The CFPB recently published a report regarding how the national credit bureaus – Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union – handle medical collection credit reporting. The report analyzes the credit bureaus' decision to refrain from reporting unpaid medical collections for one year and remove all paid medical debts from consumers' profiles. The report also discusses the credit bureaus' upcoming moratorium on reporting medical debts under $500 starting next year.   The CFPB found that when the bureaus remove unpaid medical debts under $500, it will erase a majority of individual medical tradelin ..read more

On May 23, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the New York Attorney General’s Office filed a Stipulated Judgment for $4 million against a group of debt collectors who engaged in illegal collection tactics against consumers. The Complaint alleged the collectors violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act by threatening consumers with arrest and imprisonment if they failed to pay their debts, artificially inflating balances, and harassing debtors, their friends and families.   Under the stipulation, the collectors are permanently banned from debt collection operations a ..read more

The major credit bureaus – Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union – announced they will no longer report paid medical debt on consumer credit reports, effective July 1, 2022. In addition, the bureaus stated they will increase the timeframe to begin reporting open medical collections from six months to one year. Finally, the credit bureaus announced they will not report medical collection accounts under $500 starting in 2023. The national credit bureaus estimate these changes will result in removing approximately 70% of medical collections from consumer credit reports.   If you have medical co ..read more

On February 10, 2022, the Ninth Circuit affirmed a California District Court decision in Moran v. The Screening Pros, LLC, finding that while a credit reporting agency (CRA) must remove criminal charges and related information from a tenant screening report within seven years of the case filing (not the case dismissal), the CRA did not violate the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) because its failure was not negligent of willful.   In Moran, Plaintiff submitted a housing application in February 2010. The landlord denied his application because the background check revealed three dismissed ..read more

The CFPB recently released its annual report regarding consumer credit reporting complaints, covering January 2020 through September 2021. The report criticizes the national credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union) for failing to meet their Fair Credit Reporting Act obligations and engaging in practices that have led to increased consumer complaints.   The report details the credit bureaus’ failed attempts to correct incomplete and false credit information when receiving consumer disputes, especially those coming from credit repair companies and other third-party cre ..read more

A Las Vegas man was sentenced yesterday to 111 months in federal prison for aggravated identity theft and the use of an unauthorized access device. The defendant, Fausto Teixeira Martins Neto, placed skimming devices on ATMs and cash-out transaction dispensing terminals in casinos on the Las Vegas Strip. He would then encode the stolen data onto forged credit cards and initiate cash advances and purchase luxury items. Through their fraud and identity theft schemes, Mr. Neto and his co-conspirators stole over $2.28 million.   Mr. Neto is the fourteenth out of twenty-one individuals charged ..read more

The Nevada Legislature enacted a new law targeting medical debt collections. The new law takes effect on July 1, 2021. The law defines a “medical debt” broadly to include financing or extension of credit if the sole purpose for the credit is to purchase goods or services from a health care facility or provider.   The new law prohibits debt collectors from taking any action to collect a medical debt for the first 60 days. During this period, the collector must send the consumer a written notification by registered or certified mail that includes the name of the medical facility, the date o ..read more

Nevada’s Attorney General released a statement cautioning Nevada consumers against posting personal information on social media, including their vaccination cards. Vaccine cards include your full name, date of birth, and patient number, all of which identity thieves can use to steal consumers’ identities. You shouldn’t even post the location of your vaccination, according to health officials.   The announcement came as part of a broader initiative by the Nevada Attorney General’s office to reduce scams and fraud related to COVID-19 vaccination and treatment. The Attorney General emphasize ..read more

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently fined Santander Consumer USA, Inc., an automobile lender, $4.75 million for its failure to accurately report consumer data to the major credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union). Santander allegedly reported millions of incorrect default dates and failed to report accurately whether loans were open, paid in full, or charged-off.   According to the CFPB, Santander lacked written credit reporting policies before 2018, which is shocking considering the millions of consumer credit tradelines to which Santander reported. Withou ..read more

The federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) implemented new rules regarding illegal debt collection practices on October 30, 2020. The new rules concern the FDCPA, which protects consumers against abusive, deceptive, and unfair debt collection practices for consumer debts (e.g., past due credit cards, medical bills, student loans).   The new debt collection rules permit emails and text messages with consumers to collect a debt. However, if a debt collector chooses to email or text, they must follow strict guidelines. For example, a debt collector must provide a clear “opt-out ..read more