Daily Digest

NYC ENACTS RULE REGARDING LANGUAGE ACCESS A new rule is set to go into effect in New York City later this month that will require debt collectors to notify individuals who do not speak or read English well about other options that may be available to help those people understand …

GETTING TO KNOW JEFF BERENHOLZ OF ARCADIA RECOVERY BUREAU The collections industry has Jeff Berenholz’s grandmother to thank for helping him find his way into our lives. Without her, he might be Dr. Jeff Berenholz, psychologist. Read on to learn more about Jeff, what it’s like to take care of …

APPEALS COURT AFFIRMS SUMMARY JUDGMENT FOR DEFENDANT IN FDCPA CASE OVER ‘MAY’ CREDIT REPORT May is not just a month anymore. It is now a word that debt collectors can use in collection letters when referencing credit reporting, according to the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals, which upheld a lower …

JUDGE CERTIFIES CLASS IN FDCPA CASE OVER TAX DISCLOSURE A District Court judge in New Jersey has certified a class against a company accused of violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act by sending collection letters which included a disclosure regarding the possible need to report the forgiveness of a …

APPEALS COURT AFFIRMS LOWER COURT’S COST AWARD IN FDCPA CASE This is one of those cases where I need to remind everyone from the outset that I am not an attorney, but the ruling seems so interesting, at least to me, that I wanted to bring your attention to it …

EMERGENCY MEETING TO ALLOW WASH. COLLECTORS TO WORK FROM HOME CANCELED AT LAST MINUTE A vote by the Washington State Collection Agency Board on an emergency proposal to clarify state regulations on what constitutes a branch office in order to allow employees of collection agencies to work from home was …

GETTING TO KNOW RYAN HASSEN OF CREDIT MANAGEMENT COMPANY Even though he may have came to the credit and collection industry only recently, when you say the thing you do better than anyone else is being empathetic, it feels as though Ryan Hassen was destined for collections. A former teacher, …

CFPB TAKES ACTION AGAINST TITLE LENDER FOR OVERCHARGING CUSTOMERS, UNFAIR COLLECTION TACTICS The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau yesterday announced an enforcement action against an auto loan title lender for, among other infractions, engaging in unfair collection tactics, which will see the lender repay $2 million back to individuals who were …

COMMENTS ON CFPB TASK FORCE YIELD INTERESTING INSIGHTS, DATA POINTS The comment period closed yesterday on a Request for Information released by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau related to the creation of a task force that would be charged with harmonizing and modernizing federal consumer laws. While there weren’t many …

OCC ISSUES FINAL ‘VALID WHEN MADE’ RULE TO ADDRESS MADDEN FIX The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency — which regulates national banks — on Friday issued a final rule that clarifies a key component of the debt buying transaction, a concept known as the “valid when made” doctrine, …