---
title: "Credit Acceptance Review: Its Terms, Filings and 2026 Settlement"
description: "Credit Acceptance lends via dealers to buyers with weak credit and publishes no APR. What its terms, SEC filings, 2023 lawsuit and $634M settlement say."
url: "https://baronauto1.com/financing/credit-acceptance-review/"
type: "article"
published: "2026-10-06"
modified: "2026-10-06"
site: "Baron Auto"
disclaimer: "This site is under new ownership and is not affiliated with Baron Auto Emporium dealership."
---

# Credit Acceptance Review: Its Terms, Filings and 2026 Settlement

> Credit Acceptance lends via dealers to buyers with weak credit and publishes no APR. What its terms, SEC filings, 2023 lawsuit and $634M settlement say.

*Car Loans & Credit · 22 min read · 4,856 words*

## The short version

- Credit Acceptance does not lend to you directly. A participating dealer writes the contract and assigns it to Credit Acceptance, which then holds the lien, collects the payments and, under its Portfolio Program, passes 80% of net collections back to the dealer.
- Most of its borrowers have weak or thin credit: 79.5% of the contracts it took in 2025 went to buyers with a FICO score below 650 or none at all, its 10-K says.
- It publishes no interest rate. Pre-qualification shows only a maximum monthly payment, and the APR and term are set at the dealer. The 2023 lawsuit alleged rates of about 22% on paper and a higher real cost hidden in the price; Credit Acceptance denied it and no court ruled.
- In September 2026 it settled with the New York Attorney General and 40 other attorneys general without admitting wrongdoing: an estimated $634 million in balances waived for certain borrowers, $60 million for a relief fund and $15.5 million to the states.
- The settlement also brings new rules for future contracts if the court approves them: a price cap of 109% of book value for buyers scoring below 600, a form showing the payment with and without add-ons, and a 95% deficiency waiver for some early repossessions.
- There is no grace period. A payment unpaid more than 30 days after its due date is reported delinquent, and the CFPB database holds 14,492 complaints naming the company, most about credit reporting and the loan itself.

Credit Acceptance is a large, long-running subprime auto lender whose model puts much of the deal in the dealer’s hands, and whose lending practices were the subject of a lawsuit and a multistate investigation that ended in a settlement in September 2026. On 6 October 2026 we read Credit Acceptance’s buyer pages, pre-qualification terms, FAQs, website terms and settlement page; its [10-K for 2025](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/885550/000088555026000047/cacc-20251231.htm), its [10-Q to 30 June 2026](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/885550/000088555026000182/cacc-20260630.htm) and its [8-K of 17 September 2026](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/885550/000088555026000192/cacc-20260917.htm); the 2023 complaint, the CFPB’s withdrawal order and the New York consent order; and the New York and Massachusetts attorneys general’s releases. Credit Acceptance’s website terms forbid linking to it without written consent, so its own documents are named here but not linked. We entered no credit application, and this site has no commercial relationship with Credit Acceptance or any lender.

**Figure: Credit Acceptance’s promises next to its own fine print**

A two-column table setting seven lines from Credit Acceptance’s marketing against its own terms, filings and the 2026 settlement: approval for every customer versus a pre-qualification that is not an offer of credit and a 25% payment-to-income ceiling; a match with 3 dealers versus calls from up to three dealers even on the Do Not Call list; no interest rate at pre-qualification versus an APR set at the dealer; dealers receiving 80% of net collections; no-fee payment options versus a $3.75 app fee; rebuilding credit versus no grace period and delinquency reporting after 30 days; and the settlement, which waives balances on fewer than 3% of open accounts with letters by 1 February 2027.

Read from Credit Acceptance’s car-buyer pages, pre-qualification terms, payment FAQ and settlement page, its 10-K for 2025 and the New York consent order filed 17 September 2026, on 6 October 2026. No credit application was submitted.

## How Credit Acceptance works: the dealer writes the loan

Credit Acceptance calls itself an indirect lender. Its how-it-works page puts it plainly: “you apply for and secure your financing at the dealership where you purchase the vehicle,” and “Credit Acceptance does not provide financing directly to consumers or for private vehicle sales.” Its FAQ adds that it does not work with Carvana, CarMax or similar online platforms and does not offer refinancing.

