This issue brief considers what court-sponsored online dispute resolution (ODR) means for consumers who are sued in debt collection lawsuits by creditors collecting consumer debts and ways that courts may guard against potential problems. Court-sponsored ODR offers a way to resolve court cases online without ever setting foot in court. While ODR has been used…
Earned wage advances (EWA) are a form of payday loan. Fees appear small but can pile up in hidden ways and drain low wages. “Tip”-based fintech payday loans with no connection to wages can be even more expensive, 498% APR or higher, and can trigger overdraft and nonsufficient fund fees. Neither employer-based EWAs nor other…
Consumers with HELOCs have substantially fewer and weaker protections than homeowners with other types of mortgages: The federal Flood Disaster Protection Act does not require servicers to escrow for flood insurance for HELOCs. The Electronic Funds Transfer Act does not apply to HELOCs. The minimum number of loans a lender must originate before becoming subject…
Read More about Home Equity Lines of Credit Gaps in Coverage & Exemptions from Regulations
More than a quarter of households struggle to meet their energy needs. These households frequently face the risk of having their utility service terminated. Low-income families, in particular, spend a substantial portion of their income on electricity and heating. The average low-income household spends around 14% of their annual income on energy bills, compared to…
Read More about Tariff-based On-Bill Financing: Assessing the Risks for Low-Income Consumers
Low- and moderate-income renters have faced tremendous challenges in recent years, including shortages of affordable, decent housing; spiking rent increases; and abuses by corporate and private equity landlords. Contributing to these woes are practices that are regulated by consumer laws, including tenant screening reports, collection of rental debt, and imposition of junk fees. The following reforms are much needed to help struggling renters obtain and keep safe, decent, affordable housing.
Read More about 2024 Consumer Reform Priorities to Protect Tenants
This guide is a resource for anyone interested in safeguarding the rights of homeowners in manufactured home communities through state policy.
Read More about Policy Guide: Protecting Fundamental Freedoms in Communities
For three centuries or more, the common law has prohibited contract provisions that impose a penalty greater than the amount of damages caused by a breach of the contract. When those damages are difficult to determine, the common law permits “liquidated damages” provisions that are reasonably related to the actual damages sustained by the party.…
Credit reports and scores, tenant and employment screening reports, and other background checks all impact fundamental necessities in a consumer’s life: the ability to rent an apartment or buy a home, obtain insurance, find a job, open or keep a bank account, and obtain fairly priced credit. Yet each one of these categories of “consumer…
Read More about 2024 Credit & Consumer Reporting Priorities to Promote Economic Stability
Published 12/12/2022; Updated 2/15/24 A new Guidance from the Department of Justice (Department), issued in coordination with the Department of Education (Education), has the potential to change bankruptcy practice dramatically. Until now, attorneys have not thought of bankruptcy as a way to help clients struggling with student loan debt. If the Guidance is implemented as…
Read More about New Process to Discharge Student Loans in Bankruptcy
Two recent decisions by the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) provide consumer advocates with a new and innovative approach to address affordability and help customers who struggle each month to afford, and remain connected to, essential utility service.
