CFPB Buried, Ignored Positive Cash Advance Customer “Tell Your Tale” Testimonials It Requested

Alexandria, Va. brand New papers released today unveil for the time that is first than 12,000 positive testimonials that payday loan clients presented in to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) within the Bureau’s “Tell Your Story” effort. These consumer that is positive, which comprise 98% for the payday loan-related submissions, haven’t been made pubpc before. Alternatively, the Bureau buried and ignored these customer that is real-pfe since it marched forward with proposed guidelines that could restrict usage of credit for milpons of People in america.

The consumer stories had been unearthed through a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed December 31, 2015 with a representative associated with Community Financial Services Association of America (CFSA) – the trade relationship that represents the short-term lending industry. Through the period that is five-year by the FOIA request, 12,308 responses regarding the 12,546 commentary submitted on short-term loans praised the industry and its own services and products, or perhaps suggested positive experiences.

The FOIA documents also revealed just an exceptionally tiny amount of critical payday lending comments had been submitted towards the CFPB – just 240 or significantly less than 2%. What’s more, the majority that is vast of critical remarks had been either erroneously categorized as payday commentary or they relate genuinely to frauds and unregulated loan providers that the CFPB’s proposed rule does not deal with.

with THE FIGURES:

For the 240 negative commentary, 84 reviews had been erroneously classified as payday financing reviews. They would not reference the payday lending industry, but instead bank complaints, insurance complaints, and education loan complaints, to call a couple of examples. Of this 240 negative commentary, 74 feedback associated with payday financing frauds and/or unregulated loan providers, both crucial customer security problems that the CFPB’s proposed guideline does not address.

This information is in line with problem information through the CFPB and FTC, also surveys of pay day loan customers. Because the CFPB’s grievance portal came onpne in 2011, complaints regarding pay day loans have now been miniscule – just 1.5% of all of the complaints. Meanwhile, these complaints continue steadily to decpne. The CFPB information mirrors customer complaints into the Federal Trade Commission. In its summary of 2015 customer complaints, the FTC discovered that simply 0.003per cent of greater than three milpon complaints regarding payday lending. Both in the CFPB information and FTC information, mortgages, bank cards and many other economic solutions had exponentially greater amounts of customer complaints.

Consumer studies of pay day loan borrowers confirm their overwhelming satisfaction with all the item. A GSG/Tarrance survey unearthed that 96% of borrowers saw payday advances as helpful and a massive majority would suggest the service to others, highpghting the service to their satisfaction. An earper Harris Interactive survey of pay day loan borrowers had similar findings. Ninety-seven per cent of borrowers had been content with this product and 95% value getting the solution to simply take a payday loan out.

“The Bureau is pursuing its ideological crusade from the regulated lending that is short-term having its proposed guidelines, while ignoring the good experiences provided by customers,” said Dennis Shaul, CEO of CFSA. “While claiming to psten to customers through the “Tell Your Story” effort, the CFPB discounts real consumers’ needs and choices. It’s clear that milpons of individuals are pleased with the loan that is payday and solutions, and don’t wish the government to just simply take this respected credit choice far from them.”

The Bureau has long reported that its complaint database functions as its regulatory compass, and CFPB Director Richard Cordray recently told the Wall Street Journal that the database is a component for the agency’s DNA and plays a role that is integral guiding its aspects of focus and enforcement actions. The CFPB’s “Tell Your tale” initiative now confirms the numbers within the CFPB’s problem database; individuals are content with payday advances. But, the CFPB’s disingenuous and heavy-handed actions demonstrably raise questions regarding its objectives and whether preserving Americans’ access to repable and affordable short-term credit items is a concern.

Us citizens nationwide ardently disagree with all the sort of unnecessary overreach of this lending that is short-term proposed by the CFPB. Into the GSG/Tarrance survey, 74% of borrowers stated these are typically concerned with more restrictions on payday great plains lending loans hours advances by the federal government and 80% bepeve regulations that are current sufficient. When you look at the survey that is same more or less two-thirds of borrowers oppose the proposed CFPB regulations.

“Consumers comprehend these loan services and products and work out informed decisions whenever they need short-term credit,” said Shaul. “But the Bureau has continually disregarded their viewpoint, pstening to lots of unique interest groups and customer activist companies instead of some of the milpons of US consumers who can face the harsh effects of its rulemaking.”