The 10-K describes the mechanics. The dealer and the buyer sign a retail installment contract “written on a contract form provided or approved by us,” and the dealer assigns it to Credit Acceptance, which becomes the lienholder: the dealer “generally does not have legal ownership of the Consumer Loan for more than a moment.” Credit Acceptance alone decides whether to fund the deal and how much to pay the dealer, using a formula built on “our proprietary credit scoring system” that predicts an expected collection rate.

How the dealer is paid depends on the program. Under the Purchase Program, Credit Acceptance buys the contract for a one-time payment and keeps everything collected. Under the Portfolio Program, the dealer gets an advance up front, and once that is repaid from your payments it receives what is left after collection costs and Credit Acceptance’s servicing fee, “which generally equals 20% of collections.” Credit Acceptance’s dealer page sells this as “80% of the net customer collections.” In 2025, 74.2% of contracts by number went through the Portfolio Program and 25.8% through the Purchase Program.

Two things follow for a buyer. First, the dealer in front of you usually keeps a financial interest in your payments after you drive away. Second, the dealer, not Credit Acceptance, sets most of what you sign: “Most contract terms, including minimum down payment amount, monthly payment, and the payment due date are set by the dealer.” The 10-K says the advance plus your down payment “typically” gives the dealer “a cash profit at the time of sale,” so “the Dealer’s risk in the Consumer Loan is limited.” Our page on [buy here pay here dealers](https://baronauto1.com/financing/buy-here-pay-here/#what-it-is) covers the related model where the dealer keeps the loan itself; Credit Acceptance’s FAQ says buy-here-pay-here lots are among its participating dealers. Our reviews of [DriveTime](https://baronauto1.com/financing/drivetime-review/) and [Westlake Financial](https://baronauto1.com/financing/westlake-financial-review/) read those lenders’ documents the same way.

## Who it lends to, in its own numbers

The 10-K is direct about its market: “The majority of the Consumer Loans assigned to us are made to consumers with impaired or limited credit histories.” It prints the share of contracts going to buyers with a FICO score below 650 or no FICO score: 80.9% in 2023, 80.6% in 2024 and 79.5% in 2025. The 10-Q puts the second quarter of 2026 at 79.2%. Its marketing lists 11 situations it says dealers can approve, from “No minimum credit score” and “Multiple repossessions” to open Chapter 7 and 13 bankruptcies “(with court/trustee approval).”

Credit Acceptance had 15,745 active dealers in 2025, out of a target market it puts at “approximately 60,000” dealers, and took 337,411 contracts. The table shows what the average contract looked like. The “Consumer Loan” figure is the total of principal and interest the buyer owed at the start, not the price of the car; the “advance” is what Credit Acceptance paid the dealer for it.

**Average Credit Acceptance contract by year of assignment, as printed in its 10-K for 2025 and 10-Q to 30 June 2026**

| Year | Average amount owed (principal and interest) | Average paid to the dealer | Average initial term | Contracts |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2021 | $25,632 | $11,790 | 59 months | 268,730 |
| 2022 | $27,242 | $12,924 | 60 months | 280,467 |
| 2023 | $27,025 | $12,475 | 61 months | 332,499 |
| 2024 | $26,497 | $11,961 | 61 months | 386,126 |
| 2025 | $25,423 | $11,428 | 60 months | 337,411 |
| 2026, first half | $25,355 | $11,449 | 60 months | 180,607 |

On 2025 contracts the advance was 45.0% of the amount owed, the 10-K says. That gap is not a markup on the car: the amount owed includes years of interest, and a Portfolio Program dealer can earn more later from collections.

One small inconsistency in its own documents: the car-buyer pages say Credit Acceptance has “helped finance 4MM+ consumers,” while the press release it filed with the SEC on 17 September 2026 says it has served “more than five million customers.”

## What it charges: no published rate, and what the filings print instead

Credit Acceptance publishes no APR. Its pre-qualification FAQ says: “We don’t provide interest rates during pre-qualification, just the maximum monthly payment you could qualify for,” and that the APR and the length of the loan “are all determined through your negotiations with the dealer.” The only rate you will see is the one on the dealer’s contract, so compare it with a quote from a bank or credit union; our guides to [how dealer-arranged rates are set](https://baronauto1.com/financing/used-car-financing-rates/#buy-rate) and [what credit score you need](https://baronauto1.com/financing/credit-score-to-buy-a-car/#no-minimum) explain what to compare.

