All in Regulatory Update

FTC Cracks Down on Auto Group

Adam Witmer
Regulatory Update

On 9/4/2020, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued a statement regarding their efforts to cease operations of an auto group. The court-approved settlement resolves charges that the dealerships deceived consumers and falsified information on vehicle financing applications. According to their statement, the FTC explained that the auto group “ falsified consumers’ income and down payment information on vehicle financing applications and misrepresented important financial terms in vehicle advertisements.”

CFPB Report Examines Early Impact of Pandemic on Consumer Credit

Adam Witmer
Regulatory Update

On 8/31/2020, the CFPB issued a report that examines the early effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on consumer credit. In their release, the CFPB explains that consumers have not experienced significant increases in delinquency or other negative credit outcomes despite the sharp increases in unemployment caused by the pandemic. In addition, the release explains that creditors and lenders increased payment assistance to borrowers where student loan and first-lien mortgage accounts had the largest increase in assistance in terms of magnitude, but increases in assistance on auto loan and credit card accounts were also substantial. Further more, the report found that credit card debt access was reduced by financial institutions, but the effects of this appear to be “small in magnitude.”

Comment Period for Flood Q&A's Extended

Adam Witmer
Regulatory Update, Flood

On 9/1/2020, the five joint regulatory agencies announced that they extended the comment period to revise the Interagency Questions and Answers Regarding Flood Insurance (Interagency Questions and Answers) until November 3, 2020.

In their release, the agencies explain that they extended the comment period because of the extent of the revisions proposed by the agencies and in light of the challenges associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.

CFPB Requests Info on CARD Act

Adam Witmer
Regulatory Update

On 8/25/2020, the CFPB issued a request for information (RFI) to examine the impact of the rules that implement the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009. According to their release, the CFPB is seeking public feedback on the CARD Act Rules’ economic impact on small entities and is also requesting comments from the public on how the consumer credit card market is functioning as part of a Bureau review required by the CARD Act.

BSA Statement on CDD for PEPs

Adam Witmer
BSA, Regulatory Update

On 8/21/2020, the joint agencies (Federal Reserve, FDIC, FinCEN, NCUA, and OCC) issued a joint statement clarifying that Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) due diligence requirements for customers who may be considered “politically exposed persons” (PEPs) should be commensurate with the risks posed by the PEP relationship. Of particular note, the statement clarifies that PEPs refer to senior foreign individuals and that “the Agencies do not interpret the term “politically exposed persons” to include U.S. public officials.”

TD Bank Fined for Overdraft and FCRA Violations

Adam Witmer
FCRA, Regulatory Update, UDAAP

On 8/20/2020, the CFPB announced a settlement with TD Bank regarding its marketing and sale of its optional overdraft service, referred to by the as Debit Card Advance (DCA). In addition to the issues with their overdraft practices, the CFPB also found that “TD Bank violated FCRA and Regulation V by failing to establish and implement reasonable written policies and procedures concerning the accuracy and integrity of consumer-account information it furnished to two nationwide specialty consumer reporting agencies.” The consent order requires TD Bank to provide an estimated $97 million in restitution to about 1.42 million consumers and to pay a civil money penalty of $25 million.

CFPB Proposes New QM Category

Adam Witmer
Regulatory Update, Regulation Z

On 8/18/2020, the CFPB issued a proposal to create a new category of seasoned qualified mortgages, referenced as “Seasoned QMs.” According to the CFPB’s release, loans could qualify as Seasoned QMs if they are “first-lien, fixed-rate covered transactions that have met certain performance requirements over a 36-month seasoning period.”

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