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Consumers Made a Record Number of CFPB Complaints in 2020
March 1, 2021
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau received a record number of complaints from U.S. consumers last year, according to a study from the U.S. Public Interest Research Group.
The watchdog group analyzed the CFPB’s consumer complaint database and found that complaints about consumer financial products and services surged more than 50% in 2020 as compared to the year before. This amounts to 444,551 complaints for the year, up from the previous record of 277,366, set in 2019.
Far and away the most common complaint was about incorrect information with regards to credit reporting. The number of credit reporting complaints more than doubled from 136,000 in 2019 to 282,000 in 2020. They accounted for 63% of all complaints made for the year. The big three credit reporting agencies announced last April that, in response to the pandemic, they would offer Americans weekly free credit reports. Analysts believe that this may have led to more consumers challenging items on their credit report and making complaints to the CFPB.