The regulators’ documents carry the only rate figures, and they are allegations. The 2023 complaint by the CFPB and the New York Attorney General alleged that Credit Acceptance’s contracts “have disclosed an average APR nationwide of about 22%,” that in New York they typically disclosed 22.99% or 23.99%, and that “CAC sets the interest rates affiliated dealers must charge.” Its central theory was that the real cost of credit was higher because the model pushed dealers to raise vehicle prices, “hiding an additional cost of credit in the principal amount financed.” The New York Attorney General’s 2023 release said its investigation found an average of “more than 38 percent APR.” Credit Acceptance denied all of it, and the case settled before any court ruled. The FAQ says the dealer negotiates the rate; the complaint said Credit Acceptance sets it. Ask the dealer who set the rate on your contract.

What the filings do print is how much Credit Acceptance expects to collect. Its “forecasted collection rate” is the share of the principal and interest owed at the start that it expects to receive in the end, from payments, repossession sales and collections. For contracts taken in 2025 it was 67.2% at the end of 2025, meaning, by our arithmetic, that it did not expect to collect 32.8% of what those contracts said buyers owed. For 2022 contracts the forecast fell from 67.5% at signing to 59.3%, a drop of 8.2 points, leaving 40.7% not expected to come in. The 10-Q prints 67.7% for contracts taken in the second quarter of 2026. The shortfall mixes several things the filing does not separate: losses on contracts that default, interest never charged on contracts paid off early (the forecast “includes estimates for prepayments”), and cancelled contracts. Credit Acceptance says it sets advances so it can achieve “acceptable levels of profitability” even when collections fall short.

## Pre-qualification and approval: what “everyone” means

The marketing is broad. The how-it-works page says “Every customer can get approved,” a car-buyer page says “We allow dealers to approve 100% of their customers,” and Credit Acceptance owns the service mark “ASK ABOUT OUR GUARANTEED CREDIT APPROVAL.” The pre-qualification terms, shown beneath the online form, are narrower:

**What Credit Acceptance’s pre-qualification terms say, read 6 October 2026 (no application was submitted)**

| Topic | What the terms or FAQ say |
| --- | --- |
| What it is | “This is not an offer of credit.” “Credit Acceptance does not guarantee credit” |
| The figure you see | A maximum monthly payment or vehicle amount, “determined utilizing a $3,000 down payment” |
| Who gets your details | “Up to three car dealers near me,” who may call “even if I am on a State or Federal Do Not Call List” |
| Credit check | You authorise a credit check under the Fair Credit Reporting Act; a hard pull happens only with your consent once your details go to a dealer, or when a dealer submits a full application |
| Income limit | “Monthly payment-to-income ratio cannot exceed 25%,” and the payment must be at least $150 |
| Where you live | A street address “within the contiguous United States” or an APO/FPO address |
| The car | No branded titles, lemon buybacks, motorcycles, RVs or private-party sales |
| How long it lasts | “Expires 30 days” from the request |

So is pre-qualification legitimate? It is a real Credit Acceptance process, and the FAQ says the three dealers “will typically reach out to you within 48 hours.” But it is a lead to dealers, not an approval: “The dealer is under no obligation to sell you a vehicle based on your pre-qualification,” and the 10-K says the decision whether to fund a contract “is made solely by us.” Our page on [pre-qualification and pre-approval](https://baronauto1.com/financing/car-loan-preapproval/#what-it-is) explains the difference.

Is approval easy? Approval is the product’s selling point, and the documents put the limits in the 25% income ceiling, the $150 minimum payment and the vehicle rules rather than in a credit score. Two other gaps between the marketing and the terms: the FAQ says participating dealers are “across the entire United States, even Hawaii and Alaska,” but online pre-qualification requires an address in the contiguous states; and the FAQ says there are “no specific requirements for mileage or age” of the car, while the terms exclude branded titles and lemon buybacks. Approval also says nothing about whether the car is worth the price, so get a [pre-purchase inspection](https://baronauto1.com/buying-guides/used-car-pre-purchase-inspection/) and ask for the [out-the-door price](https://baronauto1.com/buying-guides/out-the-door-price/) in writing.

