MANASQUAN, N.J. and SAN DIEGO, Calif. — Connect1, Business Consultants specializing in accounts receivable, technology, customer care and call center management, is proud to announce that, effective October 1,2022, all broker services will be powered by Debtfolio! The entire sales process can now be managed from start to finish with powerful software that creates consistent and easy file mapping, an audited and controlled bidding process, document retention and retrieval, chain of title, and de-duplication processes all in one platform.

Debtfolio was built with security and scalability on the latest cloud technologies from AWS. Designed for growth, the system seamlessly manages any volume of records, documents, and media, allowing customers to focus on their business instead of system and processing issues. Debtfolio is HIPAA-ready and conforms to stringent CIS and AWS security standards. Proactive controls, monitoring and alerting ensure customers’ data is continually protected. All data is encrypted in flight and at rest using AES-256 encryption standards.

Connect1 has more than 65 years of combined industry experience in BPO, collections and recovery management, debt portfolio sales, capital raise, analytics, fraud prevention, data security, technology, compliance. Working with Fortune 500 companies across several verticals including financial, healthcare, communications, cable, and retail has given them a broad view of the best practices and products for each sector.

“Debtfolio is a game changer in the sale of portfolios and is a complement to all the other services Connect1 has to offer”, say partners, Bob & Nancy

Connect 1 is currently seeking interested companies to preview and implement Debtfolio.

Please contact Bob Picone Rpicone@connect1consultants.com mobile 732-600-6265 or Nancy Hughes Nhughes@connect1consultants.com mobile 858-877-0551 to learn more!

Providing a consumer multiple settlement options in one letter is not misleading or deceptive- even where one offer is featured more prominently than the other. Further, according to New Jersey District Court Judge Esther Salas, when reviewing multiple offers, the “least sophisticated debtor is expected to perform simple math.”

In Shoulars v. Halsted Financial Services, LLC (Case No: 21-16560, Dist. Ct. NJ), Halsted sent the consumer an initial demand letter which included a text box in the top right corner stating, “40% off your balance.” After identifying the creditor, the letter offered to settle for a lump sum payment. The amount listed in that offer was a 40% discount on the balance. The following line of the letter stated in the event the consumer “cannot take advantage of the above offer” Halsted would accept a settlement payable in monthly installments. The amount listed in the second offer was a 20% reduction. The standard disclosures were listed directly below the settlement offers.

The consumer filed a class action lawsuit alleging the letter overshadowed and contradicted the validation period and was false, deceptive, and misleading, thus violating Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). Halsted contended the letter complied with the FDCPA and moved to dismiss the suit.  

In its September 12, 2022 opinion, the court found that the offers did not overshadow or contradict the validation notice because the disclosures were on the front page, were the same size and font as the rest of the letter, and did not suggest the consumer had to pay her debt before the end of the validation period. The multiple offers did not violate the FDCPA because the second, less discounted, offer explicitly stated that it was an alternative if the consumer was unable to take advantage of the first offer. By performing basic math, the consumer should have been able to determine the monthly installment settlement offer was less of a discount than the lump sum payment settlement offer; thus there was nothing misleading about it. 

Regarding the opinion, Halsteads’ General Counsel Brian Glass remarked, “Of course, we are extremely pleased with the result obtained by Peter Siachos and Stephanie Imbornone of Gordon, Rees, Scully and Mansukhani.  Judge Salas dismissed this case with prejudice and reasoned that there was no need to allow the Plaintiff a second chance to amend its complaint if it would be futile, because the claims were based entirely on a singular letter.  All our letters are vetted in a multi-faceted approach, by industry professionals, to ensure compliance with Regulation F, the FDCPA, as well as state and local regulations.  The Court’s decision bolsters Halsted’s commitment to compliance, and helping consumers navigate the repayment of their debts in a fair and ethical manner.”

Read the full opinion here.

insideARM’s Perspective

While this is certainly a nice win for the industry, it is important to note that this case involved a pre-Regulation F initial demand, and it is a district court opinion with potentially limited reach. In other words, while it is undoubtedly a valuable case for the industry, operations professionals can still expect their compliance colleagues to analyze changes to initial demand notices. That said, the reasoning provided by Judge Salas brings some common sense to the “least sophisticated consumer” standard and makes clear that even the least sophisticated consumer cannot ignore the plain meaning of words on the page. 

Chesapeake, VA. — Spring Oaks Capital, LLC has hired Mike Ohmsen as Department Manager. Mike will report to Director of Operations, Tim Rees.

