The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is no longer publishing “unverified complaint narratives and visualizations,” the agency announced Aug. 14. .Complaint narratives are first-person descriptions consumers write outlining their personal experiences and issues with financial services and products. The stories had been published in the CFPB’s consumer complaint database since 2012, after personal identifying information had been scrubbed. According to the bureau, complaint narratives show one-sided, negative consumer experiences. The CFPB states the complaints do not always show legal violations, and the complaint process fails to verify each allegation.The CFPB alleges publishing the narratives does not provide consumers “with a balanced and accurate view” of whether companies comply with legal obligations. According to the bureau, that risks “confusing and misleading consumers,” while unnecessarily harming the reputation of reputable companies. “As the CFPB has long acknowledged, the publication in the consumer complaint database of unverified complaint narratives and associated data visualizations is entirely discretionary,” according to the bureau. “Many years of experience have demonstrated that the utility of such publication is minimal.” The National Consumer Law Center criticized the decision, saying it would protect large corporations from scrutiny. “Hiding the consumer narratives and concealing the wrongdoing of corporations and powerful interests, that’s what you do if you’re afraid of the truth,” said Deputy Director Diane Thompson. “Nothing could be a clearer sign of the Trump CFPB’s choice to stand against ordinary people and for corporate power and predation.”
