Consumer complaints about banks may be released soon

Regulators are getting ready to release the first batch of complaints from consumers about banks and other financial services industry players, according to two sources familiar with the plans.

The complaints would be released online through the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. A CFPB spokesperson could not immediately be reached for comment.

{mosads}The business community has assailed the CFPB complaint database, arguing that it’s got about as much credibility as Yelp.com, where anonymous consumers can post complaints about businesses and potentially raise a company’s reputational risk.

They’ve pushed for an appeals process that would allow companies to respond to complaints before they’re made public. They also note that the complaints are not verified and are not made public at the initial time of the filing.

But supporters of new site argue that it’s filling a void for consumers who have no place to go when they have complaints about the financial services industry. Already more than 400,000 consumer complaints have been filed on the site.