The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and Federal Trade Commission released their annual debt collection report summarizing efforts by both agencies to enforce the Fair Debt Collection Practice Act and educate consumers about debt collection. The report gives a broad overview of the debt collection industry during the COVID-19 crisis as well as corresponding consumer complaints, and outlines both supervisory and enforcement actions related to debt collection.
The report noted that the bureau fielded more than 82,700 complaints from consumers about first- and third-party debt collectors in 2020, up 10% from 2019. The bureau also engaged in four public enforcement actions arising from alleged FDCPA violations.
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