## Service contracts and GAP on the contract

The 10-K explains how add-ons are paid for. The retail price of a vehicle service contract or GAP “is included in the principal balance of the Consumer Loan,” the provider is paid its wholesale cost less “an administrative fee retained by us,” and the difference “is paid to the Dealer as a commission.” A Credit Acceptance subsidiary, VSC Re, reinsures some of the service contracts. So both the dealer and Credit Acceptance earn something when an add-on is financed, and you pay interest on its price for the whole term.

The 2023 complaint alleged that “90% of CAC loans include a CAC-approved add-on product” and that Credit Acceptance “knew or should have known the dealers were misrepresenting the voluntary nature of add-on products.” Credit Acceptance denied the allegations. The September 2026 consent order now requires that it “shall not require Dealers to sell any Ancillary Product as a condition of financing.” Dealers using its system must give buyers a consent form stating that GAP and service contracts are optional, that the car can be bought on credit without them, and the monthly and total payment “both with and without” them. Credit Acceptance must then write to buyers within 10 days to remind them what they bought and how to cancel. If you cancel within the first 30 days, or while your account is current, the balance is re-amortized and the payment recalculated.

**Figure: Annotated photograph**

Three numbered callouts over the photograph mark the driver's hand, the instrument cluster and the road ahead, with who sets the rate on a Credit Acceptance loan, its late-payment rule and the settlement's add-on disclosure.

Credit Acceptance’s FAQ, read on 6 October 2026, says the APR and terms are negotiated with the dealer and that it gives no interest rate at pre-qualification (callout 1); its payment FAQ says a payment unpaid more than 30 days after its due date is reported delinquent, with no grace period (callout 2). The New York consent order filed 17 September 2026 requires a disclosure showing the payment with and without add-ons such as GAP or a service contract (callout 3). The photograph is illustrative.

Those rules take effect once the order is entered and implemented, within six months of entry under its own terms. Until then, ask for the payment with and without each product yourself. Our pages on [what GAP costs](https://baronauto1.com/financing/gap-insurance/#cost) and [whether an extended warranty is worth it](https://baronauto1.com/financing/is-an-extended-warranty-worth-it/) help you judge them.

## Payments, fees and when you are late

Credit Acceptance’s payment FAQ answers the grace-period question in one word: “No.” Payments received after the due date “will be considered past due,” even under a payment arrangement, and “any monthly payment unpaid more than 30 days after the payment due date listed in your contract will be reported as delinquent.” The due date “cannot be changed” because it comes from the original contract. On the other side, Credit Acceptance says it reports to all 3 major credit bureaus, so on-time payments are recorded too.

**Ways to pay Credit Acceptance and the fees it prints, read 6 October 2026**

| Method | Fee printed | Note |
| --- | --- | --- |
| AutoPay (debit card or bank account) | None | Credit cards are not accepted |
| Mail (check or money order) | None | Credit Acceptance recommends mailing 7 days before the due date |
| In person at headquarters drop box | None | Check or money order only |
| One-time payment by app, portal or phone | Processor (ACI) fee; $3.75 in the app steps | No more than $5.00 in Georgia and $9.95 in Texas; one-time payments capped at $2,500 |
| CheckFreePay (cash) | $5.00 | Same-day posting by the stated cut-off |
| MoneyGram (cash) | $7.99 | Same-day posting by the stated cut-off |
| Western Union (cash) | $8.50 | Same-day posting by the stated cut-off |

By our arithmetic, paying every month through the app for the 60-month average term would cost $225 in processor fees, and paying cash through Western Union every month would cost $510. Two returned ACH payments within sixty days block ACH payments for a while. Credit Acceptance holds the paper title in most states until the contract is paid (the buyer holds it in KY, MD, MN, MO, MT and NY), and says it typically sends the title and lien release within 30 days of payoff. Its Customer Portal terms also note that any Dispute “remains subject to the Arbitration Clause in your contract”; no sample contract is published, so read that clause before signing.

## Repossession and what you can still owe

The 10-K sets out the sequence. “The decision to repossess a vehicle is based on policy-based criteria,” and the work goes to a third-party repossession company paid on contingency. After repossession you can redeem the car by paying off the balance or, “where appropriate or if required by law,” get it back by paying the past-due amount. Otherwise it is sold at a wholesale auction. If the sale does not cover the balance, Credit Acceptance “may offer the consumer the opportunity to settle any outstanding balance for less than the amount owed”; if not, the account may go to its external collection team and to “third-party collection attorneys.”

