Ninth Circuit Affirms Award of Attorneys’ Fees in FDCPA Matter

In Hanrahan v. Statewide Collection, Inc., No. 21-16187 (9th Cir. Sep. 1, 2022), the Ninth Circuit affirmed an award of attorneys’ fees in favor of the plaintiff in an action brought under the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA). The case makes clear that, although the amount is discretionary, attorney fee awards to prevailing plaintiffs are mandatory under the FDCPA.

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CFPB on Schedule with Consumer Data Privacy Rights Rulemaking Process

On Oct. 25, 2022, the Director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Rohit Chopra, announced at a fintech conference that the CFPB “will launch the process to activate a dormant authority under Section 1033 of the Consumer Financial Protection Act . . . [to] provide for personal financial data rights for Americans . . .”

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Breaking Down the CFPB's Opinion on Convenience Fees [Sponsored]

When the CFPB released their advisory opinion on “pay-to-pay fees” in debt collection, it caused confusion in the debt collection industry. The opinion emphasized the existing provision in the FDCPA that says debt collectors may not collect fees that are “incidental” to the principal amount of the debt unless expressly permitted by law or within the consumer’s agreement with the creditor.

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Ninth Circuit Puts New Limits on Aggregate Statutory Awards Following Remand of Nearly $1 Billion TCPA Judgment

In Wakefield v. ViSalus, Inc., the Ninth Circuit considered whether a jury verdict of $925,200,000 for cumulative statutory damages under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, 47 U.S.C. § 227 (“TCPA”) was constitutional in light of its harsh severity.  After a three-day trial, the jury delivered a verdict against ViSalus, finding that it sent over 1.8 million prerecorded calls to class members without prior express consent, in violation of the TCPA.   As the TCPA sets the minimum statutory damages at $500 per call, the total damage award against ViSalus was a staggering $925,220,000.

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Collections Industry Sees Significant Split Between Large and Small Firms’ Investments in Customer Contact Channels

CHICAGO, Ill. -- More than one in three (37%) collections firms are now using text/SMS messaging — a modest increase from last year when 31% were utilizing this communications channel with consumers. A different story emerges when broken out by large firms (100k or more accounts) and small firms (fewer than 100k accounts).  While more than half (56%) of large firms now utilize text/SMS messaging, only 17% of small firms have adopted the channel.

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Text Messages Are Still Not Voices

Good news! At least as of now…

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Featured Resources and Webinars

from insideARM.com

» How to Launch an Omnichannel Collection Strategy

» 10 Steps to Drive More Profitable Collections Operations

» Breaking Down the CFPB's Opinion on Convenience Fees

» 2022 Survey Report: Explore and Understand the Modern Consumer’s Expectations

» Case Study: How Credit Service Company Used Business Intelligence to Increase Revenue without Increasing Effort

» How an Empathy-First Strategy Can Improve Your KPIs

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