2016 takes effect upon Federal Register publication.
CFPB Reports on Credit Card Agreements and Warns Colleges of Potential CARD Act Violations
On December 16, the CFPB issued its annual report to Congress regarding credit card marketing agreements between colleges and issuing credit card organizations. Pursuant the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure (CARD) Act, credit card issuers must disclose the details of those agreements to the CFPB, and colleges and universities are required to publicly disclose their marketing agreements, either by posting the actual contracts to their websites or by posting the information needed to request a copy of the agreement and subsequently providing a copy to the requestor. According to the report, a review of 25 sample colleges with active credit card agreements determined that “most institutions of higher education [did] not make copies of [the] agreements available on their websites to students and other affected parties.” The CFPB further noted that “[w]ith only rare exceptions, [the] institutions also fail[ed] to provide alternative reasonable means of access to those agreements.” In light of its findings, the CFPB sent a letter to the 17 colleges that may not have adequately disclosed a credit card agreement. The letter explained that the school received the notice because its marketing agreement with a card issuer “could not be publicly obtained using reasonable procedures and in a reasonable timeframe.” While the CFPB’s letter stated that it had yet to determine if the schools’ inaction violated the CARD Act, it urged the recipient schools to “reconsider [their] approach to public disclosure.”