The regulators’ figures on outcomes are allegations or their own characterisations. The 2023 complaint alleged an average post-auction debt of “about $8,500.” The New York Attorney General’s 2023 release said 44 percent of New York borrowers experienced repossession at some point, and the Massachusetts Attorney General alleged in 2020 that borrowers were left with “an average of approximately $9,000 of debt.” Credit Acceptance did not admit any of it.

The 2026 consent order changes the end of the road for some future borrowers. For contracts originated after 1 December 2025, if an “Eligible Account” is repossessed and sold within 12 or 18 months, Credit Acceptance must waive 95% of the deficiency, may never sue over it or sell it, and after 90 days may make no more than four collection contacts about the rest. Eligibility is narrow: a credit score below 500 with a payment of at least 13% of net income, or no score with a payment of at least 25%, and a repossession and sale within 12 months (18 months for scores below 475, or no-score payments of 28% or more). On a hypothetical $5,000 deficiency, that leaves $250 collectable, by our arithmetic. The order also says Credit Acceptance “shall continue its policy of not disabling defaulted borrowers’ vehicles through a starter interruption device” and must keep barring dealers from using such devices or GPS to track cars on its contracts. Our guides to [the repossession sale and deficiency](https://baronauto1.com/financing/car-repossession/#the-sale) and [negative equity](https://baronauto1.com/financing/negative-equity-car-loan/#repossession) cover the general rules, and [our buy here pay here page](https://baronauto1.com/financing/buy-here-pay-here/#devices) covers starter interrupt devices.

## The lawsuits: what was alleged, and how each ended

Credit Acceptance has faced two government lawsuits and a multistate investigation over its lending, and the record below keeps each document’s own wording. “Alleged” means a claim in a complaint or release; none was tried.

**Government actions over Credit Acceptance’s lending, from the documents read on 6 October 2026**

| Date | What happened | Source |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 18 March 2016 to 11 August 2020 | Maryland Attorney General subpoenas, expanded in 2020 to 41 other states and the District of Columbia (Kansas, Texas and Iowa later withdrew) | Credit Acceptance 10-K |
| 22 April 2019 | CFPB civil investigative demand | Credit Acceptance 10-K |
| 31 August 2020 | Massachusetts Attorney General sues in Suffolk Superior Court, alleging unaffordable loans, hidden finance charges above the state’s 21 percent usury ceiling and unfair collection | Massachusetts AG release |
| 1 September 2021 | Massachusetts Assurance of Discontinuance: $27.2 million; over 3,000 borrowers expected to be eligible; it “does not constitute an admission” | [Massachusetts AG release](https://www.mass.gov/news/in-largest-settlement-of-its-kind-ag-healey-secures-27-million-for-thousands-of-massachusetts-consumers-from-subprime-auto-lender) and AOD |
| 4 January 2023 | CFPB and New York Attorney General file a joint complaint in the Southern District of New York (1:23-cv-00038) alleging deceptive and abusive practices | CFPB enforcement page |
| 29 April 2025 | Court grants the CFPB’s motion to withdraw as plaintiff (Document 87); New York continues | Court order; CFPB page |
| 17 September 2026 | Consent judgments with 40 states and the District of Columbia, each “subject to final court approval”; New York’s proposed order filed as Document 98 | 8-K; NY AG; consent order |

The [CFPB’s enforcement page](https://www.consumerfinance.gov/enforcement/actions/credit-acceptance-corporation/) says the complaint “alleged that Credit Acceptance engaged in deceptive and abusive acts or practices” and lists its status as “Expired/Terminated/Dismissed.” Credit Acceptance’s filings call the Bureau’s exit an “unopposed motion”; the CFPB calls it a “consent motion”; the New York Attorney General says the CFPB “dropped its case against CAC, getting nothing in return.” The 10-Q says the court dismissed the action on 6 June 2026 without prejudice to reopening within 60 days if the settlement was not completed, a deadline later extended by 45 days.

The New York consent order posted by the Attorney General is captioned “[PROPOSED],” was “jointly approved and submitted for entry,” and its signature line for the judge is blank in that copy. We could not read the court docket, so whether it has been entered is not confirmed here. In it, Credit Acceptance “denies any and all violations of law alleged,” and the order is “made without trial or adjudication of any issue of fact or law or finding of liability of any kind.”

