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CFPB Reports on Effect of the CARD Act

On December 3, the CFPB published a report summarizing the impact of the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act (CARD Act) on consumers and the credit market. According to the report, access to credit has increased by 10% since early 2012, with more than 60% of adults owning at least one credit card account. The report states that as a result of the CARD Act placing limitations on the use of over-limit fees, and its requirement that such fees and other penalty fees be “reasonable and proportional” to the underlying violation of account terms, consumers saved billions of dollars from 2011 through 2014. The CFPB’s outstanding areas of concern relating to the credit market include: (i) deferred-interest promotions; (ii) debt collection practices; and (iii) rewards program offers that provide only partial information.

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CFPB Grants Credit Card Issuers One-Year Suspension From Filing Card Agreements

On April 15, the CFPB issued a final rule temporarily suspending credit card issuers’ obligation to submit their card agreements to the CFPB, as required by the Credit Card Accontability, Responsibility, and Disclosure Act (CARD Act). The CARD Act, as implemented by TILA and Reg. Z (12 C.F.R. 1026.58), requires credit card issuers to submit credit card agreements to the Bureau on a quarterly basis. The first submission was set to be the first business day on or after April 30, 2015, but under the one-year reprieve, credit card issuers will not be required to begin submitting credit card agreements to the Bureau until April 30, 2016. According to the CFPB, during the temporary suspension, the regulator will “work to develop a more streamlined and automated electronic submission system.” The CFPB contends that the new system will allow for easier submission of credit card agreements than the manual submission system currently in place. Other requirements in Section 1026.58, including the requirement that credit card issuers post their credit card agreements on their own public website, remain unaffected by the temporary suspension.

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CFPB Seeks Consumer Feedback in Review of Credit Card Market

On March 17, the CFPB announced a Request for Information (RFI) seeking public comment on key aspects of the credit card market. This RFI is a part of a review mandated by the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility, and Disclosure Act (the CARD Act)—a law passed in 2009 that requires the CFPB to conduct a review of the credit card market every two years. The review seeks feedback on how the credit card market has functioned over the last two years and the impact new credit card protections have had on consumers. Specifically, the review solicits input on the changing patterns of credit card agreement terms, unfair or deceptive practices within the credit card market, the use of third-party debt collection agencies, and how consumers understand credit card reward products. Information obtained from the review will culminate in a public report to Congress.

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CFPB Orders Credit Card Company to Refund $2.7 Million for Charging Excessive Credit Card Fees

On February 4, the CFPB announced a consent order with a Delaware-based credit card company, ordering the company to refund an estimated $2.7 million to approximately 98,000 consumers and pay a civil penalty of $250,000 for allegedly charging consumers illegal credit card fees. According to the consent order, the CFPB alleged the company charged customers fees during the first year after customers opened the account that exceeded the 25% credit limit imposed by the CARD Act. The CFPB further alleged that the company, offering the credit cards through a state-chartered credit union, misled customers about paper statement fees associated with their credit cards and falsely claimed that certain security deposits were “FDIC insured” when they were not. In addition to the refund to customers and civil penalty, the consent order requires the company (i) to refrain from charging fees that exceed 25% of a customer’s credit limit in the first year of the account and (ii) subjects itself to CFPB supervisory authority for the first time.

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CFPB Adjusts CARD Act, HOEPA, And Ability To Repay Thresholds

On August 14, the CFPB issued a final rule to re-calculate certain threshold amounts under Regulation Z. With respect to certain amounts under the CARD Act, effective January 1, 2015, the minimum interest charge disclosure thresholds will remain unchanged, while the permissible penalty fees safe harbor will increase to $27 for a first late payment and $38 for each subsequent violation in the following six months. With respect to HOEPA loans, effective January 1, 2015, the adjusted total loan amount threshold will be $20,391, and the adjusted statutory fee trigger will be $1,020. Also effective January 1, 2015, for the purpose of a creditor’s determination of a consumer’s ability to repay a transaction secured by a dwelling, a covered transaction will not be a qualified mortgage unless the transaction’s total points and fees do not exceed: (i) 3% of the total loan amount for a loan greater than or equal to $101,953; (ii) $3,059 for a loan amount greater than or equal to $61,172 but less than $101,953; (iii) 5% of the total loan amount for a loan greater than or equal to $20,391 but less than $61,172; (iv) $1,020 for a loan amount greater than or equal to $12,744 but less than $20,391; and (v) 8% of the total loan amount for a loan amount less than $12,744.

