If a loan you signed doesn't match the payments, fees, or terms you're being charged, you can dispute it without filing a lawsuit first. Start with the contract and your records.
Did the final paperwork look nothing like the pitch?
U.S. consumers can send that dispute to the lender first, then to the CFPB, and in some cases to the FDIC, the FTC, or a state attorney general. None of those portals rewrite your contract on the spot. They do force a company response, and they create a dated file if you later need help.
What is worth putting in a loan contract complaint
A complaint works better when you can point to a fee, rate, payment, or clause that doesn't match the signed deal or a disclosure you were given. "This feels predatory" is not a fact a caseworker can verify.
Undisclosed origination charges and payments that never hit principal are the kinds of issues a company can actually check. Rollover fees you didn't clearly accept fall in that bucket too.
Auto finance files often turn on add-on products you didn't want and a repo that ignored a payment. Mortgage files more often turn on escrow, a bad payoff quote, or a servicing transfer you never heard about.
There is no single federal APR cap for every consumer loan. People repeat "36%" as if it were a nationwide ceiling.
That number is mainly a Military Lending Act benchmark for covered borrowers. Your state's payday and usury rules may be tighter, looser, or structured as a fee cap instead of an APR. Read the state rule, not a social post.
Records that actually move a dispute
Thing is, adjectives don't get fees reversed. Dates and documents do.
Before you open a government form, collect the signed note or retail installment contract, any later change, the closing or TILA papers, and a payment history that matches your bank records. Emails, texts, and a simple call log help too.
- The signed contract, plus any modification
- Closing disclosures, TILA boxes, or payday and title paperwork
- Lender payment history and matching bank records
- Emails, texts, chats, and dated call notes
- Collection, default, or repossession notices
- Credit reports if the account was reported wrong
Keep copies. Don't send originals.
Write the lender before you write the government
Banks and servicers expect a direct dispute before a regulator gets involved, and the FDIC process is built around that order. Write the company first if you still can.
The FDIC consumer complaint process tells you to contact the bank, and its Consumer Response Unit generally responds within 14 days after you file with them. That 14-day clock is the FDIC's, not the bank's courtesy window.
Put the account number, the error, the dollar amount, and the fix you want in one letter or email. Certified mail is worth it for large fees.
If you already called three times and each person promised a note on the account that never appeared, write those calls down anyway, names if you have them, because that messy log still shows you tried to fix this in order, and companies do look at that sequence when they answer a later complaint.
Give a date by which you want a written answer. Thirty days is a common, practical ask. It is not a universal legal deadline for every loan.
Mortgage servicing errors use a different letter
Home loans have a federal error process under 12 CFR 1024.35. It is a letter to the servicer.
- Say the letter is a Notice of Error under 12 CFR 1024.35.
- Identify the loan and describe the error in order.
- State the correction you want.
- Send it to the servicer's qualified-request address, not a random branch.
Covered errors include a payment that was accepted but not applied to principal, interest, or escrow; fees the servicer had no reasonable basis to impose; escrow mistakes; and wrong payoff or reinstatement figures.
The servicer generally must acknowledge the notice within five business days and respond within 30 business days. Some foreclosure-related claims run faster. You can also treat the same letter as a Qualified Written Request if you need account information.
How to file a CFPB complaint
Submit a CFPB complaint if the company ignores you or the answer is wrong. You can file online, by phone, or by mail to PO Box 27170, Washington, DC 20038.
The Bureau currently takes complaints about mortgages, payday loans, personal loans, vehicle loans, credit cards, debt collection, and credit reports. Other products sit on that list too.
Companies generally respond in 15 days. You'll get email updates and can check status. After the company replies, you have 60 days to comment on that response.
Turns out the files that get a real look are the short ones with attachments. Lead with the product, the date you signed, the amount in dispute, and what you already asked the lender to do. Skip the life story.
The CFPB is not your lawyer. It routes the complaint, tracks the company's answer, and uses the data to watch the market.
Other places that handle the same problem
Use more than one door when the facts fit.
| If the issue is... | Try... | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Most consumer loans, mortgages, payday, or auto credit | CFPB | The company generally must respond, and you can comment on the answer |
| An FDIC-insured bank | FDIC Consumer Response | Bank-focused process; they generally respond in 14 days |
| A car dealer's add-ons, ads, or sale practices | FTC auto resources | Dealer conduct, not only the finance company |
| State rate caps, payday rules, or unfair trade practices | Your state attorney general's consumer complaint page | State law the federal portals may not enforce the same way |
If the lender reported the balance or status wrong, dispute that separately with Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion. A regulator complaint does not automatically fix the credit file.
Payday, auto, and personal loans follow different facts
Payday and title products usually turn on rollovers, repeated ACH hits, and state fee caps. File with the CFPB and your state attorney general.
Don't rest the whole case on a federal payday rule you saw quoted online. State caps and the written contract usually matter more. 12 CFR Part 1041 covers some payday, vehicle title, and high-cost installment loans, but it is not a simple nationwide rate cap you can paste into a form and win. That's the 36% myth again, just wearing payday clothes.
Auto finance fights often start at the dealership. Keep the buyer's order, the add-on menu, and every payment receipt. Servicer errors still go to the CFPB. Dealer advertising and add-on tricks can go to the FTC and the state AG.
Personal installment loans from a bank or credit union still belong at the CFPB. Add the FDIC path if the bank is FDIC-insured.
Limits you should plan around
A portal ticket, to be honest, will not freeze a foreclosure sale or stop a tow truck on its own. Call legal aid the same day if a sale is set.
Arbitration clauses, if you signed one, can limit court. This article can't void that clause for you.
A CFPB or FDIC file is not a substitute for a lawsuit, a bankruptcy, or a negotiated modification. Those are separate tracks. Legal aid may be available if you qualify. A private lawyer makes more sense when the dollars are large or the facts are messy.
Pull the contract and the last three statements. Circle the fee or payment that doesn't match. Send that in writing to the lender, keep the proof, and file with the CFPB if they don't fix it.