## What the September 2026 settlement changes

The money first. The [consent order](https://ag.ny.gov/sites/default/files/settlements-agreements/new-york-v-credit-acceptance-corporation-consent-order-and-judgement-2026.pdf) requires $15,500,000 to the participating states, $60,000,000 to a relief fund run by a committee of attorneys general, and the waiver of all outstanding balances on two groups of open accounts as of 1 December 2025: about $388,000,000 for “Early Defaulted Accounts” and about $246,000,000 for “Other Identified Early Defaulted Accounts,” whose liens are also released. By our arithmetic that is $634 million in waived balances and $75.5 million in cash, $709.5 million in all, which the [New York Attorney General’s release](https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2026/attorney-general-james-secures-700-million-abusive-subprime-auto-lender-credit) rounds to $700 million. Waived balances are 89.4% of the package. The 10-Q shows the cash figure was agreed in principle in January 2026, after a $45.0 million offer in September 2025, and the 8-K says no further charge is needed.

The two sides describe its reach differently. The New York Attorney General says more than 55,000 consumers, about 2,500 of them New Yorkers, get debt relief. Credit Acceptance’s settlement page says “Fewer than 3% of our open accounts” are affected. For accounts in the debt-relief groups, Credit Acceptance must stop reporting them, ask the three credit bureaus to delete them, and stop collecting on, suing over or selling them. The order’s Effective Date is 2 November 2026, and Credit Acceptance says affected customers will hear from it by mail or email “no later than February 1, 2027.” The $60 million fund is for consumers “who lost their cars to repossession,” in the Attorney General’s words, and is administered by the states, not Credit Acceptance.

**Keep paying unless you are told otherwise in writing.** Credit Acceptance’s settlement page says “All customers should continue making their scheduled payments,” that eligibility cannot be confirmed by phone, and that its letters “will NOT include any hyperlinks or ask for your personal identifiable information.” Treat any text or email about “settlement money” that contains a link or asks for your details as suspect, and check with the company or your state attorney general directly.

The rest of the order governs new contracts, for five or seven years depending on the term, once implemented. For buyers with a credit score below 600 or none, Credit Acceptance must disclose how often similar borrowers fall behind, verify income, and limit used-car terms to the greater of 75 months or the industry average plus twelve months. For buyers below 600 the selling price is capped at 109% of the highest retail book value (a car with a $10,000 book value could sell for no more than $10,900, by our arithmetic). On every contract written in its system, dealers must disclose the trim level and book value before signing and cannot raise the price once the car is tied to a credit application, and any dealer drawing 5 or more pricing complaints in 12 months must be investigated. The 8-K says these terms “do not fundamentally alter the Company’s business model.” The order creates no private right of action and does not limit any individual’s existing rights.

## CFPB complaints: what 14,492 reports are about

The CFPB’s public database held 14,492 complaints naming Credit Acceptance Corporation from April 2012 to 29 September 2026, pulled on the day we wrote this. They are unverified reports that consumers submit and the company answers, and their number scales with the size of a lender’s book, so they show what people complain about, not how likely a problem is. The CFPB stopped publishing complaint narratives on 30 September 2026, so only counts are used here.

By product, 5,406 (37.3%) concern the vehicle loan itself, 5,922 (40.9%) concern credit reporting under the three labels the CFPB has used, and 2,551 concern debt collection. Within the vehicle-loan complaints, the largest issues are managing the loan (1,559), repossession (1,089, or 20.1%), struggling to pay (794) and getting the loan (738). Common sub-issues include a balance left after the car is repossessed and sold (413), a denied request to lower payments (378) and problems with add-on products (335). Across all complaints, 13,609 were closed with an explanation and 686 (4.7%) with monetary relief.

**Complaints naming Credit Acceptance in the CFPB database by year received (pulled 6 October 2026; 2026 is partial)**

| Year | All complaints | Vehicle loan or lease |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 2020 | 678 | 267 |
| 2021 | 1,011 | 307 |
| 2022 | 1,194 | 434 |
| 2023 | 1,907 | 941 |
| 2024 | 2,317 | 1,008 |
| 2025 | 3,598 | 1,187 |
| 2026 to 29 September | 2,376 | 859 |

Complaints in 2025 were 5.3 times the 2020 count, by our arithmetic, while the number of contracts Credit Acceptance took in 2025 was close to 2020’s. Credit-reporting complaints rose from 289 to 1,663 over those years and vehicle-loan complaints from 267 to 1,187. Car-loan complaints from before 2017 sit under a former product label (“Consumer Loan,” 424 complaints).

