Austin’s EZCorp to pay $10.5 million to settle federal claims
Federal regulators have ordered Austin-based payday lending and pawnshop chain EZCorp Inc. to pay $10.5 million in refunds and penalties for illegal debt collection practices, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said Wednesday.
EZCorp is one of the nation’s largest pawnshop operators and, prior to July, operated payday lending services in 15 states, making short-term, unsecured loans. On July 29, EZCorp said it would stop offering those loans in the United States.
While operating the lending service, EZCorp employed tactics including “illegal visits to consumers at their homes and workplaces, empty threats of legal action, lying about consumers’ rights, and exposing consumers to bank fees through unlawful electronic withdrawals,” the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said.
The agency ordered EZCorp to refund $7.5 million to 93,000 consumers, to pay $3 million in penalties and to stop collection of remaining payday and installment loan debts owed by 130,000 consumers.
Read more: http://www.mystatesman.com/news/business/austins-ezcorp-to-pay-10-million-to-settle-federal/npk3G/?icmp=statesman_internallink_referralbox_free-to-premium-referral