Mike joins Spring Oaks from TTEC, Inc. Government Solutions where he was the Executive Director for Electronic Tolling. During his tenure there, Mike drove superior results in performance achievement for 4 major state and metropolitan customer service center 

operations. Mike has 30 years of operations management experience in Financial Services. He has held leadership roles including General Manager for AOL servicing at Liberty Source, and Vice President at Bank of America Default Servicing Complaint Resolution, Office of the President. Mike was recently featured in the 100 People to Meet in 2022 for Virginia Business Magazine.

Tim Rees, Director of Operations, stated, “We are excited to add Mike to the Spring Oaks Capital management team. He brings a tremendous amount of leadership, knowledge, and industry experience that will support our continued growth. Mike’s mind is keenly attuned to process improvement and root cause analysis which adds a critical dimension to our growing and complex team. I look forward to his contributions making us more effective and efficient by refining, polishing, and streamlining our operations model.”

[article_ad]

Mike stated, “I am excited to join the family here at Spring Oaks Capital. With my years of experience in customer service and Financial Services, joining a dynamic platform like Spring Oaks is a tremendous opportunity to work with a highly talented management team while sharing my diverse experience.”

About Spring Oaks Capital, LLC

Spring Oaks Capital is a national financial technology company, focused on the acquisition of credit portfolios. The Company subscribes to an employee and consumer-centric operating philosophy that creates high-value jobs, a significant performance lift, and the highest standards of compliance. Spring Oaks’ business strategy is rooted in innovative data-driven technology to maximize collection results and a contact platform that offers multi-channel options to meet each consumer’s communication preference. Spring Oaks has the management vision and experience to nurture a culture and DNA that is unique in the space. The executive team maintains deep experience end-to-end across the consumer finance lifecycle with some of the largest global banks and innovative FinTech platforms. To learn more about Spring Oaks and our revolutionary FinTech platform, please visit www.springoakscapital.com.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala.– ARM Compliance Business Solutions is excited to announce that Rick Paulin has joined the company as a Learning & Development Advisor. In this role, Rick will support ARM Compliance Business Solutions clients through building robust and effective role-based training programs through live and online platforms.  

Rick joins the company with over 30 years of industry experience in both first-party and third-party account receivable management. Prior to joining ARM Compliance Business Solutions, Rick was the Head of Compliance Training for InDebted, a fintech company based in NSW, Australia. 

While Rick was Director of Training for Windham Professionals, Training magazine presented Training Top 125 international awards to his team and the company in 2018, 2019, and again in 2020, for “unsurpassed harnessing of human capital”. 

Rick has also served as Director of Training and Development for Outsourcing Solutions, Inc. and their 9,000 employees in fifty-six offices. In this role, Rick spearheaded the development and national deployment of their Performance Management Program which included certification of operations leaders nationwide. After an initial onsite role launching a BPO operation in India in 2002, Rick pursued a full-time position offshore to gain global perspective and experience. Rick landed as VP of Training and Quality for Zenta Pvt., Ltd. in Mumbai, India, where he led the training team and raised client CSAT scores to levels resulting in awards of increased market share for key clients.

“The addition of Rick’s role is an exciting one for ARM Compliance Business Solutions,” said Sara Woggerman, President of ARM Compliance Business Solutions. “Training has always been a part of our service offerings at ARM Compliance Business Solutions, but it was primarily focused on compliance training for board of director and executive leadership. The expertise Rick brings to the table will enhance this service offering to include all departments and subjects from compliance to performance.”  

“When you meet a professional whose individual core values align with your own, it generates a wonderful excitement and energy,” said Rick Paulin. “Couple that with Sara’s experience, expertise, and credibility within our industry, makes for a relationship that I am so thankful for and mission I am proud to have a role in! I am thrilled to be part of ARM Compliance Business Solutions’ expanding reach and service offerings!” 

About ARM Compliance Business Solutions, LLC. 

ARM Compliance Business Solutions, LLC. was formed in 2020 to provide professional advisory services to the accounts receivables management industry through its delivery of compliance risk assessments, outsourced compliance services, service provider oversight and role-based training. ARM Compliance Business Solutions in a recognized leader in compliance and operational strategies to improve the consumer experience and enhance business practices for their clients. For more information, visit www.armcbs.com or contact Sara Woggerman at sara@armcbs.com. 

