Debt collection

Maryland lawmakers are planning to discuss a bill that would cut the time collectors have to take homeowners to court for the leftover debt on foreclosed homes.

In the United Kingdom, the think tank Institute for Public Policy Research revealed the most popular uses for payday loans involve everyday expenses rather than unexpected emergencies.

A trio of lawsuits in West Virginia highlight the types of issues agencies are facing not just in the state but nationally.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the Department of Justice filed a joint complaint against National City Bank for charging higher prices on mortgage loans to African-American and Hispanic borrowers than similarly creditworthy white borrowers between the years 2002 and 2008.

Fidelity National Financial Inc. agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that its proposed $2.9 billion acquisition of Lender Processing Services Inc. (LPS) would substantially lessen competition by combining the firms’ title plant assets in several local markets in Oregon.

Consumer statute lawsuits in November were consistent with the trend seen throughout 2013. Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and Fair Credit Reporting Act litigation both declined while Telephone Consumer Protection Act lawsuits expanded.

Time Warner Cable Inc. has agreed to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that the company violated the Risk-Based Pricing Rule, which requires creditors to give notice to consumers who are provided less favorable credit terms based on information in their credit reports.

The Federal Trade Commission provided information to Congress on Wednesday on the status of its work regarding data brokers - firms that collect and aggregate consumers’ information and then resell it.

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's annual report on college credit card agreements showed a decline of 23 percent in college agreements from 2011 to 2012.

New Jersey legislators are pushing a measure that would prevent some identity theft victims from being hassled by debt collectors.

TransUnion announced Tuesday that it completed the acquisition of Boca Raton, Fla.-based TLO, a risk information and analytics company.

TransUnion's annual auto loan forecast calls for increases in both delinquency and debt levels during 2014.

New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman on Tuesday announced a settlement with Manor Resources LLC, a Delaware company that offered short-term auto title loans, secured by borrowers’ vehicles, at usurious rates of interest.

The Federal Trade Commission is taking action to stop a mobile phone cramming operation that has placed tens of millions of dollars on consumers’ mobile phone bills without their permission.

Colorado regulators resolved a case in which more than 600 state residents were financially harmed by a Texas-based debt settlement company operating illegally in Colorado.

Maryland Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler is alerting residents of the state about scammers trying steal bank account numbers and other personal identifying information.

The defendants in two separate alleged scams have settled charges with the Federal Trade Commission and will be banned from providing mortgage- and debt-relief services.

Credit card delinquency rates are expected to rise nearly 10% from 1.51% in Q4 2013 to 1.66% in Q4 2014, according to TransUnion, which also released mortgage delinquency rate forecasts.

Thousands of consumers scammed by Nevada-based payment processor Automated Electronic Checking (AEC) Inc. will get some of their money back as a result of a lawsuit and settlement reached with the Federal Trade Commission.

Consumer spending growth slowed in November despite strong holiday retail sales on Thanksgiving and the next day, according to First Data Corp., a global payments processing and electronic commerce company.