CFPB Says ECOA Applies to an Accounts Full Life Cycle, including Collection Procedures

On May 9, 2022, the CFPB announced it issued an advisory opinion stating that in its opinion, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act (ECOA) applies to every aspect of dealing with a creditor, not just to the credit application process. The advisory opinion indicates ECOA protections apply to revocation, collection procedures, alteration or termination of credit, and anything else that takes place after credit has been extended.  

ECOA  bans credit discrimination based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, and age. It also protects those receiving money from any public assistance program or exercising their rights under certain consumer protection laws. According to CFPB Director Rohit Chopra, the advisory opinion "makes clear that anti-discrimination protections do not vanish once a customer obtains a loan."

To explain why anti-discrimination protections continue after a customer obtains a loan, the advisory opinion walked through the history of ECOA, Regulation B, and their amendments. Specifically, the opinion points out how ECOA and Regulation B refer to accounts in the past tense and refer to debtors. According to the CFPB, despite this "well-established interpretation,"  the advisory opinion is necessary because some creditors fail to acknowledge that ECOA and Regulation B plainly apply to events that take place after credit has been granted.

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