The CFPB, the FTC and other regulatory authorities have been building up their presence in debt collections. Are you in the line of fire, or are you already prepared to effectively manage your riskiest accounts?
This year’s collections headlines show an increased need to manage account risk. Consumers have been filing suits for improper collections under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA), and the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), to name a few. Agencies have already paid millions in fines due to increased agency scrutiny. One collections mistake could cost thousands or even millions to your business—a cost any collector would hate to face.
So, what can you do about better managing your regulatory risk?
1. First of all, it is always important to understand and follow the collection regulations associated with your accounts.
2. Secondly, follow the headlines and pay close attention to your regulatory authorities.
3. Lastly, leverage data filtering tools to identify accounts in a protected status.
The best solution to help you is a streamlined tool that includes filters to identify multiple types of regulatory risk in one place. At minimum, you should be able to identify the following types of risk associated with your accounts:
- Bankruptcy status and details
- Deceased indicator and dates
- Military indicator
- Cell phone type indicator
- Fraud indicators
- Litigious consumers
Why wait? Start identifying and mitigating your risk as early in your collections efforts as possible.