On September 5, the FTC published a letter to the CFPB on the Commission’s annual summary of debt collection activities in 2023. Addressed to CFPB Director Rohit Chopra, the report aimed to assist the Bureau in preparing its annual report to Congress on implementing the FDCPA.
The letter began by detailing the FTC’s enforcement activities and rulemaking efforts, which included: (i) enforcement actions against small business debt collectors alleging unfair and deceptive debt collection practices; and (ii) actions to prevent the collection of illegal student debt as income-share agreements not compliant with applicable law. The letter also highlighted the FTC’s efforts against certain activities that add to consumers’ debt burden; (i) actions to combat “dark patterns” that prevent consumers from canceling subscriptions by making the cancellation process confusing and misleading; (ii) the proposal of the CARS Rule to ban bait-and-switch tactics and hidden junk fees assessed to customers financing the purchase of a vehicle; and (iii) the proposal of a rule to ban hidden and misleading fees in routine transactions, including booking hotels, buying concert tickets, renting apartments, and paying utility bills (covered by InfoBytes here).
The report also emphasized the FTC’s public outreach and cross-agency coordination, including efforts to coordinate with the CFPB and other law enforcement agencies to pursue consumer protection efforts.
