IndyMac Bancorp Inc. on Tuesday struck back against a report criticizing its lending practices, calling it a “hit piece” filled with “shoddy and unsubstantiated research.”

The June 30 report by non-profit Center for Responsible Lending, “IndyMac: What Went Wrong,” is irresponsible in concluding that the company pushed risky loans on unsuspecting homeowners, said Communications Director Grove Nichols, in a post on the Pasadena-based mortgage lender’s Internet blog.

The report, Nichols said, relies on the testimony of disgruntled former employees and homeowners who are plaintiffs in lawsuits against the company. “We won’t be sidetracked by the attacks of entities like the CRL, which has an agenda where the facts don’t seem to matter,” he said. “The CRL never contacted anyone at IndyMac to check on any of the facts they assert or to get our response on any of the issues they have raised.”

CRL had accused the company of pushing homeowners to take out expensive and risky mortgages they could not afford to pay back. The group said it spoke with 19 former IndyMac employees who described a history of deceptive lending practices at the company.

“IndyMac Bank and its parent, IndyMac Bancorp, engaged in unsound and abusive lending during the mortgage boom, routinely making loans without regard to borrowers’ ability to repay,” the report said. “These practices left many deep in debt and struggling to avoid foreclosure.”