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CFPB Adjusts CARD Act, HOEPA Thresholds

On December 16, the CFPB published a final rule to review and adjust provisions of Regulation Z that implement amendments to TILA under the CARD Act and HOEPA. Specifically, the CFPB is required to adjust, as appropriate based on the annual percentage change reflected in the Consumer Price Index in effect on June 1, 2013, (i) the threshold amount that triggers requirements for the disclosure of minimum interest charges and (ii) the maximum penalty fee card issuers can impose for violating account terms without violating the restrictions on penalty fees established by the CARD Act. For 2014, the minimum interest charge disclosure threshold will remain unchanged, while the permissible penalty fees will increase to $26 for a first late payment and $37 for each subsequent violation within the following six months. Similarly, the CFPB is required to adjust the combined points and fees threshold that triggers compliance with HOEPA. Effective January 1, 2014, that threshold will be $632.

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CFPB Releases Annual Report On College Cards, Urges Disclosure Of Campus Marketing Agreements

On December 17, the CFPB released its annual report to Congress on college credit card agreements, prepared pursuant to the CARD Act. The report follows an inquiry launched earlier this year into financial products marketed to students. The study revealed that since 2009, the number of college card agreements in effect has decreased by 41 percent, the compensation paid to colleges and universities has decreased by 40 percent, and the number of new accounts opened by students has decreased by 18 percent.

The Bureau’s press release urges financial institutions to voluntarily disclose to the public any agreements with colleges and universities to market debt, prepaid, and other products to students and warns that “[t]he CFPB prioritizes its supervisory examinations based on the risks posed to consumers” and “[failing to make] college financial product arrangements transparent to students and their families . . .  increase[s] such risks.”

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CFPB Credit Card Report Identifies Practices For Further Scrutiny

On October 2, the CFPB released its first review of the consumer credit card market. The Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 (the CARD Act) requires the CFPB to prepare a report every two years to examine developments in the consumer credit card marketplace, including (i) the terms of credit card agreements and the practices of issuers, (ii) the effectiveness of disclosures, and (iii) the adequacy of UDAP protections. The CFPB also must review the impact of the CARD Act on (i) the cost and availability of credit, (ii) the safety and soundness of issuers, (iii) the use of risk-based pricing, and (iv) product innovation. In connection with this initial report, the CFPB hosted a credit card field hearing in Chicago, IL, at which Director Cordray reviewed the report’s findings and industry representatives and consumer advocates discussed the current state of the credit card market.

In its review of the post-CARD Act market, the CFPB found that the CARD Act largely accomplished its intended goals. The CFPB reports that: (i) the total cost of credit declined by two percentage points between 2008 and 2012; (ii) overlimit fees and repricing actions have been effectively eliminated; (iii) the size of late fees has decreased; (iv) there is sufficient available credit, notwithstanding the impacts of the financial crisis, but less than in 2007; and (iv) the CARD Act’s ability-to-repay provisions have protected young consumers.

However, the CFPB identifies numerous concerns it has about the credit card market, including “practices that may pose risks to consumers and may warrant further scrutiny by the Bureau.” Those concerns include:

• Add-on products: The CFPB remains concerned about the ways these products are marketed and will continue to pursue allegedly deceptive practices. All of the CFPB’s major enforcement actions to date have involved add-on products, most of which related to credit cards.
• “Fee harvester” cards: The CFPB recognizes that some upfront fees that exceed 25% of the initial credit limit have been held not to be covered by the CARD Act because a portion of the fees are paid prior to account opening. Still, the CFPB plans to monitor the use of application fees in connection with account openings to determine if it should take action under its available authorities.
• Deferred interest products: The CFPB intends to study the risks and benefits of private label cards that finance purchases without interest for a period of time but then assess interest retroactively if the balance is not paid in full by a given date.
• Online disclosures: The CFPB intends to assess the methods by which card issuers provide consumers with disclosures when they access their accounts online.
• Rewards products disclosures: The CFPB will review whether disclosures for “highly complex” rewards products are being made in a clear and transparent manner and whether “additional action” is warranted.
• Grace period disclosures: The CFPB believes it may need to take action to ensure that disclosures sufficiently inform consumers that once they carry a credit card balance into a new billing cycle, they no longer enjoy the grace period on new purchases.

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