The Military Coalition expressed opposition via letter to the Senate Banking Committee about exempting car dealers from the financial reform bill on April 15 2010. The Department of Defense wrote a similar letter in February 2010 because car dealers have abused servicemembers.
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Auto dealers are heading to Capitol Hill seeking a special carve-out from the "Restoring American Financial Stability Act of 2010" (S. 3217), which aims to put an end to the reckless practices of Wall Street and the abusive and discriminatory tactics by finance companies of all stripes. In their search for a loophole, auto dealers claim that the bill will restrict affordable car loans and result in a hike in fees. [1] However, their arguments ignore key facts about the bill and how new rules governing consumer finance would work. It is time to set the record straight. The auto dealers say: We...
California's Rees-Levering Act entitles car loan borrowers to receive information on the amount they must pay to recover their car when it is repossessed. This represents an important, and easy to satisfy, legal protection for car loan borrowers who otherwise may find it hard to determine the amount of payments and fees the lender claims are owed. U.S. Bank successfully argued to a California federal district court that it did not have to follow this law because of its status as a National Bank. CRL, joined by AARP, National Consumer Law Center, National Association of Consumer Advocates...
In a letter to the Treasury Department, the Department of Defense (DoD) announced its support for financial reform, including the creation of a Consumer Financial Protection Agency, to protect its service members and their families from predatory car dealers. A DoD poll of its financial counselors found that the majority had counseled service members on issues such as "bait and switch financing." In 2006, the DoD's concern about its service members becoming ensnared in a payday lending debt trap contributed to the passage of a 36% federal rate cap for military personnel.
The most common type of large loan held by Americans is the loan that finances their car—yet a recent mark-up of the Consumer Financial Protection Agency (CFPA) bill would allow auto dealers to be exempt from basic oversight that could save American families billions. Many dealers are like loan brokers: they typically write the car loans, then sell the loan to a third party lender. Common financial abuses among auto dealers are analogous to those that wreaked havoc in the mortgage market: confusing loan terms, hidden costs, and inflated sales commissions. As with mortgages, the financial...
CRL shares stories of everyday people affected by financial abuse and emphasizes the need for the Consumer Financial Protection Agency to ensure that they and others are protected from such abuses in the future. The Dow closes at 10,000 points, putting it back to where it was a year ago when Lehman Brothers collapsed, and Wall Street rejoices. But the reality is the economic crisis that began in the destructive subprime mortgage market continues for American families. Key economic indicators show American families are still struggling: foreclosures at an all time high nationwide; the dollar at...
CRL shares stories of everyday people affected by financial abuse and emphasizes the need for the Consumer Financial Protection Agency to ensure that they and others are protected from such abuses in the future. The Dow closes at 10,000 points, putting it back to where it was a year ago when Lehman Brothers collapsed, and Wall Street rejoices. But the reality is the economic crisis that began in the destructive subprime mortgage market continues for American families. Key economic indicators show American families are still struggling: foreclosures at an all time high nationwide; the dollar at...
October 20, 2009 Members, Financial Services Committee U.S. House of Representatives Washington, DC 20510 Dear Representative: As the Financial Services Committee prepares to continue its markup of H.R. 3126, we write to express our support for a strong, non-preemptive Consumer Financial Protection Agency (CFPA). In this regard, we call your attention to two issues that are expected to come up in today's markup. First, on maintaining the States' vital role, overly broad preemption in recent years contributed to the current financial crisis by removing state protections that deterred...
October 20, 2009 Members, Financial Services Committee U.S. House of Representatives Washington, DC 20510 Dear Representative: As the Financial Services Committee prepares to continue its markup of H.R. 3126, we write to express our support for a strong, non-preemptive Consumer Financial Protection Agency (CFPA). In this regard, we call your attention to two issues that are expected to come up in today's markup. First, on maintaining the States' vital role, overly broad preemption in recent years contributed to the current financial crisis by removing state protections that deterred...