The following is a roundup of recent developments in consumer finance during November 2021.

In early November 2021, the CFPB issued an advisory opinion to provide guidance to consumer reporting agencies on their obligations under Section 607(b) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) (15 U.S.C. § 1681e(b)) to follow reasonable procedures to assure maximum possible accuracy of information about a consumer in a consumer report. The advisory opinion:

In a statement announcing the issuance of the advisory opinion, CFPB Director Rohit Chopra:

On November 17, 2021, the US Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, in Richard Hunstein v. Preferred Collection and Management Services, Inc., on its own agreed to a rehearing by the full Eleventh Circuit ( (11th Cir. Nov. 17, 2021)) and vacated the substitute decision it issued on October 28, 2021 ( (11th Cir. Oct. 28, 2021)). The substitute decision, which was from the same panel of judges that issued a decision on April 21, 2021 (original decision) (994 F.3d 1341 (11th Cir. Apr. 21, 2021)) (see Legal Update, Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals Holds Debt Collector Disclosure of Debt Information to a Vendor is a Communication to a Third Party Prohibited by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA)), had vacated the original decision. but reached the same conclusions as the original decision (that is, that the plaintiff consumer had standing to sue and the defendant debt collector's disclosure of information about the plaintiff and his debt to a mail vendor constituted a communication to a third party in connection with the collection of any debt within the meaning of Section 805(b) of the Fair Debt Collection Practice Act (FDCPA) (15 U.S.C. § 1692c(b))). However, while the original decision was unanimous, one of the judges dissented from the substitute decision about whether the plaintiff had standing. This dissent may have prompted the rehearing by the full Eleventh Circuit.

New York enacted a new law, Banking Law 28-bb effective November 1, 2022, extending the state’s version of the federal Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) to non-bank lenders. The federal CRA, enacted in 1978, requires banks to lend adequately to meet the credit needs of the communities where they take deposits, specifically including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods. Following the 2008 financial crisis, non-bank lenders increased their market share and are now responsible for a majority of mortgage originations in New York State and nationally. New York’s new law follows a recent investigation and report by the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) regarding potential redlining in Buffalo, New York which included findings of a "distinct lack of lending" by mortgage lenders, particularly non-bank lenders, in neighborhoods with majority-minority populations and to minority homebuyers in general. With this legislation, New York joins two other states, Massachusetts and Illinois, in extending CRA mandates to non-bank lenders. In addition, there are efforts underway at the federal level to modernize the federal CRA to deal with nontraditional lenders and explicitly address race.

On November 8, 2021, New York State enacted the Consumer Credit Fairness Act (CCFA). The CCFA amends the New York State Civil Practice Law and Rules (CPLR) to provide for the following in any action on a consumer credit transaction:

The amendment providing for a three-year statute of limitations will be effective 150 days after enactment of the CCFA, and all other amendments will be effective 180 days after enactment of the CCFA.