Over the past several years, the CFPB has sought input from a range of stakeholders, including community organizations and financial institutions, to obtain feedback on how to improve consumer financial products and services for Limited English Proficiency (LEP) consumers. As part of these efforts, the CFPB took the following actions: In 2020, it published a request for information regarding challenges faced by LEP consumers and hosted a roundtable to discuss these challenges with stakeholders; In 2021, it published a statement providing compliance principles and guidance on assisting LEP consumers. Recently, the agency published its Language Access Plan, which describes its internal processes and expectations for the industry.
In the plan, the CFPB discusses its recent initiatives, including the agency’s Language Access Task Force (LATF). This task force is “a working group intended to understand, develop, and implement an agency-wide strategy to provide LEP consumers with meaningful access to CFPB information and services.” More specifically, it aims to improve infrastructure for access to financial education resources, develop new programs and enhance consistency in communications, and identify changes needed to remove barriers to financial services.
The CFPB discusses specific efforts it is currently making to enhance access to services for LEP clients, as well as what the Bureau expects from industry participants. First, the CFPB takes into account language accessibility when creating new rules, such as the small business lending rule. For data collection under the rule, the CFPB will provide translated copies of the data collection sample form. Furthermore, the CFPB has published a number of translated booklets intended to help LEP consumers understand their rights and protections, such as protections under fair lending laws. The Bureau also reiterated its 2021 guidance, which “reminded mortgage servicers of their obligation to educate and assist all borrowers, including consumers with LEP, in resolving delinquencies and providing loss mitigation options when transitioning from coronavirus-related mortgage forbearance programs.” In addition to these recommendations, the CFPB again encouraged financial institutions to utilize special purpose credit programs, in order to reach historically underserved communities. As previously reported, last year the CFPB joined with other federal regulators to issue guidance encouraging the use of special purpose credit programs to expand access to credit.
The agency reminds the industry of its 2021 Statement regarding the Provision of Financial Products and Services to Consumers with Limited English Proficiency, which “encourages financial institutions to better serve consumers with limited English proficiency in languages other than English and provides guidance on how financial institutions can increase access to Credit in languages other than English. The statement addresses a number of considerations associated with providing products and services to LEP customers, and identifies approaches for industry participants to address these considerations. For example, the CFPB encourages providing LEP consumers with clear and timely disclosures in languages other than English that describe the extent and limits of any services Linguistic introduction throughout the product life cycle.
Furthermore, the CFPB encourages financial institutions to provide financial information in languages other than English in order to create more opportunities for consumers to access financial services. The statement reminds financial institutions that a number of CFPB model forms are available in English and Spanish, including disclosures required under the TRID Rule for Mortgages, and other commonly used forms. In the past, the CFPB has found that failure to provide account disclosures in languages other than English is an abusive act or practice under the UDAAP. For example, in 2021, the CFPB sued Libre by Nexus, alleging that Libre engaged in abusive acts by using predominantly English-language agreements to sign up customers, even though Libre knew that many of its customers and co-signers did not understand English. It claimed that its employees rushed through the registration process and omitted or misrepresented material terms of its written agreements. The Bureau has also taken enforcement actions for related conduct, such as citing ECOA violations for excluding consumers with Spanish language preferences and Puerto Rican mailing addresses from certain offerings.
Finally, the CFPB describes its internal strategy for expanding access to its content. In addition to its website for Spanish-speaking consumers with translated financial education and information, the CFPB recently created web pages in Arabic, Chinese, Haitian Creole, Korean, Russian, Tagalog, and Vietnamese, in order to reach more consumers. The CFPB also participates in a number of roundtables and working groups in order to gain insight into the challenges faced by LEP consumers.
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The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has recently released its Language Access Plan for Consumers with Limited English Proficiency, aiming to improve accessibility to financial services for individuals who may face language barriers. As a law firm dedicated to advocating for consumer rights, Ballard Spar LLP is committed to staying informed about initiatives and regulations that impact the financial well-being of all consumers. In light of this new Language Access Plan, we are dedicated to ensuring that individuals with limited English proficiency have equal access to financial information and resources, and are prepared to assist clients navigating these regulations to ensure they receive fair and equitable treatment in the financial sector.