Debt collection

Mortgage lenders, debt collectors and credit card companies have borne the brunt of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's public enforcement actions over the past four years, yet banks have paid the most in penalties and restitution, according to a new study released by an agency insider.

Consumer advocates are urging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to strengthen its proposal to rein in payday lending, arguing it would still allow borrowers to be abused.

The FCC's Consumer Advisory Committee recently reviewed its proposed rule on government debt collection calls and offered ideas about how to inform current rulemaking to implement TCPA amendments.

JPMorgan Chase announced it is closing its Houston auto loan collections unit and laying off 90 workers.

Ontario Systems announced Monday it has acquired Columbia Ultimate Business Systems in a deal joining two of the largest ARM industry vendors, with each holding distinct market-leading positions in adjacent verticals.

The Federal Trade Commission claims two Southern California law firms bilked people for $15 million in a single year in a mortgage scam.

TransUnion has been awarded the 2016 Javelin Identity Protection Leader in Resolution, the company announced.

Mississippi officials report that the state's ban on payday loan rollovers will remain intact after the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau enacts new rules on payday lending.

The City of York, Pa., has partnered with MuniServices LLC, a business of PRA Group Inc., to provide revenue discovery and recovery services.

Adli Dasuqi and his companies, American Handicapped Inc. and American Handicapped and Disadvantaged Workers Inc., agreed to settle FTC charges that they tricked consumers into buying household products on the pretext that the proceeds would help disabled people.

Outstanding consumer credit, a measure of nonmortgage debt, rose by a seasonally adjusted $13.4 billion in April from March, according to the Federal Reserve.

Walk down your average street in this country, and you'll find it easier to take out a loan than buy a coffee. With 22,000 payday lending locations in the U.S., Starbucks would have to grow three times in size to compete. Since the 1990s, annual loan volume has bloated to an estimated $27 billion. That's a lot of coffee.

Debt collectors are facing increasing pressure from the CFPB through aggressive regulation by enforcement. In the past few years, the CFPB has entered into consent orders with debt buyers, banks and other lenders. The orders limit debt sales, increase data requirements and forbid various collection practices.

The FTC's annual report on enforcement actions involving the Electronic Fund Transfer Act, the Truth in Lending Act and the Consumer Leasing Act highlights seven new or ongoing cases involving EFTA issues in 2015.

Illinois owes $3 million to the FBI for processing fingerprints and conducting background checks for professional licenses and permits. The debt is old enough that it could be turned over to the federal government's collection agency - the Treasury Department.

Without the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau setting specific debt collection guidelines — including what technology agencies can use — the industry will continue a practice that harms consumers: lawsuits.

U.S. card issuers lose $10.9 billion each year to card fraud, according to research released Tuesday by LexisNexis Risk Solutions.

The Better Business Bureau of Central New England is reporting complaints from consumers about fake debt collection calls that include threats of arrest and wage garnishment if bills are not paid.

The CFPB filed a lawsuit Monday against the payment processer Intercept Corp. and its two top executives for allegedly enabling clients to withdraw millions of dollars' worth of illegal charges from consumer bank accounts.

DBA International released a statement late Monday responding to Sunday's episode of HBO's Last Week Tonight, which focused on the debt-buying industry.