CFPB Supervisory Highlights Focus on Remittances, Restitution
The CFPB helped obtain restitution totaling $14.3 million for more than 228,000 consumers in non-public supervisory actions during the last four months of 2015, according to the agency. In its latest Supervisory Highlights report, the CFPB notes violations found by its examiners over that period in areas including international remittances, student loan servicing, debt collection and consumer credit reporting.
The most recent edition of Supervisory Highlights is the first to report on examinations of CFPB-regulated institutions in the remittance market. In October 2013, the agency implemented rules on international money transfers, including disclosure and error resolution requirements, as well as cancelation rights. Since the rules went into effect, the bureau’s examinations have found that remittance providers have complied successfully with the regulations overall, but that some “weaknesses” remained. The CFPB also found some violations of the remittance rule, including at least one provider giving incomplete and sometimes inaccurate disclosures to customers. At least one provider also failed to cancel transactions within the required time frame, and at least one failed to promptly credit consumers’ accounts when errors occurred, the report said. The agency also examined instances in which remittance recipients received zero dollars after fees were deducted. While the fees were disclosed and no remittance rule violation occurred, multiple providers voluntarily added an additional notice to ensure customers understood the recipient could receive no money—or simply prevented such transaction from being completed, the CFPB noted.
The Supervisory Report made no mention of prepaid, final rules for which are expected later this year. Although the agency’s monthly consumer complaint reports have consistently shown prepaid to comprise a small percentage of the issues brought to its attention, the CFPB highlighted prepaid in its most recent complaint snapshot. On Wednesday, CFPB Director Richard Cordray will make his semi-annual appearance before the House Financial Services Committee to report on the bureau’s activities and face questions from lawmakers.
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