Is this the week that the credit and collection industry has been waiting for since November 2013?
That’s when the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau first announced it was working on a proposed rule for the collection industry. Back then, there was great concern and worry about what a proposed rule would look like. The CFPB was actively taking enforcement actions against companies in the accounts receivable management industry, engaging in what many called “regulation by enforcement.”
Nearly three years after the announcement of the proposed rule was made, the CFPB convened a hearing, to comply with the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act. The hearing, which included 20 representatives of the collections industry, shared an outline of proposals, which dealt with disclosures and debt validations. The CFPB shifted course in 2017, announcing it would handle first-party and third-party collections at the same time, instead of separately.
Those days may be over and much of that worry may have dissipated, replaced instead with a yearning for clearer rules that tell collection agencies what they can and can’t do. That’s all the industry has said it’s ever wanted — a bright line to show them what is allowed and what is not allowed.
Kick off what could be the most important regulatory week in the collection industry since the Federal Communications Commission issued its Declaratory Order related to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act back in 2015 with a free webinar today at 1pm ET, which I’ve labeled the proposed rule release pre-game show. A panel of legal and compliance experts — John Bedard, Mike Frost, Joann Needleman, and Scott Wortman — will discuss how we got to this point, and what happens next, because this proposed rule will shape the credit and collection industry for years to come.
AccountsRecovery.net will be in Philadelphia on Wednesday for a Debt Collection Town Hall, featuring CFPB Director Kathy Kraninger, ACA International Chief Executive Mark Neeb, and others. The expectation is that the purpose of the meeting is to discuss the proposed rule. Kraninger has already provided a high-level overview of what’s to be included:
- Placing limits on the number of communications that collectors will be allowed to attempt when contacting individuals with unpaid debts
- Setting rules and guidelines that will more clearly enunciate how collectors may use digital technologies, like text messages and email, to communicate with individuals
- Requiring collectors to use new disclosures, especially during initial communications with individuals
Following the release of the rule, stay with AccountsRecovery.net for another webinar, in which a panel of the best and brightest will break down the proposed rule and discuss how agencies should make changes, if at all.
