While the CFPB handles many federal consumer finance complaints, a significant portion of consumer protection law in the US is state-specific. Your state attorney general's office and your state financial regulator are important resources, particularly for complaints about unlicensed lenders, debt collection abuses, scams and unfair business practices that may violate state law.
State attorneys general are the chief law enforcement officers of their states. Their consumer protection divisions typically handle complaints involving consumer fraud and deceptive business practices, unlicensed lenders or debt collectors operating without proper state authorisation, data privacy violations and data breaches that affect state residents, debt collection abuses under state consumer protection statutes, scams targeting consumers including impersonation fraud and advance fee schemes, and price gouging or misleading advertising. Filing a complaint with your state AG does not guarantee a specific individual outcome, but it contributes to patterns of information that regulators may use to investigate and potentially take enforcement action against companies that have harmed many consumers.
These are different offices with different functions, and it is worth understanding which one is more relevant to your situation. The state attorney general is a law enforcement officer focused primarily on consumer protection, fraud prevention and prosecution of legal violations. The state financial regulator, sometimes called the Division of Banking, the Department of Financial Institutions, or a similar name, specifically licences and supervises banks, credit unions, mortgage lenders, money service businesses and other financial firms operating under state law. If you have a complaint about a licensed lender's conduct, the state financial regulator may be the right first stop, while the state AG is better suited to fraud or unlicensed activity. In many situations, contacting both is appropriate.
Go to usa.gov/state-attorney-general to find the name, website and contact information for your state's attorney general. Most state AG offices have an online consumer complaint form that lets you submit a complaint directly. When filing, be as specific as possible about the company name, dates, amounts involved and the nature of the conduct. Attach any relevant documents. The AG's office will typically acknowledge receipt and may follow up with you or refer the complaint to the appropriate division.
The Conference of State Bank Supervisors (CSBS) maintains a directory of state financial regulators at csbs.org. Each state's regulator entry includes contact information and links to their official website. The NMLS Consumer Access tool at nmlsconsumeraccess.org also links through to individual state regulator websites from the licensing detail pages of registered companies.
If a company's behaviour may violate both federal and state law, filing complaints with both the CFPB and your state AG covers both levels of oversight. This is particularly relevant for debt collection abuses, where the FDCPA provides federal protections and many states have additional statutes that go further. State-level action can sometimes move faster for local issues, particularly where a company is operating specifically in your state without proper state licences. For unlicensed lending or collection activity, the state AG and state financial regulator are often the most directly relevant bodies, since they have jurisdiction over who is allowed to operate in the state. Using both federal and state complaint channels creates a more complete record and broadens the regulatory attention that may be applied to the company.
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This page is general educational information only. It is not financial, legal, tax, credit or debt advice. Rules and regulations can change. Always verify current information with official sources before taking any action.