Interest Rate, Usury & Other Credit Laws Archives

Beware Holiday Shoppers: Deferred Interest Promotions Promise No Interest Now, but Can Cost Big Bucks Later

November 13, 2019

Boston – As Black Friday approaches, the National Consumer Law Center warns holiday shoppers of a lurking danger in the local mall, big box store or online: deferred interest promotions on credit cards. These promotions entice consumers with promises such as “no interest for 12 months” or “0% interest until December 2020,” but there is…

Advocates Urge FDIC, OCC, Federal Reserve to Stop Banks from Helping Payday Lenders Evade State Interest Rate Limits

November 7, 2019

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 7, 2019 Washington, D.C. – A coalition of 61 consumer, civil rights, and community groups today sent letters to three federal bank regulators urging them not to allow their banks to help payday lenders evade state interest rate limits. The groups sent separate letters to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC),…

Groups: FDIC & OCC Are Wrong to Support Predatory Small Business Lender

October 24, 2019

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 24, 2019 “It sends a terrible signal for the FDIC and OCC to support a predatory lender that used a bank to enable a destructive 120% APR loan.” WASHINGTON, D.C. – Small business advocates, consumer groups, and civil-rights advocates today sent a letter to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) and…

New California Law Targets Long-Term Payday Loans; Will Payday Lenders Evade it?

October 11, 2019

Washington, D.C. – Advocates at the National Consumer Law Center applauded news that California Governor Gavin Newsom late yesterday signed into law AB 539, a bill to stop outrageous interest rates that payday lenders in California are charging on their larger, long-term payday loans, but warned that the payday lenders are already plotting to evade…

Broad Coalition Rebukes Trump-appointed CFPB Director’s Plan to Gut Payday Loan Rule

May 17, 2019

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May 17, 2019 CFPB is required to consider comments on its plan, which would eliminate protections from 300% APR payday loan debt traps House Oversight and Reform subcommittee hearing held on the proposal WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Consumer Law Center (NCLC), as part of a coalition of civil rights, consumer, and…

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Guts Rule to Rein in High-Cost Short-Term Loans

February 14, 2019

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 6, 2019 New Rule Proposal, If Finalized, Will Likely Face a Legal Challenge WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) under the leadership of new director Kathy Kraninger has proposed to largely repeal a common-sense rule that was scheduled to go into effect later this year that would…

Predatory Installment Lending in the States: A Larger and Longer Debt Trap? (2018)

October 1, 2018

Analysis of States’ APR Caps for a $10,000 five-year Installment Loan Everything that is wrong with a high-cost loan is only made worse when the loan is larger and longer. Even when the interest rate is lower than for a short-term payday loan, a larger, longer high-cost loan can be a deeper, longer debt trap.…

Predatory Installment Lending in the States: States Battle to Restrain High-Cost Loans (2017)

October 1, 2017

When the National Consumer Law Center published the report Installment Loans: Will States Protect borrowers From a New Wave of Predatory Lending? in July 2015, predatory installment lenders were moving into the states, seeking statutory authority to make consumer installment loans at sky-high interest rates. The report analyzed which states allowed high-cost installment lending and…

Installment Loans: Will States Protect Borrowers from a New Wave of Predatory Lending? (2015)

July 30, 2015

This National Consumer Law Center survey analyzes the strengths and gaps of the statutes in 50 states and Washington, D.C. that regulate installment loans, a market that is expected to grow as restrictions on payday loans increase.

2015 Report: State Installment Loan Laws Leave Borrowers Vulnerable in New Wave of Predatory Lending

July 30, 2015

NCLC’s 50 State Survey Analyzes Strengths and Gaps in Consumer Protections (BOSTON) Payday lenders are moving into the installment loan market, and state laws vary greatly in whether they protect borrowers from unaffordable rates on longer term loans, according to a new report from the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC). The report analyzes the strengths…

Supreme Court Decision Strikes Blow Against Tribal Online Payday Lenders

May 29, 2014

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) A Supreme Court decision yesterday will have serious repercussions for illegal online payday lenders who claim to be affiliated with a Native American tribe, according to National Consumer Law Center attorneys with expertise in payday lending and tribal sovereign immunity. Although the decision in Michigan v. Bay Mills Indian Community was a victory…

Scorecard Shows Consumers Pay Steep Rates for Small Loans: Financial Reform Should Include a Strong Consumer Financial Protection Agency

May 13, 2010

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Many states are failing to provide adequate protections for consumers against extremely expensive credit according to a new report by the National Consumer Law Center, Consumer Federation of America, and Consumers Union. The Scorecard updates a 2008 report and grades states on how well they protect consumers from excessive interest charges on…

All