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, joined by six other trade groups, filed a lawsuit yesterday in a Texas federal district court against the CFPB challenging the CFPB’s recent update to the Unfair, Deceptive, or Abusive Acts or Practices (UDAAP) section of its examination manual to include discrimination.  The other plaintiffs are American Bankers Association, Consumer Bankers Association, Independent Bankers Association of Texas, Longview Chamber of Commerce, Texas Association of Business, and Texas Bankers Association. 

In July 2022, the Chamber, together with American Bankers Association, Consumer Bankers Association, and Independent Community Bankers of America, sent a letter to Director Chopra calling on the CFPB to rescind the update.  The letter was accompanied by a white paper setting forth the legal basis for their position. 

The plaintiffs claim that the manual update should be set aside because it violates the Administrative Procedure Act (APA)  for the following reasons:

• The update exceeds the CFPB’s statutory authority in the Dodd-Frank Act.  The CFPB cannot regulate discrimination under its UDAAP authority because Congress did not give the CFPB authority to enforce anti-discrimination principles except in specific circumstances.  The CFPB’s statutory authorities consistently treat “unfairness” and “discrimination” as distinct concepts.  (To demonstrate the compliance burdens resulting from the update, the plaintiffs allege that the CFPB has provided no guidance for regulated entities on what might constitute unfair discrimination or actionable disparate impacts for purposes of UDAAP. As examples of issues creating confusion, the plaintiffs allege that the CFPB has not identified what are protected classes or characteristics or what activities are not discrimination (such as those identified in the ECOA), and has not explained how regulated entities should conduct the sorts of assessments that the CFPB appears to be contemplating given existing prohibitions  on the collection of customer demographic information.)

• The update is “arbitrary and capricious” because the CFPB’s interpretation of “unfairness” contradicts the historical use and understanding of the term. The plaintiffs allege that the FTC’s unfairness authority does not extend to discrimination and that Congress borrowed the FTC Act’s unfairness definition for purposes of defining the CFPB’s UDAAP authority.  They also allege that the CFPB’s contemplated use of disparate impact liability when pursuing UDAAP claims flouts congressional intent and U.S. Supreme Court authority.

• The update violates the APA’s notice-and-comment requirement because it is a legislative rule that imposes new substantive obligations on regulated entities.

In addition to claiming that the manual update should be set aside due to the alleged APA violations, the plaintiffs allege that the update should be set aside because the CFPB’s funding structure violates the Appropriations Clause of the U.S. Constitution.  (Pursuant to Dodd-Frank, the CFPB receives its funding through requests made by the CFPB Director to the Federal Reserve, subject to a cap equal to 12% of the Federal Reserve’s budget, rather than through the Congressional appropriations process.)  As support for their unconstitutionality claim, the plaintiffs cite the concurring opinion of Judge Edith Jones in the Fifth Circuit’s en banc May 2022 decision in All American Check Cashing in which Judge Jones concluded that the CFPB’s funding mechanism is unconstitutional.  

[article_ad]

Although the en banc Fifth Circuit did not reach the funding argument, a Fifth Circuit panel is expected to consider that issue in the CFSA lawsuit which challenges the payment provisions in the CFPB’s 2017 final payday/auto title/high-rate installment loan rule.  The trade groups have appealed from the district court’s final judgment granting the CFPB’s summary judgment motion and staying the compliance date for the payment provisions.  On May 9, 2022, a Fifth Circuit panel heard oral argument in the CFSA lawsuit. 

The trade groups’ primary argument on appeal continues to be that the 2017 Rule was void ab initio because the CFPA’s unconstitutional removal restriction means that the Bureau did not have the authority to promulgate the 2017 Rule.  However, the trade groups submitted the concurring opinion in All American Check Cashing as supplemental authority to the Fifth Circuit panel hearing their appeal and have argued that the panel should adopt the reasoning of the concurring opinion and invalidate the 2017 Rule.

The unconstitutionality of the CFPB’s funding structure has also been raised by Populus Financial Group, Inc. in the lawsuit filed by the CFPB in July 2022 against Populus in a Texas federal district court.  Populus has filed a motion to dismiss in which it argues that the CFPB’s enforcement action is invalid because the CFPB’s funding structure violates the separation-of-powers principle embodied in the Appropriations Clause of the U.S. Constitution.

DALLAS, TX — Recently at the Millennium SACCO  2022 Business Breakfast Meeting in Kampala Uganda, Joe Adams, Chief Executive Officer and President of the Hampton Pryor Group, Inc. (HPG) announced the  global expansion of the company by establishing offices in Nairobi, Kenya and Kampala, Uganda. The meeting was attended by H.E. Jessica Alupo, Vice President of Uganda.

