Debt collection

An appeals court has upheld the four-year prison term of a former collection agency executive who was the mastermind behind a $12 million fraud scheme from January 2007 to March 2011.

WASHINGTON — Medical debt may prove to be one of the complex areas that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau will tackle in its highly anticipated rulemaking on debt collection next year.

A report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office reveals a drop in state funding for public universities is making it tougher for students to pay for college.

Rozanne Andersen, chief compliance officer at Ontario Systems, is named as a nominee on the 2015 Shortlist for the Women in Compliance Awards. Andersen was twice named one of the top achievers in collections by Collections & Credit Risk for her role in shaping the industry's legislative priorities.

Colorado's Attorney General John Suthers has sued two more foreclosure law firms for fraud, accusing them of inflating costs charged to homeowners.

A Defense Department proposal to strengthen financial protections for military personnel is still too weak, according to attorneys general from 20 states.

In Thailand, the National Legislative Assembly on Friday passed a draft law outlining a ban to protect people from being targeted by rogue debt collectors.

Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sen. Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) is calling for joint action between the Department of Education, Department of Treasury and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to address student loan industry issues - including debt collection and loan servicing.

T-Mobile has agreed to fully refund its customers for unwanted third-party charges it placed on their phone bills, paying at least $90 million to settle a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit filed earlier this year.

The Securities Exchange Commission charged the co-owners of Buffalo, N.Y.-based Reliance Financial Advisors with fraud for allegedly misleading clients about risks associated with a hedge fund managed by a former debt collector.

Thirteen St. Louis suburbs are named in a civil lawsuit filed Thursday by Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster's office for alleged predatory traffic ticketing.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is suing a Texas-based company, Union Workers Credit Services, for allegedly deceiving consumers into paying fees to sign up for a sham credit card.

WASHINGTON - One day a mobile phone giant, the next day a furniture store catering to military service members.

An audit of Cheyney University in Pennsylvania found the school's financial status has deteriorated in the past five years, partly because of failed collection efforts. Bad debt increased 348% since 2010.

One of the defendants behind a massive landline cramming operation that placed more than $70 million in unauthorized charges on consumers’ phone bills has agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges against him.

The Texas Attorney General's office is investigating an alleged identity theft ring where the callers sometimes are claiming to be collecting on behalf of a government agency.

Sprint Corp. likely faces a record $105 million fine from the Federal Communications Commission over unauthorized text messages and other services charged on customers' cell phone bills.

The Federal Trade Commission and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau hosted a “Debt Collection and the Latino Community Roundtable” in October to examine how collection and credit reporting impact Latino consumers - particularly those with Limited English Proficiency (LEP).

TransUnion’s annual auto loan forecast calls for auto loan debt to continue to rise to $18,244 at the end of 2015. This would mark 19 consecutive quarters of increases.

A Florida-based mortgage modification business and its owner are banned from the industry as part of a settlement resolving Federal Trade Commission charges that he tricked financially strapped consumers into paying for mortgage-relief services that he never provided.