Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Director Richard Cordray defended a decision to make consumer complaints public while speaking at the Brookings Institution on Tuesday.
“God forbid that people should know what other people are actually saying and complaints about these companies,” Cordray told the audience. “And by the way, they say those things on many websites having nothing to do with the consumer bureau.”
The CFPB built the consumer feedback portal as required by Congress, without knowing what the volume of complaints would be, but that number is now “enormous and growing,” Cordray said. The CFPB monitors the pattern of those complaints to prioritize enforcement and supervision work, something the bureau believes the industry can use as a learning tool, as well.
“Notably, we thought it was important for the industry to be able to see, not only what they now see — which is what their own customers tell them about their products – but what kind of problems might exist in the industry at other providers,” Cordray said. “And that’s something they can learn from and avoid problems, or see if they’re doing better or worse, and respond accordingly. That’s important information; they didn’t have access to that before.”