Mississippi AG and CFPB Complaint Pack

MISSISSIPPI AG AND CFPB COMPLAINT PACK

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Consumer Information Sheet
2. Subject Company / Respondent Information
3. Narrative Statement of Facts
4. Form A — Mississippi AG Consumer Protection Division Complaint
5. Form B — CFPB Complaint
6. Document Inventory
7. Filing Checklist and Tracking Log
8. Coordination with Private Action and BBB Filing
9. Mississippi Practice Notes
10. Sources and References

1. CONSUMER INFORMATION SHEET

2. SUBJECT COMPANY / RESPONDENT INFORMATION

3. NARRATIVE STATEMENT OF FACTS

3.1. On or about [DATE], I [PURCHASED / FINANCED / APPLIED FOR / SUBSCRIBED TO / OTHERWISE TRANSACTED] the following from the Subject Company: [DESCRIBE PRODUCT OR SERVICE]. The transaction amount was $[AMOUNT].

3.2. The transaction was [primarily for personal, family, or household purposes / for business purposes / mixed — describe].

3.3. The Subject Company engaged in the following conduct that I believe violates the Mississippi Consumer Protection Act and/or federal consumer-protection law:

• [DESCRIBE — false advertising / misrepresentation of price, quantity, quality, or characteristics / bait-and-switch / unauthorized charges / undisclosed fees / failure to deliver / refusal to honor warranty / abusive debt-collection practices / inaccurate credit reporting / unauthorized use of personal information / data breach / other];
• [DESCRIBE — date of conduct, persons involved, statements made, written communications];
• [DESCRIBE — actions I took to address the issue, including direct contact with company, return of merchandise, dispute, or stop-payment].

3.4. As a direct result, I have suffered the following harm: $[ACTUAL OUT-OF-POCKET LOSS] in monetary damages, plus [describe non-monetary harm — credit report impact, time lost, anxiety, etc.].

3.5. The relief I am seeking from the Subject Company is: [refund of $______ / cancellation of contract / correction of credit report / cease unlawful practice / restitution / written apology / other].

3.6. I have / have not previously filed a complaint regarding this matter with: ☐ Better Business Bureau ☐ Mississippi AG ☐ CFPB ☐ FTC ☐ State licensing agency ☐ Other: [DESCRIBE].

3.7. I have / have not retained legal counsel: [ATTORNEY NAME / FIRM, if any].

4. FORM A — MISSISSIPPI AG CONSUMER PROTECTION DIVISION COMPLAINT

4.1. Filing Channels

The Mississippi Attorney General's Consumer Protection Division accepts complaints by the following channels:

• Online portal: https://portal.ago.ms.gov/public/?q=node/403
• Email: [email protected] (or [email protected])
• Mail: Office of the Attorney General, Consumer Protection Division, P.O. Box 22947, Jackson, MS 39225-2947
• Fax: (601) 359-4231
• Phone (intake / status): (601) 359-4230 (consumer hotline) or (601) 359-3680 (Consumer Protection main line)

4.2. Complaint Form Content

4.3. Authorization

I, [CONSUMER NAME], authorize the Mississippi Attorney General's Office and its agents to:

• Forward this complaint to the Subject Company for response;
• Share this complaint with other state and federal agencies (FTC, CFPB, BBB, USPS Inspection Service, state regulators);
• Investigate the matter, including the issuance of subpoenas under Miss. Code Ann. § 75-24-11;
• Use the information in any civil enforcement action under Miss. Code Ann. § 75-24-9 or § 75-24-19.

I understand that the Attorney General's Office cannot represent me as a private attorney and that the AG's enforcement function is to obtain remedies on behalf of the State and consumers generally. I understand that filing this complaint does not, by itself, satisfy the private-action prerequisite of Miss. Code Ann. § 75-24-15(2).

Signed: [________________________________] Date: [__/__/____]

5. FORM B — CFPB COMPLAINT

5.1. Filing Channels

• Online (preferred): https://www.consumerfinance.gov/complaint/
• Phone: (855) 411-CFPB (2372) | TTY/TDD: (855) 729-CFPB (2372)
• Mail: Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, P.O. Box 2900, Clinton, IA 52733-2900
• Fax: (855) 237-2392

5.2. Complaint Form Content

5.3. Process Notes

• CFPB forwards the complaint to the company within ~15 days.
• The company has 60 days to respond substantively.
• The consumer can dispute the company's response within 60 days.
• The CFPB publishes complaints (with narrative if authorized) in its public Consumer Complaint Database.

