A District Court judge in Michigan has awarded a plaintiff $6,000 in damages plus more than $8,500 in attorney’s fees in a default judgment against a collection operation that was accused of violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act by not marking an account furnished to the credit reporting agencies as disputed.
The Background: The plaintiff discovered a debt of $608 on his credit report. The plaintiff disputed the debt through a letter sent to the defendant on July 21, 2023. However, when the plaintiff obtained a subsequent credit report a month later, the debt was still listed without noting the dispute.
The plaintiff argued that the defendant’s failure to indicate that the debt was disputed constituted a violation of the FDCPA, specifically under 15 U.S.C. § 1692e(8), which prohibits communicating false credit information or failing to communicate that a debt is disputed. Despite being served, the defendant did not respond to the complaint, leading the plaintiff to obtain a clerk’s entry of default and subsequently file a motion for default judgment.
The Ruling: Based on “some evidence” of suffering from emotional distress resulting from the defendant’s actions, including stress, anxiety, panic attacks, loss of sleep, weight gain, stomach problems, and marital issues. Judge Sean F. Cox of the District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan deemed that distress was worth $6,000 in damages. The plaintiff also submitted sufficient evidence indicating he incurred $8,540.40 in attorney’s fees and Judge Cox deemed that to be a reasonable fee for this matter.
