Press Releases

Both CRL and the American Banker's Association have surveyed accountholders regarding overdraft preferences. CRL's research found that an overwhelming percentage of consumers (80%) would rather have their debit card transaction denied at the counter than be charged an overdraft fee. The ABA's survey concludes most Americans want unexpected overdrafts to be covered for a fee. CRL and the ABA got...

Thank you for being with us today. I want to thank my co-author on this report, Peter Smith, who is also a researcher at the Center for Responsible Lending Our nation is in a crisis of debt that reaches beyond the foreclosure epidemic and deep into the pockets of Americans who are living paycheck-to-paycheck. Banks and Credit Unions compound this...

Americans 55 and over pay $4.5 billion in fees annually for overdraft loans they haven't asked for and typically don't want, a new study by the Center for Responsible Lending finds. Of that, nearly $1 billion is stripped from people heavily dependent on Social Security income. The new report " Shredded Security: Overdraft practices drain fees from older Americans," shows...

New reports from lenders show that families falling behind on their mortgage payments, as well as those facing imminent foreclosure, have reached record highs. The trend indicates the mortgage crisis continues to worsen and is overwhelming the industry's voluntary efforts to help borrowers renegotiate unaffordable home loans. The market has shown that it cannot fix itself. Federal and state policymakers...

One third of the nation's population will soon be free of a practice that has stripped billions per year from the paychecks of low-wealth Americans over the past two decades, as Governor Ted Strickland signs a law today capping interest rates at 28 percent in Ohio. Enforcement of a two-digit rate will save citizens $1.74 billion per year in fifteen...

Bringing an end to the practice of trapping borrowers in 400 percent payday loans, the governor of Ohio promises to sign a 28 percent interest rate cap finalized by the Ohio House today, a reform that passed the State Senate last week and had already passed the Ohio House. The measure had strong bipartisan support, including sponsorship and support by...

New rules on overdraft practices proposed by federal banking regulators represent a significant acknowledgment that something is wrong with the banking system in the U.S., consumer groups said. Unfortunately, the proposed rules will largely fail to protect the billions of dollars in funds stripped from American bank accounts through excessive overdraft fees every year. Representatives from the Consumer Federation of...

Rules Take Positive First Step to Rein in Unjust Interest Rate Hikes and Billing Practices; Groups Call on Congress to Provide Additional Consumer Protections Representatives of national consumer organizations today applauded federal banking regulators for proposing initial rules to curb some abusive credit card lending practices. The groups also called on Congress to provide additional consumer protections not proposed by...

In its April 10, 2008 press release, HOPE NOW claimed that the program, by facilitating voluntary workouts by servicers, has enabled 1.2 million homeowners to stay in their homes. The release touts this statistic, as well as the high proportion of subprime loan workouts comprised by loan modifications, as evidence of the industry's commitment and ability to prevent foreclosures. However...

For more information: Kathleen Day at(202) 349-1871 or kathleen.day@responsiblelending.org; Sharon Reuss at (919) 313-8527 or sharon.reuss@responsiblelending.org; or Ginna Green at (510) 379-5513 or ginna.green@responsiblelending.org.