6. DOCUMENT INVENTORY

7. FILING CHECKLIST AND TRACKING LOG

8. COORDINATION WITH PRIVATE ACTION AND BBB FILING

8.1. AG complaint is NOT the MCPA pre-suit prerequisite. Filing a complaint with the Attorney General does not satisfy the informal-dispute prerequisite of Miss. Code Ann. § 75-24-15(2). To preserve a private MCPA action, the consumer must complete a separate BBB (or other AG-approved) informal dispute settlement process and document its outcome. Plan to file BOTH an AG complaint AND a BBB complaint where the consumer wishes to retain the option of private MCPA litigation.

8.2. BBB filing. The Better Business Bureau Serving Mississippi (https://www.bbb.org/local-bbb/bbb-of-mississippi) accepts online complaints. After filing, the BBB forwards the complaint to the company for response (typically 14 days, then a follow-up). The BBB process is non-binding. Document (a) the date of filing, (b) all correspondence, (c) the company's response or non-response, and (d) the BBB's closure of the case. These records establish the § 75-24-15(2) prerequisite if a private action is later filed.

8.3. CFPB filing. CFPB filing is appropriate when the Subject Company is a covered "financial institution" under the Consumer Financial Protection Act (banks, credit unions, debt collectors, CRAs, mortgage servicers, payday lenders, consumer-finance lenders, etc.). CFPB filing is independent of and does not interfere with state-level remedies.

8.4. FDCPA / FCRA private actions. Federal consumer-protection statutes (FDCPA, FCRA, EFTA, TILA, RESPA, TCPA) provide their own private rights of action without any AG / BBB prerequisite. Filing AG and CFPB complaints does not waive or impair these federal claims. Calendar federal limitations periods (FDCPA: 1 year; FCRA: 2 years from discovery / 5 years from violation; TCPA: 4 years) independently.

8.5. Statute of limitations. Filing an AG or CFPB complaint generally does NOT toll any state or federal limitations period. Track all deadlines independently.

9. MISSISSIPPI PRACTICE NOTES

• AG Consumer Protection Division is the principal Mississippi consumer-relief vehicle. The AG enforces the MCPA (§ 75-24-9), the Mississippi data-breach statute (§ 75-24-29), the No-Call Law, antitrust laws, and a number of industry-specific statutes (insurance, securities, charitable solicitation). The AG has subpoena power (§ 75-24-11), can seek injunctions, and can recover civil penalties up to $10,000 per violation plus restitution (§ 75-24-19). The AG's Consumer Protection Division (Director: Crystal Utley Secoy) is staffed to handle large volumes of consumer complaints and is often the most effective non-litigation path.
• MCPA private right is narrow. § 75-24-15(1) limits private actions to consumers who purchased goods or services "primarily for personal, family or household purposes." § 75-24-15(2) requires a "reasonable attempt to resolve any claim through an informal dispute settlement program approved by the Attorney General" — in practice the BBB. § 75-24-15(4) bars class actions. § 75-24-15(1) authorizes recovery of loss of money or property and discretionary attorney's fees, but does NOT authorize punitive damages (pursue under Miss. Code Ann. § 11-1-65 if warranted).
• Data-breach statute provides no private right. Miss. Code Ann. § 75-24-29 requires notification of security breaches involving "personal information" but expressly provides no private right of action. The AG enforces violations as unfair trade practices. Substantial breach-related civil recovery in Mississippi typically depends on (a) common-law negligence, (b) federal statutes, or (c) participation in a multistate class action filed under another state's private-right statute.
• No state debt-collection licensing. Mississippi has no state debt-collection licensing statute. Debt collectors are regulated principally under the federal FDCPA, with the MCPA's general unfair-practices prohibition supplying a thin state overlay (constrained by the BBB-mediation prerequisite).
• Industry-specific regulators. For financial services, complaints may also be filed with the Mississippi Department of Banking and Consumer Finance (601-321-6901; https://dbcf.ms.gov). For insurance, the Mississippi Insurance Department (601-359-3569; https://www.mid.ms.gov). For securities, the Mississippi Secretary of State Business Services Division (601-359-1334).
• No-Call complaints. The AG operates a separate No-Call complaint portal at https://nocallportal.ago.ms.gov/ for unwanted telemarketing calls. Use this portal, not the general consumer complaint form, for No-Call Law violations.
• Vulnerable-adult and military complaints. The AG's Consumer Protection Division prioritizes complaints involving vulnerable adults (age 60+) under the Mississippi Vulnerable Persons Act and active-duty military / dependents. Flag these complaints in the intake form to expedite handling.
• Confidentiality. The AG generally treats consumer complaints as public records subject to the Mississippi Public Records Act (Miss. Code Ann. § 25-61-1 et seq.), with exemptions for investigative materials. Sensitive personal information (full SSN, full account numbers) should be redacted in all submissions; provide unredacted copies only on specific written request.
• Small-claims and Justice Court alternative. For disputes within the Mississippi Justice Court jurisdictional limit ($3,500), small-claims or Justice Court suit may be a faster individual remedy than awaiting AG action and avoids the MCPA's BBB-mediation prerequisite (because Justice Court suits typically rest on contract, warranty, or common-law fraud rather than MCPA per se).
• CFPB jurisdictional limits. CFPB does NOT regulate auto dealers (with limited exceptions for buy-here-pay-here), insurers, or non-financial retailers. Complaints regarding these entities should be routed to the AG, the Mississippi Insurance Department, or the FTC, not the CFPB.

