Research Service Offers CFPB Complaint Analysis by Congressional District

The Congressional Research Service can provide data for congressional offices

The Congressional Research Service can provide a breakdown of complaints filed with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau by congressional district, the CRS said in a new report.

Members of Congress and congressional staff who want information about CFPB consumer complaints in their congressional districts or states compared with the entire nation may contact the CRS with their request, according to the report.

The research service said that the CFPB often publishes information containing consumer complaint statistics. In addition, the CFPB’s interactive webpage allows consumers to see complaint trends by state. Each Spring, the CFPB sends Congress a report on consumer complaint trends. The CRS can narrow the analysis down even further for congressional offices.

“The CFPB uses consumer complaints to monitor consumer financial markets, prioritize the supervision of companies, enforce consumer financial laws, and support other CFPB activities,” the CRS said. The CRS said based on the database, it can provide a one-page analysis containing the total number of complaints filed by consumers in a particular district.

When a consumer files a complaint with the CFPB, the agency sends it to the company that is the subject of the complaint. The company is given 15 days to respond. If that response is not final, the company has up to 60 days to provide a final response. The complaint is then published in the CFPB’s complaint database.

The CFPB has received more than 4.6 million complaints since the agency was created under the Dodd-Frank Act

“Credit reporting is by far the most common product category about which consumers complain, accounting for 80.5% of the complaints,” the CRS said. “The next most common products are debt collection, making up 5.5% of complaints, followed by credit or prepaid cards, checking or savings accounts, and mortgages.”