Credit Acceptance has agreed to cancel about $634 million in qualifying car-loan debt. For covered accounts, it must also stop reporting the loan and ask Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion to remove the account from credit reports.
What happened?
On September 17, 2026, state officials announced a settlement with Credit Acceptance, a company that finances car purchases through dealerships.
The states alleged that the company financed loans people could not afford, and add-on products some buyers did not know they were purchasing. Credit Acceptance settled without admitting fault or wrongdoing.
The agreement includes about $634 million in debt cancellation and a separate $60 million fund for consumer payments. Qualifying borrowers nationwide can receive debt relief. It does not apply to every Credit Acceptance loan.
Could your loan qualify?
For the full debt cancellation described here, an account must meet these requirements:
- The loan began between November 1, 2015 and November 30, 2025.
- It was still open on December 1, 2025.
- At the start of the loan, the borrower's score in Credit Acceptance's internal system was below 56. This is a company-specific number, not a FICO or VantageScore credit score.
- The monthly payment was at least 13% of monthly income under the settlement's calculation. That calculation adjusts for certain taxes, but not for optional deductions such as retirement contributions.
The account must also fall into one of two groups:
- The vehicle was taken back and sold. The repossession or voluntary surrender happened within 18 months of the loan beginning, and the vehicle was sold as a result.
- The account falls into the settlement's other identified group, covering certain vehicles that were not repossessed and sold at auction by Credit Acceptance. For this group, the company must also release its lien, which is its legal claim on the vehicle, and send the title if it holds it.
These are the settlement's eligibility rules, not a way to confirm eligibility yourself. Some of the information comes from Credit Acceptance's internal records. Ask the company whether your specific account qualifies.
Do you need to apply?
State officials say consumers do not need to take action to receive debt relief or a consumer payment. Credit Acceptance must identify covered accounts and notify customers by letter, email, or text. Consumer payments from the separate fund will be handled by a settlement administrator.
Make sure Credit Acceptance has your current contact information, and save any notice you receive. You should not have to pay someone to claim this relief for you.
If you think you qualify but have not heard anything, contact Credit Acceptance. If you cannot resolve the question, contact your state attorney general's consumer protection office. You do not need to wait until February to ask about eligibility.
What should change on your credit report?
For accounts covered by full debt cancellation, Credit Acceptance must ask all three major credit bureaus to delete the account's entry. Simply changing the balance to zero is not the full relief required.
Deleting that entry removes the payment history recorded in it, including any late payments or repossession notation. The settlement also prohibits Credit Acceptance from collecting on covered accounts or selling them to someone else.
When should you expect changes?
There are two separate timelines: covered balances must be cancelled by November 2, 2026, while Credit Acceptance has 90 days after that date to request deletion and notify affected customers. The credit bureaus may need additional processing time.
| Timing | What it means |
|---|---|
| By November 2, 2026 | Credit Acceptance must cancel balances on covered accounts. |
| Within 90 days after November 2 | Credit Acceptance must stop reporting covered accounts, request deletion, and notify customers. The 90-day mark is January 31, 2027. This period also covers the required lien releases and title delivery. |
| After the deletion request | The bureaus must process the request. The settlement does not promise that all three reports will update on the same day. |
These dates come from the settlement's effective date and implementation provisions. Consumer payments from the separate $60 million fund have a different process; these are not refund deadlines.
An account still appearing in December does not, by itself, show that Credit Acceptance missed its deletion deadline. Likewise, an older balance displayed on a report immediately after November 2 does not prove that the company failed to cancel the debt. Check when the account was last updated, and ask the company to confirm its status.
What should you do if the account still appears?
1. Check all three credit reports
Get your Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion reports through AnnualCreditReport.com, the official source for free reports, or have Solid Credit pull all three for you. Check each one, because their information can differ.
2. Compare the reports with your cancellation notice
Look for the Credit Acceptance account, any balance still shown as owed, and the last update date. Keep a copy of each report and your notice. Ask Solid, your AI credit expert, can find that account across all three of your reports and answer questions about what each one says.
3. Follow up on a missing deletion or an incorrect balance
If a covered account remains after the 90-day period, ask Credit Acceptance whether it sent the deletion request. You can also contact the bureau that still lists it and provide your notice.
If a report incorrectly says you still owe cancelled debt, dispute the balance with the bureau and with Credit Acceptance. Explain the error and include copies of supporting documents. You do not need to wait for the deletion-request deadline to dispute inaccurate information. Our guide to how a dispute actually works walks through what happens after you file.
