Lending Tree Data Breach, Sensitive Information Potentially Disclosed in Hack

 On June 29, 2022, Lending Tree, LLC, an online lending marketplace based in based in Charlotte, North Carolina, reported a data breach to the Montana Attorney General’s Office.

CFPB Examines Credit Card Late Fees

In 2009, Congress enacted the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009 (CARD Act). Among other things, the CARD Act curtailed a range of junk fees, coercive contract clauses, and other suspicious practices. In 2010, the Federal Reserve Board of Governors’ (Fed) voted to implement provisions of the CARD Act that required penalties to be “reasonable and proportional to the omission or violation.”

CFPB Issues Advisory to Protect Privacy When Companies Compile Personal Data

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) issued a legal interpretation to ensure that companies that use and share credit reports and background reports have a permissible purpose under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. The CFPB’s new advisory opinion makes clear that credit reporting companies and users of credit reports have specific obligations to protect the public’s data privacy. The advisory also reminds covered entities of potential criminal liability for certain misconduct.

Technologists wanted

The core work of the CFPB – ensuring that markets for consumer financial products are fair, transparent, and competitive – relies on a deep understanding of how the markets we regulate work. To do this, we need people with diverse perspectives and skillsets in the room.

CFPB takes first formal step toward new rulemaking on credit card late fees

The CFPB has taken the first formal step towards a new rulemaking on credit card late fees by issuing an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPR). Comments on the ANPR must be received by July 22, 2022.

Medical Debt Plagues 41% of Americans, KFF Survey Finds

The survey found that 41 percent of adults currently have debt caused by medical or dental bills. Specifically, 24 percent of respondents said they have past-due medical bills or bills they cannot pay and 21 percent reported medical debt they are paying off over time directly to a provider.

Buy Now, Pay Later services may be getting some Americans deep into debt

Minneapolis CNN Business Buy Now, Pay Later installment plans have become popular among consumers seeking to spread out the cost of big-ticket purchases. But now, rising prices have some cash-strapped shoppers reaching for these alternative payment methods for everyday purchases, such as their daily coffee, gas station fill-up or grocery run, as well.

“This Is an Attempt to Collect a Debt” May Mean What It Says: The Eleventh Circuit’s Recent Decision in Daniels v. Select Portfolio Servicing, Inc.

The Eleventh Circuit’s recent 2-1 panel decision in Daniels v. Select Portfolio Servicing, Inc., provides a fresh example of the difficulty creditors face when navigating the requirements of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). In Daniels, the borrower alleged that the creditor’s periodic statements violated certain provisions of the FDCPA by demanding amounts not due.

Did you pay a scammer through Western Union? Check the new deadline for refunds

Refunds are still available to people who were tricked into wiring money to scammers through Western Union between January 1, 2004 and January 19, 2017. In fact, the deadline to file a claim has been extended. If you didn’t file a claim for a refund yet, you now have until August 31, 2022 to file. The refunds are part of a $586 million settlement Western Union reached with the FTC and Department of Justice in 2017 for allegedly violating the law by failing to guard against fraud in its system.

CFPB Interprets the FDCPA to Prohibit Debt Collectors from Charging “Pay-To-Pay” Or “Convenience” Fees—Are Creditors Next?

On June 29, 2022, the CFPB issued an advisory opinion interpreting Section 808 of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to prohibit debt collectors from charging or receiving  “convenience” fees or “pay-to-pay” fees.  Section 808 declares it an unfair practice to collect “any amount (including any interest, fee, charge, or expense incidental to the principal obligation) unless such amount is expressly authorized by the agreement creating the debt or permitted by law.”[1]

657 Healthcare Providers Affected by Ransomware Attack on Professional Finance Company

A major data breach has been reported by the Greeley, CO-based accounts receivable management company, Professional Finance Company Inc. (PFC) which is believed to have affected 657 of its healthcare provider clients.

Postage Rate Increase

The U.S. Postal Service will implement new postage rates for most mailing (market dominant) products on Sunday, July 10, 2022. The First Class Mail (1 oz.) letter rate for postage purchased at the Post Office will increase two cents to $0.60 from $0.58.

AG Yost Issues Warning to Companies Facilitating Potentially Illegal Robocalls

(COLUMBUS, Ohio) — Attorney General Dave Yost’s Robocall Enforcement Unit has issued warning letters to 10 Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) providers who are providing support for customers that may be engaging in illegal conduct.

TCPA Litigation Update — Oklahoma: The Latest State to Enact a “Mini-TCPA”

Oklahoma is the latest to join states like Florida in placing restrictions on telephonic sales calls in the wake of the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Facebook v. Duguid, 141 S. Ct. 1163, 1167 (2021), which significantly limited the application of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”) to live calls and text messages.

What to know about how medical debt affects your credit rating

As of July 1, the three largest credit reporting agencies — Equifax, Experian and TransUnion — have changed the way medical debt affects people’s credit ratings. Medical debt has become pervasive, as health care and insurance costs continue to rise, while income has not kept up with inflation. About 23 million people in the United States — roughly 9% of the population — owe at least $250 in medical expenses, according to the Peterson-Kaiser Family Foundation Health System Tracker.

Luxury car buyers shell out more than ever with ‘car payments that look more like mortgage payments’

If you can even find a new car to buy, actually purchasing it is going to cost you. “It’s a really difficult time to buy a car,” said Jessica Caldwell, executive director of insights for Edmunds. Limited inventory due to a persistent shortage of computer chips, along with other supply-chain challenges, helped propel new car prices up 12.6% from a year ago and used car prices 16.1% higher, according to the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

RMAi Executive Summit 2022

RMAi

DCS2022 – Debt Connection Symposium and Expo 2022