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The voice of the consumer

When we opened our doors six years ago, we made a commitment to listen to consumers. Their voices guide us as we work to create a marketplace that works better and treats people more fairly.

Over the past six years, we have created a complaint process that allows consumers to share their experiences and creates a method for companies to respond to the concerns and issues raised by their customers. We created resource centers so when consumers have questions about a financial product or service, they have a trusted source to call. We have also incorporated feedback from companies to make it faster and easier for them to respond to complaints by creating a dashboard in their complaint portals.

1. We talk to more than 25,000 consumers every month.

Consumers trust us to provide clear, impartial answers to their questions about consumer financial products and services. More than 25,000 consumers call our U.S.-based Consumer Resource Centers each month to get answers to their questions about financial products and services.

2. We handle more than 20,000 complaints every month. 

When consumers encounter problems with financial products and services, we are available to accept complaints through our website and by telephone, mail, email, fax, and referral. By accepting these complaints, we hear directly from consumers about the challenges they face in the marketplace in real time. As of July 1, 2017, we have handled more than 1,242,800 consumer complaints.

3. We work to get consumers a response.

We bring consumers’ concerns to the attention of financial companies, and assist in addressing their complaints. Complaints are sent to companies for response—typically in less than one day—giving companies the opportunity to respond to their customers when there is a problem or misunderstanding. Companies have provided a timely response to approximately 97 percent of complaints sent to them for a response. 

4. We listen to feedback to continuously improve the process.

After a company responds to a consumer complaint we sent to them, consumers are given the opportunity to provide feedback on the company’s response. We recently released a special edition of our monthly complaint report that takes a closer look at companies’ responses to complaints and consumers’ perspectives on the complaint process and company responses. This report looks at some of the ways we have captured consumer feedback and highlights some of the feedback we receive. 

Consumer feedback—both positive and negative—provides important insights. This feedback informs our efforts to continually improve our complaint process. And to assist companies in their efforts to address issues, we’re working to collect and share more useful consumer feedback with them over time.

As we continue to handle complaints, answer questions, and share and analyze data, we hope to help create a financial marketplace that works better for all.


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