If the issue continues, contact your state attorney general's consumer protection office. If someone tries to collect a debt you have confirmation was cancelled, ask for written details and report the contact to that office.
What about newer loans?
Separate protections apply to certain loans made after December 1, 2025. For qualifying borrowers whose vehicles are involuntarily repossessed and sold within 12 or 18 months, Credit Acceptance must waive 95% of the balance left after the sale. Eligibility depends on credit-score and payment-to-income requirements.
This provision does not offer the same automatic deletion request as the older-account relief. Where the debt is disputed and extinguished through this process, the company must consider a borrower's request for deletion in good faith. It does not have to approve every request. Ask Credit Acceptance which rules apply to your loan, and keep a copy of any request you submit.
This article provides general information, not individual financial, tax, or legal advice. Cancelled debt is sometimes taxable and sometimes not; if a tax form arrives about it, a tax professional can tell you what it means for you. Contact Credit Acceptance or your state attorney general's office with questions about your eligibility.
Common questions
Do I need to apply to get my Credit Acceptance balance cancelled?
No. State officials say consumers do not need to take action. Credit Acceptance must identify covered accounts and notify each customer by letter, email, or text. Consumer payments from the separate $60 million fund are handled by a settlement administrator. No one should be charging you a fee for any part of this.
Will the account be deleted from my credit report, or just show a zero balance?
The settlement requires deletion, not a zero balance. Credit Acceptance must stop reporting covered accounts and ask Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion to delete the entries. It makes the request and the bureaus process it, so this is neither instant nor guaranteed to land on all three on the same day. If a covered account is still listed after January 31, 2027, ask the company whether it sent the request.
My car was repossessed, or I handed it back. Am I still covered?
Losing the car does not disqualify you, and neither does handing it back voluntarily. One of the two covered groups is for accounts where the vehicle was taken back and sold, where the repossession or voluntary surrender happened within 18 months of the loan beginning. The other group covers certain vehicles that were not repossessed and sold at auction, and those accounts also get the lien released and the title sent.
What if I think I qualify but never get a notice?
Credit Acceptance uses the contact details it has on file, so an old address or phone number is the first thing to rule out. Contact the company to ask whether your specific account qualifies. You do not need to wait until February to ask. If you cannot resolve it, your state attorney general's consumer protection office is the place to take it.
Will my credit score go up when the account is deleted?
A higher score is not guaranteed. Removing an account removes its positive history as well as its negative history, and the effect depends on the rest of your credit report and the scoring model. The debt being cancelled is real and permanent either way.
Sources
Checked September 23, 2026
- Superior Court of New Jersey, Chancery Division, Final Consent Judgment, State of New Jersey v. Credit Acceptance Corporation (filed September 17, 2026)The definitions of covered accounts and the eligibility requirements; the effective date and the 90-day and 120-day deadlines; the requirement to stop furnishing data and request deletion of the trade lines; the lien release and title delivery; the collection and resale bar; customer notification; and the 95% balance waiver and good-faith deletion consideration for loans originated after December 1, 2025.
- Office of the New York Attorney General, Attorney General James Secures $700 Million from Abusive Subprime Auto Lender Credit Acceptance CorporationThe September 17, 2026 announcement, the allegations about unaffordable loans and add-on products, and that eligible consumers receive relief without having to take action.
- Office of the North Carolina Attorney General, Attorney General Jeff Jackson Reaches $694 Million Settlement Over Predatory Auto LoansThat the debt relief is nationwide, that it covers certain loans made between November 1, 2015 and November 30, 2025 rather than every Credit Acceptance loan, and that a claims administrator notifies consumers eligible for restitution while the company notifies those eligible for debt relief.
- Office of the Minnesota Attorney General, Credit Acceptance Corporation to pay $75 million, forgive $630 million in consumer debt to resolve alleged consumer protection violationsThe September 17, 2026 announcement date, the allegations, and that consumers do not need to take any action and will be contacted.
- Credit Acceptance Corporation, Credit Acceptance Reaches Resolution With State Attorneys General (Form 8-K)That the resolution settles the 2023 New York lawsuit and the multistate investigation, was reached without any admission of fault or wrongdoing, and covers accounts open as of December 1, 2025.
- Federal Trade Commission, Free Credit ReportsThat AnnualCreditReport.com is the official source for free credit reports from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion.
- Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, How do I dispute an error on my credit report?How to dispute inaccurate information with the credit bureau and with the company that reported it, and what to include with the dispute.
