The CFPB and New York Attorney General have agreed to a settlement with Sterling Jewelers Inc. of a lawsuit they filed jointly in a New York federal district court alleging federal and state law violations in connection with credit cards issued by Sterling that could only be used to finance purchases made in the company’s stores.  The proposed Stipulated Final Order and Judgment, which requires Sterling to pay a $10 million civil money penalty to the CFPB and a $1 million civil money penalty to the State of New York, represents the second settlement of an enforcement matter announced by the CFPB under Kathy Kraninger’s leadership as CFPB Director.  (In addition to a civil money penalty, the other settlement required the payment of consumer restitution.)

The complaint contains three counts asserted by the CFPB and NYAG alleging unfair or deceptive acts or practices in violation of the Consumer Financial Protection Act based on the following alleged conduct by Sterling:

• Representing to consumers that they were completing a survey, enrolling in a rewards program, or checking on the amount of credit for which the consumer would qualify when, in fact, either the consumer or a Sterling employee was completing a credit application for the consumer without his or her knowledge or consent
• Misrepresenting financing terms to consumers, including interest rates, monthly payment amounts, and eligibility for promotional financing
• Enrolling consumers for payment protection plan insurance (PPPI) without informing them that they were being enrolled or misleading them about what they were signing up for

This alleged conduct is also the basis of two counts alleging state law violations asserted only by the NYAG.

In another count asserted only by the CFPB, Sterling is alleged to have violated TILA and Regulation Z by issuing credit cards to consumers without their knowledge or consent and not in response to an oral or written request for the card.  This alleged TILA/Reg Z violation is also the basis for a count alleging a state law violation asserted only by the NYAG as well as a count alleging a CFPA violation asserted by both the CFPB and NYAG.

In addition to requiring payment of the civil money penalties, the settlement prohibits Sterling from continuing to engage in the alleged unlawful practices and to “maintain policies and procedures related to sales of credit cards and any related add-on products, such as [PPPI], that are reasonably designed to ensure consumer consent is obtained before any such product is sold or issued to a consumer.  Such policies and procedures must include provisions for capturing and retaining consumer signatures and other evidence of consent for such products and services.”  By not requiring consumer restitution, the settlement differs from consent orders entered into by the CFPB under the leadership of former Director Cordray that required restitution by companies that had allegedly enrolled consumers in a product without their consent.