The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau enforces federal rules on debt collection, mortgage servicing, and consumer financial protection after someone dies. The CFPB's Regulation F governs how debt collectors can contact surviving family members, and Regulation X protects heirs who inherit a mortgaged property. The CFPB also handles complaints about financial companies.

Death notification

The CFPB does not receive death reports directly. When someone dies, the family or executor should notify individual creditors, lenders, and the mortgage servicer. If a debt collector contacts you, you can inform them of the death and provide contact information for the estate's personal representative. Under Regulation F, collectors must provide a validation notice with debt details during the first conversation or within 5 days. The CFPB's role is to enforce rules that protect consumers from abusive debt collection practices and to ensure mortgage servicers treat heirs fairly. If a debt collector or servicer violates your rights, file a complaint at consumerfinance.gov/complaint.

Deadline: Notify creditors and mortgage servicer as soon as possible

Survivor benefits

The CFPB offers 4 benefits for surviving family members.

Debt Collection Protections for Survivors

Under Regulation F (12 CFR Part 1006), surviving spouses and estate executors are treated as "consumers" with full debt collection protections. Debt collectors cannot call before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m., cannot make more than 7 calls in 7 days about a specific debt, and cannot misrepresent that a family member is personally liable for a debt they did not co-sign.

Mortgage Successor-in-Interest Protections

Under Regulation X (12 CFR 1024.38), heirs who inherit a mortgaged property are recognized as "successors in interest." Once confirmed, they receive the same rights as the original borrower, including access to all loss mitigation options and protection against foreclosure during an active application.

Surviving Spouse Financial Resources

The CFPB provides a step-by-step guide for surviving spouses to manage the most urgent financial tasks after a spouse's death. Resources cover understanding debt responsibility, evaluating housing decisions, setting contact boundaries with debt collectors, sharing financial information templates, and inventorying digital assets. The guide explains that surviving spouses are generally not responsible for the deceased's debt unless it was jointly held or required by state law.

CFPB Complaint Process

The CFPB accepts complaints about debt collectors, mortgage servicers, credit card companies, and other financial companies. Companies generally respond within 15 days (60 days for complex cases). The CFPB publishes complaint data in its Consumer Complaint Database. Complaints can be filed online (less than 10 minutes), by phone (25-30 minutes), or by mail to PO Box 27170, Washington, DC 20038.

When someone dies

Notifying the CFPB after a death

5-step process, 6 required documents, and 4 survivor benefits.

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Frequently asked questions

File online at consumerfinance.gov/complaint or call (855) 411-2372. The process takes less than 10 minutes. The CFPB sends your complaint to the company, which generally responds within 15 days (60 days for complex cases). You have 60 days to provide feedback on the response.

As of July 2026, the CFPB website (consumerfinance.gov), complaint portal, and phone line (855) 411-2372 remain active and accept complaints (confirmed operational on July 15, 2026). OMB Director Russell Vought continues as acting director; his acting-director term is reported to end in early August 2026, and President Trump has nominated Brian Johnson (a former CFPB deputy director) as permanent director, subject to Senate confirmation. Most supervisory, examination, and enforcement activity has been paused, and staffing has declined from roughly 1,750 to about 1,175 employees. A federal court has placed the bureau's planned mass layoffs on hold until a permanent director is confirmed. Existing regulations, including Regulation F (debt collection) and Regulation X (mortgage servicing), remain in effect as codified federal rules regardless of the agency's operational status.