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NPR: The hospital bills didn't find her, but a lawsuit did — plus interest

July 5, 2023

Originally airing on NPR on June 27, 2023, Bram Sable-Smith discusses state initiatives to cap or even ban certain interest charges on medical debt with Berneta Haynes. Haynes says policy initiatives should also focus on how to prevent medical debt in the first place. “Because once it [medical debt] happens, it seems like the situations…

Los Angeles Times: What should borrowers do now that Biden's college debt forgiveness plan is dead?

July 5, 2023

Originally appearing in the Los Angeles Times on June 30, 2023, Jon Healey discusses options for borrowers that can’t afford monthly payments with NCLC’s Abby Shafroth. The very last thing you want to do, Shafroth says, is default. So if you’re still in a bind after changing your repayment plan, she said, you have two…

Marketplace: As student loan repayments are set to restart, the Education Department looks to ease the transition

July 5, 2023

Originally airing on Marketplace on July 2, 2023, Samantha Fields discusses the administrations plan to transition borrowers back into student loan repayment with Abby Shafroth. “Interest will be charged to borrowers accounts and … bills will be sent out. But if borrowers miss their payments, or there’s confusion, they pay the wrong amount … their credit…

Digital Library: New Angles in Challenging Rent-a-Bank Schemes

July 5, 2023

Predatory lenders use rent-a-bank schemes to avoid the usury limits of the consumer’s state, by seeking to bootstrap onto federal rate exportation rights available only to banks. These predatory non-bank lenders claim that they are only arrangers or servicers of credit originated by a bank. NCLC’s Consumer Credit Regulation § 3.5.4 sets out several challenges to such arrangements—such as…

Protecting Student Borrowers after U.S. Supreme Court Blocks Student Debt Relief

June 30, 2023

"We are deeply disappointed by this decision: It is wrong on the law and threatens the financial security of millions of low-income Americans who are struggling with unaffordable student loan debt."

Advocates React to ‘Deeply Disappointing’ SCOTUS Decision on Student Debt Relief, “Every Option Must Be on the Table”

June 30, 2023

6-3 Opinion Blocks President Biden’s Student Loan Cancellation Plan [NOTE: Advocates to hold virtual press briefing on ruling at 12 pm ET. Register here.] WASHINGTON – Today, in a 6-3 opinion, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that President Biden’s student debt relief program, which would have offered up to $20,000 in relief to working and…

NCLC Will Continue to Fight for Racial and Economic Justice After U.S. Supreme Court Rules Against Affirmative Action

June 30, 2023

The U.S. Supreme Court’s radical decision dismantling affirmative action in higher education is outrageous and disheartening and will limit educational and economic opportunity for people of color. The decision disregards decades of federal precedent upholding the consideration of race in higher education admissions and ignores the legacy of discrimination in American society, and the daily…

Borrowers Must Beware of Payment Changes as LIBOR Ends Friday

June 28, 2023

NCLC Advocates Caution Consumers to Check ARMs and Private Student Loans for Servicer Mistakes WASHINGTON – This Friday, June 30, will be the last day for the LIBOR. Starting next week, loan servicers responsible for millions of consumer loans that use the LIBOR will switch borrowers to a new index. The LIBOR is a widely used…

FHA to Require Mortgage Originators to Ask Borrowers about Language Preference

June 27, 2023

NCLC Advocates Praise New Requirement for Use of Supplemental Consumer Information Form WASHINGTON – Today, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Federal Housing Administration (FHA) announced that it will require lenders making FHA-insured mortgage loans to use the Fannie Mae/ Freddie Mac Supplementary Consumer Information Form (SCIF) to collect a mortgage applicant’s language…

Digital Library: Protecting Federal Claims by Using State Courts

June 26, 2023

This article describes advantages and tactics in initiating federal claims in state court and then details a key resource when federal claims are litigated in state court—a just-updated, state-by-state analysis of state court standing rules with a focus on consumer claims. A make-or-break question in much consumer litigation today is: if a case is likely…

New Resources for Student Loan Borrowers

June 22, 2023

Revised StudentLoanBorrowerAssistance.org Provides Resources for Consumers, Reporters BOSTON – In anticipation of an announcement from the U.S. Supreme Court concerning the fate of President Biden’s student debt cancellation plan, the National Consumer Law Center’s Student Loan Borrower Assistance project has launched a newly updated, consumer-facing website with resources and advice for borrowers and for media…

Consumer Advocates Applaud Members of Congress for Supporting FTC Auto Dealer Rule

June 22, 2023

WASHINGTON – Today, U.S. Sen. Ed Markey and U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal led 17 members of Congress in a letter to Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina Khan asking for commonsense rules against abuses in the sale and financing of motor vehicles. A large majority of American consumers rely on their car to get to…

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