Filing A Credit Complaint
First try to solve your problem directly with a creditor or bank involved. If you are still unable to resolve the
problem, you may file a written complaint with the Federal agencies responsible for enforcing consumer credit protection laws.
Filing a Complaint To
Federal Enforcement Agencies
If you have a complaint about a bank or
other financial institution, the Federal Reserve System may be able to help
you. The Federal Reserve System investigates consumer complaints received
against state chartered banks that are members of the System. Complaints about
these types of banks will be investigated by one of the 12 Federal Reserve
Banks around the country. The Federal Reserve will refer complaints about other
institutions to the appropriate federal reulatory agency and let you know where
your complaint has been referred. Or you may write directly to the appropriate
federal agency by referring to the listing at the end of this publication. Many
of these agencies do not handle individual complaints; however, they will use
information about your credit experiences to help enforce the credit laws.
When writing to the Federal Reserve, you
should submit your complaint—in writing whenever possible—to the:
Division of Consumer and Community
Affairs,
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System,
Washington,
D.C. 20551
Be sure to provide the complete name and
address of the bank, a brief description of your complaint, and any
documentation that may help us investigate your complaint. Please do not send
original documents, only copies; remember to sign and date your letter. The
Federal Reserve will write back within 15 business days, letting you know
whether a Federal Reserve Bank will investigate your complaint or whether your
complaint will be forwarded to another federal agency for attention.
For complaints investigated by the
Federal Reserve (those involving state-chartered member banks), the Reserve
Bank will analyze the bank's response to your complaint to ensure that your
concerns have been addressed and will send you letter about the findings. If
the investigation reveals that a Federal Reserve regulation has been violated,
the Reserve Bank will inform you of the violation and the corrective action the
bank has been directed to take.
Although the Federal Reserve
investigates all complaints about the banks it regulates, it does not have the
authority to resolve all types of problems, such as contractual or factual
disputes of disagreements about bank policies or procedures. In many instances,
however, if you file a complaint, a bank may voluntarily work with you to
resolve your situation. If the matter is not resolved, we will advise you
whether you should consider legal counsel to resolve your complaint.
Penalties Under The Laws
If you bring a lawsuit against
a creditor, here are the penalties a creditor must pay if you win.
Truth in Lending
and Consumer Leasing Acts. If any creditor fails to disclose information
required under these Acts, or gives inaccurate information, or does not comply
with the rules about credit cards or the right to cancel certain home-secured
loans, you as an individual may sue for actual damages and any money loss you
suffer. In addition, you can sue for twice the finance charge in the case of
certain credit disclosures, or, if a lease is concerned, 25 percent of total
monthly payments. In either case, the least the court may award you if you win
is $100, and the most is $1,000. In any lawsuit that you win, you are entitled
to reimbursement for court costs and attorney's fees.
Class action suits are also permitted. A
class action suit is one filed on behalf of a group of people with similar
claims.
Equal Credit
Opportunity Act. If you think you can prove that a creditor has
discriminated against you for any reason prohibited by this act, you as an
individual may sue for actual damages plus punitive damages—that is, damages
for the fact that the law has been violated—of up to $10,000. In a successful
lawsuit, the court will award you court costs and a reasonable amount for
attorney's fees. Class action suits are also permitted.
Fair Credit
Billing Act. A creditor who breaks the rules for the correction of
billing errors automatically loses the amount owed on the item in question and
any finance charges on it, up to a combined total of $50 even if the bill was
correct. You as an individual may also sue for actual damages plus twice the
amount of any finance charges, but in any case not less than $100 nor more than
$1,000. You are also entitled to court costs and attorney's fees in a
successful lawsuit. Class action suits are also permitted.
Fair Credit
Reporting Act. You may sue any credit-reporting agency or creditor for
breaking the rules about who may see your credit records or for not correcting
errors in your file. Again, you are entitled to actual damages, plus punitive
damages that the court may allow if the violation is proved to have been
intentional. In any successful lawsuit, you will also be awarded court costs
and attorney's fees. A person who obtains a credit report without proper
authorization or an employee of a credit-reporting agency who gives a credit
report to unauthorized persons may be fined up to $5,000 or imprisoned for one
year, or both.
Electronic Fund
Transfer Act. If a financial institution does not follow the provisions
of the EFT Act, you may sue for actual damages (or in certain cases when the
institution fails to correct an error or recredit an account, for three times
actual damages) plus punitive damages of not less than $100 nor more than
$1,000. You are also entitled to court costs and attorney's fees in a
successful lawsuit. Class action suits are also permitted.
If an institution fails to make an
electronic fund transfer, or to stop payment of a preauthorized transfer when
properly instructed by you to do so, you may sue for all damages that result
from the failure.
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