10. SOURCES AND REFERENCES

• Mississippi Attorney General — Consumer Protection Division — https://attorneygenerallynnfitch.com/divisions/consumer-protection/
• Mississippi Attorney General — main site — https://www.ago.state.ms.us/
• Mississippi AG Consumer Complaint Form (PDF) — https://www.ago.state.ms.us/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Approved-Consumer-Complaint-Form-7.23.20.pdf
• Mississippi AG Online Complaint Portal — https://portal.ago.ms.gov/public/?q=node/403
• Mississippi AG No-Call Portal — https://nocallportal.ago.ms.gov/
• Miss. Code Ann. § 75-24-1 et seq. (MCPA) — https://law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/title-75/chapter-24/
• Miss. Code Ann. § 75-24-5 (Prohibited acts) — https://codes.findlaw.com/ms/title-75-regulation-of-trade-commerce-and-investments/ms-code-sect-75-24-5/
• Miss. Code Ann. § 75-24-9 (AG enforcement) — https://law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/title-75/chapter-24/
• Miss. Code Ann. § 75-24-15 (Private action / informal-dispute prerequisite / class-action ban) — https://codes.findlaw.com/ms/title-75-regulation-of-trade-commerce-and-investments/ms-code-sect-75-24-15.html
• Miss. Code Ann. § 75-24-19 (Civil penalties; restitution) — https://law.justia.com/codes/mississippi/title-75/chapter-24/
• Miss. Code Ann. § 75-24-29 (Data Breach Disclosure) — https://codes.findlaw.com/ms/title-75-regulation-of-trade-commerce-and-investments/ms-code-sect-75-24-29/
• Mississippi Department of Banking and Consumer Finance — https://dbcf.ms.gov
• Mississippi Insurance Department — https://www.mid.ms.gov
• BBB Serving Mississippi — https://www.bbb.org/local-bbb/bbb-of-mississippi
• CFPB Complaint Portal — https://www.consumerfinance.gov/complaint/
• CFPB Consumer Complaint Database — https://www.consumerfinance.gov/data-research/consumer-complaints/
• Federal Trade Commission Report Fraud — https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/
• 12 U.S.C. § 5481 et seq. (Consumer Financial Protection Act) — https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/12/chapter-53/subchapter-V

Disclaimer: This template is provided for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. An attorney licensed in Mississippi must review and customize this complaint pack before use. A complaint to the Mississippi Attorney General is NOT a substitute for the BBB / AG-approved informal dispute settlement attempt required by Miss. Code Ann. § 75-24-15(2) before any private MCPA action. Laws, citations, agency procedures, and contact information change frequently; verify all authorities before filing.