CFPB UPDATE

On today’s date, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) issued their Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“NPRM”) for implementation of the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (“FDCPA”).

These proposed rules will have a significant impact on debt collections practices in the industry (both for third party debt collectors and first parties that employ them).

Per the CFPB, the proposed rules would:

(1) Establish a clear, bright line rule limiting call attempts (no more than 7 per week, per debt),

(2) Clarify consumer protection requirements for certain consumer-facing debt collection disclosures,

(3) Clarify how debt collectors can communicate with consumers,

(4) Prohibit lawsuits and threats of lawsuits on time-barred debt, and

(5) Require communication with the debtor before engaging in credit reporting.

The proposed rules are 538 pages long and are meant to amend Regulation F, 12 CFR part 1006, which implements the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and currently contains the procedures for State application for exemption from the provisions of the FDCPA.

The CFPB has established a 90-day comment period for the proposed rules. Please contact us if you would like to discuss the potential impact of these new and wide-ranging proposed rules to your organization.

The CFPB Notice of Proposed Rulemaking can be found here.