A District Court judge in Indiana has granted a defendant’s motion for summary judgment, ruling that the collection agency was entitled to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act’s bona fide error defense because a fax that was sent by the plaintiff’s attorney disputing a debt was forwarded to the wrong …
Read More »Bedard: How Agencies Can Invoke BFE Defense When Communicating Via Email, Text Message
“Why did you think it was ok to not wear a mask when you went outside to play with your friends?” “Because nobody else was wearing one.” “If everyone else jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge, would you do it, too?” How many times have we said or heard that line? …
Read More »Bedard: How the Debt Collection Rule ‘Paves The Way’ To Eliminate Almost 100% of Postage Costs
One of the greatest concerns that debt collectors have when it comes to sending emails is the risk of a third-party disclosure violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. For example, there are people who share email accounts and if a collector sends an email to that address and …
Read More »Judge Grants MSJ For Defense Over Cease Contact Request Sent to Agency Affiliate
A District Court judge in Illinois has granted a defendant’s motion for summary judgment after it was sued for violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act by continuing to contact a plaintiff after the plaintiff’s attorney had sent an online message to stop doing so, because the message was sent …
Read More »Compliance Digest – August 26
Every week, AccountsRecovery.net brings you the most important news in the industry. But, with compliance-related articles, context is king. That’s why the brightest and most knowledgable compliance experts are sought to offer their perspectives and insights into the most important news of the day. Read on to hear what the …
Read More »Judge Denies BFE Defense Over Differing Balances in Collection Letter
A collection law firm is not entitled to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act’s bona fide error defense because it did not have the proper procedures in place to keep a programming mistake from happening, a District Court judge in Ohio has ruled in a bench trial, ordering a judgment …
Read More »[UPDATED] Appeals Court Upholds Lower Court Ruling That QR Code on Envelope Violates FDCPA
[EDITOR’S NOTE: Updated below with comments from Jeff Freedman, the co-CEO of MRS] Less than two months after hearing arguments on the case, a panel of judges from the Third Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday unanimously affirmed a summary judgment ruling in favor of a plaintiff who sued a collection …
Read More »Judge Grants MSJ For Defense in FDCPA Suit Over Processing Fee, Who Owed Debt
A District Court judge in Missouri has granted summary judgment in favor of a defendant that was sued for allegedly violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act because it charged a processing fee for payments made via a debit or credit card and because the account was originally opened in …
Read More »Judge Denies Dual MSJ Requests in Case Over Failure to Mark Account as Disputed
A District Court judge in Michigan has denied requests for summary judgment from both the plaintiff and the defendant in a case in which the defendant is accused of violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act by allegedly failing to mark an account as disputed, and the judge says it …
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