“By establishing Hampton Pryor Group International Ltd. and opening offices in these East African Countries (EAC), we are able to offer our current and prospective partners in the United States the opportunities to take advantage of the extremely cost efficient collections, recovery and BPO services across the  continent. Through us, American mortgage servicers, purchasers and collections agencies that currently or are thinking about subcontracting collections or BPO to agencies on the African continent, will be able to determine and ensure compliance with service level and regulatory obligations.”

With 54 countries and a population of over 1 billion people including a flourishing middle class, diversification of industries, and adoption of transformational technologies there is no denying the growth opportunities that abound on the African continent. Companies who want to be a part of and benefit from this massive transformation must act now.  Joe Adams adds, “We are being extremely strategic and measured in our expansion. We will only choose additional office locations on the continent that offer  an  all-around benefit to our clients.”

In addition to adding 3 African financial institutions to their client roster, HPG has  established a strategic partnership with Afronlynx IT Solutions, a top South African IT and software development company that currently has an international client base.

About the Hampton Pryor Group

Founded in 2003, Hampton Pryor Group is a worldwide advisory leader in accounts receivable management operations and compliance. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to assist mortgage servicers, credit grantors, debt purchasers and collections agencies.

About  Afrolynx IT Solutions

Afrolynx IT Solutions is an independent software development company that was founded in Johannesburg, South Africa in 2009. Our multi-disciplinary team of software engineers, analysts and designers have developed solutions for clients the Financial, Mining and Agriculture industries as well as Government and Non-Profit sectors. We have served businesses operating in Uganda, Zambia, Namibia, Botswana, and South Africa. Services include Bespoke software development, systems integration, database design and implementation, Web and mobile applications, and IT advisory.

LENEXA, Kan.–  One True Holding Company d/b/a/ TrueML, a financial technology software company developing machine learning-driven products that enable intelligent, digital communication including in the debt collection space, today announced it has acquired the debt collection business of Enhanced Recovery Company, LLC (ERC), a leading collections provider. The deal will bring ERC under the TrueML family of companies to accelerate TrueML’s mission of creating a better experience for distressed consumers.

Since its founding in 2013, TrueML’s software has been used to communicate with more than 20 million consumers experiencing collections using a digital-first approach. Acquiring ERC enables TrueML to increase its size, scale and access to industry verticals more rapidly, while accelerating its mission and reaching tens of millions more consumers by augmenting ERC’s services with digital capabilities.

“This acquisition provides exciting opportunities for TrueML to grow significantly while also paving the way for enhanced service offerings down the road,” said Ohad Samet, co-founder and CEO of TrueML. “We envision a world in which no one is locked out of the financial system, and we are growing at a time when best practices for engaging consumers in debt collection are transforming. We are committed to building software that uses machine learning and consumer-centric design to align with consumer communication preferences while delivering results for our clients. The addition of ERC will enable us to expand the scope of our products and services.”

Samet was inspired to start the company after a negative experience he had with an overdue bill, after which he and his brother Nadav set out to create better experiences and more productive outcomes for consumers looking for a path to financial health. To learn more about TrueML, its subsidiaries and their products, visit www.TrueML.co, and follow the company on LinkedIn and Twitter.

About TrueML

TrueML is a software company developing machine learning-driven products that prioritize customer experience and revolutionize the experience of consumers seeking financial health. The mission-driven team of data scientists, financial services industry experts and customer experience fanatics are building technology to serve people in a way that recognizes their unique needs and preferences as human beings and endeavoring toward ensuring nobody gets locked out of the financial system. 

In Bacalzo v. Credit Control, LLC, No. 20-16904 (KMW/MJS) (D.N.J. June 7, 2022), the court granted summary judgment in favor of a debt collector who included multiple contact addresses in a debt collection letter.

Defendant Credit Control LLC (Credit Control) sought to collect a credit card debt owed by plaintiff Linda Bacalzo. As part of its efforts, Credit Control sent the plaintiff a letter requesting payment. This letter listed Credit Control’s post office box and a street address, as well as its website, as its contact information.

The plaintiff filed suit under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), asserting that because the collection letter contained multiple addresses, the least sophisticated debtor would be confused or misled as to which address to send his/her debt dispute.

