Debt collection

The Federal Trade Commission will host a roundtable next month to gather information on consumers’ experiences in the sale and financing of motor vehicles at dealerships.

The Federal Trade Commission on Wednesday told Congress that consumers must be confident that their privacy will be protected if they are to be willing to take advantage of all the benefits offered by the Internet marketplace.

Experian announced Tuesday that it has signed an agreement to acquire Medical Present Value Inc. (MPV), a provider of revenue cycle management software, data and analytics to more than 75,000 U.S. physicians, for $185 million. MPV's assets will immediately become a part of Experian.

Teletrack Inc. has agreed to pay $1.8 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that it sold credit reports to marketers, a violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).

The Durbin amendment has caused more than just a stir in the banking world. Everyone has an opinion about who the winners and losers will be when it comes to limiting interchange fees.

The Federal Trade Commission filed an amicus brief in federal court opposing a class-action settlement that would require consumers to surrender protections provided by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and state laws in exchange for minimal payments.

A federal court banned three men and their company from the mortgage modification business and ordered them to pay nearly $19 million for consumer refunds, according to terms of a settlement with the Federal Trade Commission.

New car sales are finally on a rising trend line. Despite production delays at some automakers – in some cases Tsunami-related – year-over-year sales figures are heading upward, in some cases by double digits.

The Federal Trade Commission settled two cases involving companies that failed to protect consumers' personal information, the agency announced Thursday.

A single lawsuit filed by a one attorney helped create a spike in Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) lawsuits filed in the May 16-31 reporting period, according to WebRecon LLC, a Grand Rapids, Mich.- based firm that tracks the data from U.S. District Courts.

ACA International officials on Monday introduced "The Path Forward: A Blueprint for Modernizing America’s Debt Collection System" - a five-point plan it hopes will improve collections by reducing, preventing and better resolving consumer complaints.

U.S. consumers average credit scores dropped three points to 667 since May 2010, while credit card debt plunged by 15% to $6,740 in the same period, according to data Credit Karma released Thursday.

Consumer credit jumped by a seasonally adjusted 3.1% annual rate in April, the seventh consecutive monthly gain, according to the Federal Reserve's monthly G.19 report released Tuesday.

Debt buyer Portfolio Recovery Associates Inc. (PRA), based in Norfolk, Va., has announced the launch of a program designed to help individuals who have been victims of identity theft.

The CEO and founder of the company behind the "wealth-building" program “Winning in the Cash Flow Business,” has been charged by the Federal Trade Commission with defrauding consumers.

U.S. consumers filed an estimated 568 lawsuits against collection agencies and creditors between May 1-15, according to statistics from U.S. District Court branches.

A federal district court judge ordered a marketing operation to pay more than $3.7 million as part of a contempt case for violating a 2008 court order.

The estimated number of collection agencies and creditors that were sued in the April 16-30 period jumped to 540 compared with 504 in the first half of April, according to data from U.S. District Courts.

Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson's office on Thursday sued collection industry giant Encore Capital Group Inc. for allegedly using fraudulent "robo-signed" affidavits in collection cases.

NCO Group Inc., a debt buyer and global provider of business process outsourcing (BPO), announced Thursday the acquisition of Protocol Global Solutions Inc., a company that specializes in contact center services for the health care, energy, government and insurance markets.