Title 15, Commerce and TradeRelease 119-110

§1649 Certain Limitations on Liability

Title 15 › CHAPTER 41 — CONSUMER CREDIT PROTECTION › SUBCHAPTER I — CONSUMER CREDIT COST DISCLOSURE › Part B — Credit Transactions › § 1649

Last updated Sep 22, 2026|Official source

Summary

Protects creditors and people who buy loans from being sued or punished under this part of the law for certain disclosure problems in closed-end home loans made before September 30, 1995. It also says borrowers cannot get extra time to cancel (rescission) under section 1635(f) for those same issues. The protection covers how the lender listed certain taxes and fees, some other specified amounts, borrower-paid mortgage broker fees, the form of the written cancellation notice if it was a properly dated official or similar notice, and certain small errors in the disclosed finance charge (for example, if the disclosed amount is not more than $200 off or otherwise meets the rules). These limits do not apply to individual lawsuits filed before June 1, 1995; class actions certified before January 1, 1995; named plaintiffs in class actions filed before June 1, 1995; or loans for which a timely cancellation notice was sent before June 1, 1995.

Full Legal Text

Title 15, §1649

Commerce and Trade, Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Limitations on liability
For any closed end consumer credit transaction that is secured by real property or a dwelling, that is subject to this subchapter, and that is consummated before September 30, 1995, a creditor or any assignee of a creditor shall have no civil, administrative, or criminal liability under this subchapter for, and a consumer shall have no extended rescission rights under section 1635(f) of this title with respect to—
(1)the creditor’s treatment, for disclosure purposes, of—
(A)taxes described in section 1605(d)(3) of this title;
(B)fees described in section 1605(e)(2) and (5) of this title;
(C)fees and amounts referred to in the 3rd sentence of section 1605(a) of this title; or
(D)borrower-paid mortgage broker fees referred to in section 1605(a)(6) of this title;
(2)the form of written notice used by the creditor to inform the obligor of the rights of the obligor under section 1635 of this title if the creditor provided the obligor with a properly dated form of written notice published and adopted by the Bureau or a comparable written notice, and otherwise complied with all the requirements of this section regarding notice; or
(3)any disclosure relating to the finance charge imposed with respect to the transaction if the amount or percentage actually disclosed—
(A)may be treated as accurate for purposes of this subchapter if the amount disclosed as the finance charge does not vary from the actual finance charge by more than $200;
(B)may, under section 1605(f)(2) of this title, be treated as accurate for purposes of section 1635 of this title; or
(C)is greater than the amount or percentage required to be disclosed under this subchapter.
(b)Exceptions
Subsection (a) shall not apply to—
(1)any individual action or counterclaim brought under this subchapter which was filed before June 1, 1995;
(2)any class action brought under this subchapter for which a final order certifying a class was entered before January 1, 1995;
(3)the named individual plaintiffs in any class action brought under this subchapter which was filed before June 1, 1995; or
(4)any consumer credit transaction with respect to which a timely notice of rescission was sent to the creditor before June 1, 1995.

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2010—Subsec. (a)(2). Pub. L. 111–203 substituted “Bureau” for “Board”. 1996—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 104–208 substituted “For any closed end consumer credit transaction that is secured by real property or a dwelling, that is subject to this subchapter, and” for “For any consumer credit transaction subject to this subchapter”.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 2010 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 111–203 effective on the designated transfer date, see section 1100H of Pub. L. 111–203, set out as a note under section 552a of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees.

Effective Date

of 1996 Amendment Pub. L. 104–208, div. A, title II, § 2107(b), Sept. 30, 1996, 110 Stat. 3009–402, provided that: “The amendment made by subsection (a) [amending this section] shall be effective as of September 30, 1995.”

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

15 U.S.C. § 1649

Title 15, Commerce and Trade

Last Updated

Sep 22, 2026

Release point: 119-110