Fair Credit Reporting Act lawsuits increased 3.4% in May compared to April but other key categories fell during the month, according to WebRecon, a Grand Rapids, Mich.-based firm that tracks data from U.S. district courts.
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau complaints fell 15.8% in May and Fair Debt Collection Practices Act filings declined 15.4%. Perhaps surprisingly, Telephone Consumer Protection Act filings dropped 8.3% - to 216 from 234 in April. Year-to-date, TCPA filings total 1,118, a 32.1% increase from the same period in 2013.
Overall, year-to-date FCRA litigation is 11% higher than the period through the first five months of 2013.
Year-to-date, FDCPA litigation is down 19.3%. In total, there were 4,841 FDPCA lawsuits through the end of May last year compared to 4,058 lawsuits in the same period this year.
In May, 774 lawsuits were filed in U.S. district courts for alleged FDCPA violations, down from 893 lawsuits in April, according to the data.
Of the total consumer statute cases filed in May, approximately 1,122 were from unique plaintiffs. Of those plaintiffs, an estimated 386 (34%) previously had sued under consumer statutes. Combined, those plaintiffs have filed about 2,022 lawsuits since 2001. An estimated 1,060 different collection firms and creditors were sued in May.
Consumers filed 3,188 complaints with the CFPB against collectors in May, compared to 3,693 in April.
Top complaints among those filed about debt collection include:
1,234 continued attempts to collect debt not owed (39%)
632 communication tactics (20%)
571 disclosure verification of debt (18%)
234 false statements or representation (7%)
285 improper contact or sharing of information (9%)
232 taking/threatening illegal action (7%)
The status of Mays CFPB complaints:
2,211 closed with explanation (69%)
546 closed with non-monetary relief (17%)
187 in progress (6%)
60 untimely response (2%)
130 closed (4%)
54 closed with monetary relief (2%)
In total, 3,032 (95%) of responses were considered timely and 156 (5%) were untimely. Consumers accepted 2,659 (83%) of the responses and disputed 529 (17%).