The court rejected the plaintiff’s argument that the letter violated FDCPA Section 1692e, finding that “the letter does not use any false representation or deceptive means to collect the debt or obtain information nor is it misleading.” Further, the court noted that the detachable portion of the letter only contains Credit Control’s P. O. Box address, which was highlighted. Accordingly, it held that “it seems reasonable that any consumer, including the least sophisticated debtor, would send correspondence to that address, even absent an express directive to do so.”

In addition to asserting that it was misleading, the plaintiff claimed the letter violated debt validation provisions of FDCPA Section 1692(g). Under this provision, a debt collector must: (1) provide a debt validation notice; and (2) cease all collection efforts if the consumer provides written notice that he/she disputes the debt or requests the original creditor’s name until the debt collector mails either the debt verification or creditor’s name to the consumer. The court rejected the plaintiff’s argument, finding the letter’s inclusion of multiple addresses and its failure to expressly indicate where correspondence should be sent does not overshadow or detract from Credit Control’s validation notice.

POTOMAC, Md. — Women in Consumer Finance (WCF) is thrilled to announce that Livevox is The Inspiration is in Our Stories sponsor for our 5th annual in-person professional development experience to be held December 5-7, 2022, in Palm Springs, California.

WCF provides inspiration, a guiding hand, and a support system women can leverage to recharge their careers and deliver value to their employers. The event is not about compliance, best practices, or even finance. It’s about women, our common professional challenges, and how to create and tell our own career story – no matter where we are on our professional journey. We take a unique approach to building confidence, connection, and careers. There is nothing else like it. 

At the center of that unique approach are two mainstage sessions that we call Our Stories. Each year, these stories are among the most cherished elements of the event. 

“We work really hard to bring a diverse group of women to the stage to share their stories so everyone can find inspiration through a common experience of some kind,” explained Stephanie Eidelman, Women in Consumer Finance CEO and Co-Chair. “Not only have the stories deeply impacted our attendees, but the experience has changed the lives of our storytellers too, because many of them have never been asked to step out of their comfort zone and – literally – take the stage in this way.”

This year’s Storytellers include:

• Tonia Brown, Senior Compliance Advisor at ARM Compliance Business Solutions
• Poorani Jeyasakar, Director at Klaros Group
• Lissette Jorgensen, Chief Operating Officer – The Sustainable Finance Group at Goldman Sachs
• Vanessa Maren. Senior Director, Business Development at Visa
• Tiffany Winfield, Principal Risk Specialist at Capital One

We’d like to thank our The Inspiration is in our Stories sponsor, Livevox, for recognizing what’s truly unique about Women in Consumer Finance and supporting the event as one of our largest sponsors.

“LiveVox is thrilled to support WCF’s important work empowering women in our industry to share their stories,” said Linda Esperance, SVP, People Operations, LiveVox. “WCF has created an important platform with the Women in Consumer Finance conference and is well aligned with our belief that tomorrow’s technology requires a global, diverse workforce, freedom to explore, and support to succeed.”

About Women in Consumer Finance

Women in Consumer Finance is an event and community for women at all levels in the context of a common industry. If you work in any role at a lender, creditor, servicer, law firm, technology or service provider, or regulator, this event is for you. We provide inspiration, a guiding hand, and a support system women can leverage to recharge their careers and deliver value to their employers. WCF is not about compliance, best practices, or even finance. It’s about women, our common professional challenges, and how to tell our own career story – no matter where we are on our professional journey. We take a unique approach to building confidence, connection, and careers. There is nothing else like it. WCF 2022 takes place in person in Palm Springs, California, on December 5-7. www.womeninconsumerfinance.com

About Livevox

LiveVox (Nasdaq: LVOX) is a next-generation contact center platform that powers more than 14 billion omnichannel interactions a year. By seamlessly unifying blended omnichannel communications, CRM, AI, and WEM capabilities, the Company’s technology delivers exceptional agent and customer experiences, while helping to mitigate compliance risk. With 20 years of cloud experience and expertise, LiveVox’s CCaaS 2.0 platform is at the forefront of cloud contact center innovation. The Company has more than 650 global employees and is headquartered in San Francisco, with offices in Atlanta, Columbus, Denver, St. Louis; Medellin, Colombia; and Bangalore, India. To stay up to date with everything LiveVox visit livevox.com.

Trying to keep up with regulations in debt collection can feel overwhelming especially with new cases and federal guidance coming out regularly interpreting the law and states actively amending or creating new laws that impact debt collectors, original creditors, and current creditors.

Here are four common compliance myths and misconceptions for collections debunked (no detective work needed)!