## Before you sign a Credit Acceptance contract

- **Get a second quote first.** A bank or credit union pre-approval gives you an APR to compare, because Credit Acceptance publishes none.
- **Read the APR, amount financed and total of payments.** The total of payments is the figure the 10-K calls the Consumer Loan.
- **Compare the selling price with a book value.** If your score is below 600, the settlement caps it at 109% of the highest retail book value once the rule is in place.
- **Ask for the payment with and without each add-on.** GAP and service contracts are optional, and you pay interest on them.
- **Check the payment against your income.** Credit Acceptance’s own ceiling is 25% of income; that is a maximum, not a comfortable level.
- **Write down the due date.** It cannot be changed, there is no grace period, and more than 30 days late is reported.
- **Set up AutoPay or pay by mail.** Both are free; one-time app, phone and cash-network payments carry fees.
- **Find the arbitration clause** in the contract and read it, and keep every page you sign.

## Common questions

### Is Credit Acceptance a good lender?

We do not rate lenders. Its own filings show it lends mainly to buyers with a FICO score below 650 or none (79.5% of 2025 contracts), publishes no rate, lets the dealer set most terms and shares collections with that dealer. In 2026 it settled a lawsuit and a multistate investigation over its lending without admitting wrongdoing. If you can get a quote elsewhere, compare it before signing; our page on [refinancing a car loan](https://baronauto1.com/financing/refinance-a-car-loan/) covers what to do if you already have one.

### What is the lawsuit against Credit Acceptance?

The CFPB and the New York Attorney General sued it on 4 January 2023 in the Southern District of New York, alleging it obscured the cost of credit and pushed loans without considering borrowers’ ability to repay. The CFPB withdrew in April 2025. On 17 September 2026 Credit Acceptance agreed consent judgments with New York and 40 other attorneys general, without admitting wrongdoing, each subject to court approval.

### Is Credit Acceptance pre-approval legit?

It is a genuine Credit Acceptance process, but it is pre-qualification, not pre-approval. The terms say it “is not an offer of credit,” your details go to up to three dealers who may call you, a hard credit pull follows only when a dealer submits an application or you consent to sharing, and it expires after 30 days.

### Is it easy to get approved with Credit Acceptance?

Its marketing says dealers can approve everyone, including buyers with no credit score or past repossessions. The terms add limits: the payment cannot exceed 25% of income and must be at least $150, the car must meet its rules, and Credit Acceptance alone decides whether to fund the deal.

### Am I part of the Credit Acceptance settlement?

Only certain accounts open on 1 December 2025 get balances waived, fewer than 3% of open accounts by Credit Acceptance’s count. If yours is one, it says it will contact you by mail or email no later than 1 February 2027. Keep paying until then unless told otherwise.

### Can I refinance a Credit Acceptance loan?

Not with Credit Acceptance: its FAQ says “We don’t offer refinancing.” Another lender may refinance it if the car is worth enough and your credit has improved; see our guides to [refinancing](https://baronauto1.com/financing/refinance-a-car-loan/) and [why negative equity blocks it](https://baronauto1.com/financing/negative-equity-car-loan/#refinancing).

## Sources and further reading

- [SEC EDGAR filings: Credit Acceptance Corporation](https://www.sec.gov/edgar/browse/?CIK=885550)
- [CFPB auto loan resources](https://www.consumerfinance.gov/consumer-tools/auto-loans/)
- [CFPB consumer complaint database](https://www.consumerfinance.gov/data-research/consumer-complaints/)
- [CFPB: what is the difference between dealer-arranged and bank financing?](https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/what-is-the-difference-between-dealer-arranged-and-bank-financing-en-759/)
- [FTC vehicle repossession](https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/vehicle-repossession)
- [CFPB: what is Guaranteed Asset Protection (GAP)?](https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/what-is-guaranteed-asset-protection-gap-insurance-en-797/)

Recall, complaint and safety-rating figures on this page were retrieved from the federal databases above on August 19, 2026. Federal data changes — re-check any VIN before you rely on it.

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Canonical source: https://baronauto1.com/financing/credit-acceptance-review/