Debt collection

WASHINGTON — The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized a contentious policy Thursday allowing customers to describe their banking experiences more fully on the agency's complaint portal.

The first mortgage default rate dropped for the first time since July 2014 after months of steady increases, according to the February S&P/Experian Consumer Credit Default Indices report.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau announced Tuesday it’s adding two new topics - debt collection practices and ability-to-repay standards - to a planned second credit card market study that could lead to new rules and enforcement actions

Nevada lawmakers reviewed a bill Monday to curb predatory short-term lending by better disclosing the rates and risks of payday loans.

West Virginia lawmakers passed a bill Saturday to make changes to the state’s Consumer Credit and Protection Act concerning collecting debts, including the codification of abusive call volume.

Private student loans would no longer be exempt from protections when borrowers file for bankruptcy, under a bill introduced in the U.S. Senate.

Despite turmoil in the auto loan market - delinquencies are up, more people are losing their cars to repossession - Santander Consumer USA still had few problems finding buyers last week for a bond deal consisting of auto loans to credit-troubled borrowers.

The Newton (Iowa) Community School District will hire an outside collection agency to help recover an estimated $50,000 owed to the district in overdue food-service accounts.

Subprime consumer lending has reached its highest levels since the beginning of the financial crisis. Is the business, having failed to heed the lessons of the financial crisis, primed for another disaster?

Four Star Resolution in Buffalo, N.Y., one of two collection agencies in Western New York facing lawsuits from the Federal Trade Commission and the New York Attorney General’s office for allegedly abusive tactics, wants a judge to remove a restraining order preventing it from doing business.

A U.S. district court has banned the ringleader of a multi-million dollar fraud that targeted seniors from all telemarketing activities after he agreed with the Federal Trade Commission’s allegations that he withdrew money illegal from consumers’ bank accounts and funneled it to Canada.

A report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has found deceptive student loan debt collection practices, unfair and deceptive overdraft practices, mortgage origination violations, fair lending violations and mishandled disputes by consumer reporting agencies.

Coast Professional, National Recoveries Inc. and Enterprise Recovery Systems Inc. are suing the U.S. Department of Education over a decision made last week to end collection contracts for allegedly misleading borrowers.

Legislation concerning debt collectors is gaining traction in Indiana. House Bill 1358 would allow the state to reduce or take a person’s state tax return to settle a garnishment.

A presidential memorandum signed Tuesday directs federal agencies to overhaul the way Americans repay their student loans, the latest move in a series of steps the Obama administration is taking to promote college affordability and access.

WASHINGTON — President Obama has directed the Department of Education and other agencies to institute changes meant to improve student loan servicing in an initiative the White House calls "a student aid bill of rights."

Banks can expect to incur higher costs in several areas during the implementation of a settlement agreement to improve the accuracy of credit reports. But they might benefit in the long run by getting better information on borrowers.

Lucrative sale of a subprime lending unit. Big credit card deal. Clear business plan. It's looking like a good year for Citi — provided it passes the CCAR stress test this week and fills a key executive post.

The Federal Trade Commission has returned more than $2.4 million in refunds to some 100 consumers harmed by the Premier Precious Metals scheme, which bilked millions of dollars from investors, including many senior citizens.

Two private debt collection agencies that had contracts to collect delinquent student loans for the U.S. Department of Education have announced layoff plans prompted by the federal agency ending collection contracts with some vendors.