Who Credit Acceptance Corporation Is
Credit Acceptance Corporation — commonly called CAC — is an indirect auto finance company headquartered in Southfield, Michigan. Like Westlake Financial, CAC does not lend money directly to consumers at a dealership. Instead, they partner with a network of over 60,000 car dealers nationwide. When you finance a car through one of those dealers, CAC purchases your retail installment contract and becomes your lender.
You may never have chosen CAC. The dealership chose them. CAC specializes in subprime and deep-subprime borrowers — consumers with low credit scores, thin credit histories, or prior bankruptcies who cannot qualify for conventional auto financing.
CAC is publicly traded on NASDAQ under the ticker CACC and has been in business since 1972. As of recent filings, they service hundreds of thousands of active loan accounts across the country.
Why You Might Be Hearing From Them
The most common reasons CAC contacts consumers:
- You financed a vehicle through a dealership in their network and CAC holds your loan.
- You are behind on payments and CAC is attempting to collect.
- Your car was repossessed and CAC is pursuing a deficiency balance — the difference between what the car sold for at auction and what you owed.
- A debt buyer purchased your CAC deficiency balance and is now collecting on CAC’s behalf.
How CAC’s Business Model Works — and Why It Matters
CAC’s business model has been the subject of significant regulatory scrutiny because of how it is designed. According to a 2023 federal court complaint filed by the CFPB and the New York Attorney General, CAC used an algorithm to project, down to the penny, how much money it could extract from each borrower — including loan payments, late fees, repossession proceeds, deficiency judgments, and wage garnishment — without considering whether the borrower could actually afford to repay the loan.
CAC then offered to split those projected collections with its affiliated dealers. The result, regulators alleged, was a system designed to profit from default, repossession, and collection — not from borrowers successfully paying off their loans.
The complaint described a borrower who signed a CAC loan requiring payments totaling more than $13,000 on a car the dealer needed only $5,614 to sell. After paying more than $7,600, CAC repossessed her vehicle, sold it at auction for $772, and then sued her for a remaining deficiency of $7,550.
CAC’s Regulatory History
2020 — Massachusetts Attorney General Lawsuit
The Massachusetts Attorney General sued CAC in August 2020 over unfair lending, collection, and securitization practices. The case settled in September 2021 for over $27 million in cash relief, debt forgiveness, and credit repair for affected consumers. See the New York AG press release for additional background.
2023 — CFPB and New York Attorney General Joint Lawsuit
In January 2023, the CFPB and New York Attorney General Letitia James filed a joint lawsuit against CAC in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. The complaint alleged that while CAC’s loan agreements disclosed APRs of 22.99% or 23.99%, CAC actually charged borrowers more than 38% APR on average — and on numerous occasions more than 100% APR. Nearly 90% of New York borrowers became delinquent on their CAC loans at some point, and 44% experienced repossession. Regulators also alleged that CAC misrepresented key loan terms, hid thousands of dollars in credit charges, and incentivized dealers to push add-on products onto consumers without their knowledge or consent. See the CFPB enforcement action page.
2025 — CFPB Withdrew From the Lawsuit
In April 2025, the CFPB filed a motion to withdraw as a plaintiff, which the court granted. The New York Attorney General remains the sole plaintiff and the case continues. CAC’s exposure is now limited to New York consumers under the surviving claims, though the underlying conduct alleged in the complaint was nationwide.
What If CAC Is Contacting You About a Debt
If CAC is calling you or sending letters about a balance, you have rights under both federal and California law.
Under the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (15 U.S.C. § 1692 et seq.) and California’s Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (Cal. Civ. Code § 1788 et seq.), debt collectors are prohibited from using false or misleading representations, threatening action they cannot legally take, disclosing your debt to third parties, and calling at unreasonable hours or with excessive frequency.
Given CAC’s documented history of aggressive collection tactics, if their collectors are threatening you, misrepresenting what you owe, or contacting people in your life, those practices may be independently actionable.
What If CAC Repossessed Your Car in California
If CAC has repossessed your vehicle in California, the Rees-Levering Motor Vehicle Sales and Finance Act (Cal. Civ. Code §§ 2981–2984.6) gives you specific rights — including the right to reinstate the loan, redeem the vehicle, retrieve your personal property, and challenge any deficiency they try to collect.
CAC must follow every Rees-Levering requirement before they can sue you for a deficiency. If their notice was defective, the sale was commercially unreasonable, or the post-sale accounting was missing or inaccurate, they may be legally barred from collecting the deficiency entirely under Cal. Civ. Code § 2983.2(a).
If CAC is suing you over a deficiency, our course walks through how to respond to a California debt lawsuit step by step: https://law-without-lawyers.com/ca-debt-lawsuit/
What If the Debt Is Bigger Than Just the Car
If a CAC deficiency is part of a larger financial crisis — credit cards, medical bills, other accounts in default — bankruptcy may be the more efficient exit. Chapter 7 can discharge a CAC deficiency balance along with your other unsecured debt. Chapter 13 can stop a repossession that has not yet gone to auction and let you restructure what you owe.
If CAC is one of several creditors coming at you at once, it is worth understanding your options before a judgment is entered. You can request a consult to speak with a bankruptcy attorney.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Credit Acceptance Corporation a legitimate company?
Yes. CAC is a publicly traded company and a licensed auto lender operating legally nationwide. That does not mean their lending or collection practices have always been lawful — state and federal regulators have alleged otherwise in multiple enforcement actions.
Why do I owe CAC if I never dealt with them?
Because the dealership where you bought your car was in CAC’s dealer network and assigned your financing contract to them at the time of sale. This is standard in indirect auto lending. CAC became your lender the moment the contract was assigned, regardless of whether you knew it.
Can CAC repossess my car without notice in California?
In California, a lender can repossess your vehicle without advance notice the moment you default. But they cannot breach the peace in doing so, and they must follow strict post-repossession notice requirements under Cal. Civ. Code § 2983.2 before they can sell the car or pursue a deficiency.
What if CAC repossessed my car but I was current on payments?
Document everything immediately — payment records, bank statements, confirmation numbers. A repossession while current on payments may be a wrongful repossession claim under California Civil Code § 2983.3 and a violation of the FDCPA and Rosenthal Act.
Does this apply outside California?
Laws vary by state. The FDCPA is federal and applies nationwide. California’s Rosenthal Act and Rees-Levering protections are California-specific. If you are in another state, consult the rules in your state.