The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau forwards complaints about credit cards, loans, and credit reports to companies and tracks the reply. Here is how the process works and what to prepare before you file.
This article is general information and isn’t financial or legal advice. Card terms, fees and rules change, so check the issuer’s current terms and official sources such as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Federal Trade Commission before you decide.
The essentials
- The CFPB accepts complaints about credit cards, credit reports, mortgages, bank accounts, student loans, debt collection, and vehicle and other consumer loans.
- Credit report errors must be disputed with the credit bureau first; federal law requires that step before the CFPB handles a complaint on the issue.
- Most companies reply within 15 days, and answers typically arrive within 15 to 60 days of submission.
- Repeat filings about the same issue are generally not accepted, so put key dates, amounts, and up to 50 pages of documents into the first submission.
- You can track your complaint online or by calling (855) 411-CFPB (2372), and you can give feedback on the company’s response.
When a financial company will not fix a problem, a complaint to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau puts your issue in front of that company with a federal agency tracking the reply. Filing is free, and it happens online or over the phone. This starter guide explains what the bureau can help with, what to write, and which deadlines to expect.
What the CFPB Is and What It Can Help With
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, usually shortened to CFPB, is a U.S. government agency that works to make sure banks, lenders, and other financial companies treat consumers fairly. Congress created it in 2010 following the 2007 to 2008 financial crisis. Among its other duties, it supervises banks and credit unions with assets over $10 billion and can bring enforcement actions, including fines, when it finds violations of federal consumer financial law.
One of its main tools for consumers is a complaint portal on the CFPB’s website. You can submit a complaint there or call (855) 411-CFPB (2372), toll free. The bureau accepts complaints about credit cards, credit reports and other personal consumer reports, mortgages, bank accounts and services, student loans, debt collection, and vehicle and other consumer loans. Credit card complaints have been accepted since July 2011, and the list has grown since then.
The volume is substantial: each week, the bureau passes along more than 100,000 complaints and asks the companies involved to reply. When a different agency is in a better position to help, the complaint goes there instead, and the bureau tells you about the handoff.
When a Complaint Makes Sense
A CFPB complaint works best as a second step, not a first one. Companies can usually answer questions specific to your situation and their products, so a direct call or written request often resolves the problem faster. You are not required to contact the company first, but trying can save you a step.
There is one legal prerequisite to know about. If your complaint is about inaccurate or incomplete information on your credit report, federal law requires you to dispute that information directly with the consumer reporting agency, commonly called a credit bureau, before filing with the CFPB. A dispute is a formal claim that a specific item is wrong. The credit bureau must investigate and update your file within 30 days, and it must also contact the company that supplied the information. If that investigation does not fix the problem, a CFPB complaint is the documented next step. Our walkthrough of how to read your credit report can help you pin down which items are wrong before you start.
If the problem involves accounts a thief opened in your name, the sequence changes. What to do if someone opens credit in your name explains that path, which includes blocking fraudulent debts from appearing on your report.
What to Include and How to Submit It
Start by creating an account with the CFPB. You will enter your name, email address, and phone number, choose a password, and verify your email. Then a guided form walks you through two choices: the product or service your complaint concerns, and the specific problem you are having.
What makes a complaint effective is clarity. The bureau’s own advice is to describe the problem in your own words, plainly and concisely, and to stick to the dates, dollar figures, and exchanges with the company that actually matter to the story. A short chronology often works well: what happened, when it happened, what you asked for, and how the company replied.
Supporting documents matter. Attach account statements, letters, or emails that back up your account of events. The limit is 50 pages, so pick the strongest items and keep your originals.
A few practical requirements:
- You will need to give your address; the company has no way to reply to you without it.
- Pick the company from the list the form provides. If it is not listed, provide complete contact information for it, and the bureau will tell you what to do next if it cannot forward the complaint.
- If you are filing on behalf of someone else, explain how you know that person and state that you are submitting for them.
- Say what you want the company to do, such as correct a record, refund a fee, or stop a practice.
Smart move
A repeat filing about the same issue is generally not accepted, so put everything that matters into your first submission: dates, amounts, names, and copies of key messages.
The Company’s Response Timeline
Once you submit, the CFPB reviews the complaint and forwards it to the company, asking for a response. Most companies reply within 15 days. Across all complaints, answers typically arrive within 15 to 60 days of submission.
You do not have to wonder where things stand. You can check the status on the CFPB’s website or by calling (855) 411-CFPB (2372), and the bureau sends email updates as your complaint moves along. When the company responds, you get an email telling you the response is ready to read.
| Stage | What happens |
|---|---|
| You submit | You describe the problem, attach up to 50 pages of documents, and pick the company. |
| CFPB routes | The bureau reviews the complaint and forwards it to the company, or to another agency if that one is better placed to help. |
| Company responds | Most companies reply within 15 days; answers typically arrive within 15 to 60 days. |
| You review | The bureau emails you, and you log in to read the response and give feedback. |
What Happens if You Disagree With the Response
After the company replies, log back in and read what it said. The portal lets you give feedback on the response, and that feedback feeds into the bureau’s broader work supervising companies, enforcing federal consumer financial laws, and writing rules. Every complaint, whatever the outcome, gives the agency insight into the problems consumers actually run into.
If the response does not resolve things, your options narrow somewhat. Because the bureau generally does not accept repeat filings for the same issue, the usual next steps are keeping careful records of what was said, raising the issue with your state attorney general or a local consumer protection office, or talking with a qualified professional, such as a legal aid office, about your situation. Remember that the response you read is the company’s account of events, not a ruling the bureau issued.
Other Regulators and When They Handle It
The CFPB covers financial products and services, so some problems belong elsewhere. For phone, internet, and cable companies and other nonfinancial businesses, USA.gov lists the places to submit complaints.
A few other names are worth knowing. The Federal Trade Commission handles problems with credit repair organizations and takes reports of fraud or deception through its own reporting site; the FTC does not resolve individual reports, but each report helps it spot patterns of misconduct. Debt collection sits in shared territory: the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act limits how and when collectors can contact you about covered debts, and the CFPB accepts complaints about debt collection as well. Your state attorney general can also take complaints about businesses operating in your state.
With your documents gathered, the sensible first step is small: write a one-paragraph summary of what happened, with the three or four most important dates and amounts, and keep it beside your statements before you start the form.
Questions and answers
Do I have to contact the company before filing with the CFPB?
No, but it often helps. Companies can usually answer questions specific to your situation, and a direct request sometimes resolves the issue without a formal complaint. Credit report errors are the exception: you must dispute those with the credit bureau first.
How long does the company have to respond?
Most companies reply within 15 days of getting the complaint. Across all complaints, answers typically arrive within 15 to 60 days of submission.
What if my complaint is about a phone, internet, or cable company?
The CFPB handles financial products and services, so those industries fall outside its complaint portal. USA.gov lists the places to submit complaints about phone, internet, cable, and other companies.
Can I file a complaint for a family member?
Yes, but you must explain how you know the person and confirm in the filing that you are acting on their behalf. You will also need to provide an address so the company is able to respond.