Consumers gave overwhelming positive feedback for payday lenders on the website of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which an industry group is touting ahead of a deadline on a rule that lenders have warned could shutter the industry.
Of 12,546 comments on payday lending posted through the bureau’s “Tell Your Story” portal, 12,308 reflected positively on the industry, according to the Community Financial Services Association of America, an industry group for payday lenders.
The group, which obtained the comments through an open records request from the agency, argued that the positive feedback discredits the agency’s effort to crack down on the industry with new rules it fears will effectively put a stop to payday lending. The rules, which the bureau proposed in June with a comment period ending in October, are an “ideological crusade” that ignores “the positive experiences shared by consumers,” said Dennis Shaul, the group’s CEO.
Anyone can submit comments through the bureau’s “Tell Your Story” application, and some payday lenders, such as Advance America, encouraged their customers to do so.
The vast majority of the comments viewed by the Washington Examiner involved a very brief statement in favor of access to payday loans, which the bureau has said trap too many borrowers in a cycle of reliance on high-interest loans.
Some were submitted by payday lending employees who stated that they worried they would lose their jobs. Others expressly called on the bureau to stay out of regulating the industry.
“It feels like the same government that tries to tax us is also trying to take away our ability to pay those taxes when we don’t have the cash. It’s almost like I can never win,” read one comment, submitted in January.
Some of the comments described situations in which the customers needed money quickly to pay utility bills or taxes. Others praised the service. “I come here to get loans because your staff is so friendly,” read one. “Also, I suck at managing my money and have too many bills but not enough money.”
Some of the critical comments described loans as deceptive about the interest rate, complained that the interest rate was too high, or criticized debt collection efforts.
Payday lenders have argued that they receive few official complaints, which are submitted separately to the bureau. The comments provide an additional talking point as they attempt to push back against the planned rules.