Myth #1: Under Regulation F consumers are not protected from harassment

False! The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) absolutely prohibits harassment of consumers see 15 USC 1692d. No matter how a debt collector reaches out to a consumer, by phone call, email, SMS, voicemail, even social media—a debt collector cannot harass a consumer through one channel or through a combination of channels. Regulation F made clear that harassment is the totality of the circumstances, “the cumulative effect of all [communications – calls, emails, text messages] may constitute a violation of the harassment provision.”

[article_ad]

Email and cell phone providers offer additional built in protections for their customers to help with rogue actors who fail to abide by the harassment provisions in the FDCPA. These service providers have their own rules and will prevent or block companies who try to harass consumers. In fact, collectors or marketers who use emails to harass will experience a less than 5% chance of their email reaching the consumer’s inbox (“inboxing rate”) essentially barring them from using email to reach consumers. Consumers have the power to not only unsubscribe (as required in Regulation F from these digital channels) but also have the power to mark inbound messages as spam which will impact the inboxing rate essentially barring abusers from the ability to deliver messages at all.

As a result, digital channels offer consumers significantly better protection from unwanted or harassing communications. Digital communications allow consumers to quickly register their preferences by clicking on an unsubscribe link or replying stop to opt out. Digital communications also offer search and archiving options, automatically creating a paper trail of communications between the consumer and the collector. There is no unsubscribe or reply stop option for calls or letters.

Myth #2: Debt collection requirements are only governed by federal laws

False! Individual states and even cities or municipalities have been implementing their own more restrictive laws governing debt collection. For example, New York law requires a debt collector to obtain consent to email a consumer about their debt, a requirement that does not exist in the federal FDCPA or Regulation F. Washington, DC just revamped their debt collection rules with new restrictions on calls, emails, texts and social media including communication caps for each of these methods that take effect on January 1, 2023 when the temporary ban on collections (implemented during the pandemic) end.

In addition to state and local debt collection rules, other regulations can apply as well, even if they aren’t specific to the industry. Some of the most anticipated regulations rolling out state-by-state focus on information security and data privacy, which greatly affect debt collection information security practices despite not being named outright.

Even if debt collection regulations are followed meticulously, businesses can still fail to meet compliance requirements if they don’t perform due diligence on other laws applicable to their operations.

Myth #3: Business must send the initial communication by letter

False! The FDCPA spells out that a debt collector must provide the validation notice in the initial communication or in writing within 5 days of that initial communication see 15 USC 1692g(a). This means that when the full validation notice is provided over the phone in the initial conversation or in the initial communication by email (as confirmed in Regulation F), a debt collector satisfied their obligation. The requirement to send the disclosure in writing is only triggered if the disclosure is not provided in the initial communication.

Fortunately, the CFPB provided a model disclosure notice in Regulation F that can be adopted to send by email and permits the use of hyperlinks. The ability to use hyperlinks in the model debt validation notice allows for consumers to communicate their preferences immediately and more effectively than when using the disclosure by US mail. For example, a consumer can use the dispute flow links in the email to explain why they are disputing the debt while looking at the additional details about the account that are visible in an online portal whereas the check boxes on the model validation letter do not allow for this flow of information and must be mailed back to the debt collector for processing. This is another example of the advantages of digital communications over letters and calls.

Myth #4: Meeting compliance obligations is more difficult for digital debt collection practices

False! As long as you have a solid team of legal compliance advisors and a mature compliance management system, digital communications actually make it easier to comply. Digital is faster (making it easier for consumers to respond or opt-out by just replying to an email or text. Digital provides a written history of communications between the consumer and the collector that can be archived automatically through existing features in email cell phone services. Digital communications are easily controlled by consumer and more tightly managed by providers, with built in mechanisms to discourage and blacklist harassers.

Plus, there are a growing number of federal court cases highlighting best-practices in digital compliance:

• The Northern District of California confirmed that the FDCPA permits providing the validation disclosures in the body of the initial communication by email
• The District of New Mexico held that whether a webpage is confusing to the least sophisticated consumer is evaluated by the totality of all linked pages in the flow
• The Eastern District of Illinois held that a reply to an email notifying the debt collector of attorney representation only applied to the specific account. Read the full case summary and key takeaways in a new write-up by TrueAccord Associate General Counsel Steve Zahn»»

The Future of Collections & Compliance

Compliance can get complex quickly, especially for debt collectors and any lender trying to recover delinquent funds—and that complexity will only continue to grow over time as technology and consumer preferences evolve. How can your business keep up today and tomorrow?