FPB Launches Public Database of Credit Card Complaints

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) made its database of credit card complaints submitted by consumers available to the public today. The CFPB also issued a report analyzing 45,000 complaints it has collected on a range of financial issues and announced that it may expand the public database to include financial products other than credit cards.

Consumers Union, the policy and advocacy division of Consumer Reports, praised the CFPB’s decision to make the database of credit card complaints public and announced its support for expanding the database to include complaints from consumers about other financial products.

“Making credit card complaints public will put added pressure on banks to avoid unfair practices and help consumers make more informed financial decisions,” said Pamela Banks, senior policy counsel for Consumers Union. “This is a tremendous public resource that should be expanded to include complaints about other abusive financial practices that are hurting consumers.”

The CFPB’s complaint database can be accessed online and searched by company, type of complaint, date, and the consumer’s zip code. The database also includes information about how the company responded to the complaint, whether the consumer disputed the company’s response, and whether and how the issue was resolved. The database currently includes credit card complaints collected by the CFPB since June 1, 2012. Before the end of 2012, the CFPB intends to add retroactive credit card complaint data to the database. It has been collecting credit card complaints since July 21, 2011.

The CFPB also collects consumer complaints on mortgages, private student loans, other consumer loans, and bank products and services, including checking and savings accounts. The agency’s analysis of complaints released today indicated that most of them — approximately 19,000 — involved mortgages. The most common mortgage complaint involved issues regarding loan modifications, collections, or foreclosures.

Contacts:
David Butler, Consumers Union, 202.462.6262 or dbutler@consumer.org
Kara Kelber, Consumers Union, 202.462.6262 or kkelber@consumer.org
Michael McCauley, Consumers Union, 415.902.9637 (cell) or mmccauley@consumer.org

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