Attempts to collect on a debt that has already been paid is the source of the most common complaint about collections, according to the CFPB’s latest monthly complaint snapshot released Dec. 27.
According to the agency, it has handled approximately 285,800 debt collection complaints since July 21, 2011, making that topic the most-complained-about product, representing 27% of total complaints. CFPB reported that consumers reported being contacted by collectors for debts that were no longer owed and not being provided documentation to verify the debt, even after some of the consumers submitted requests for verification of the purported debts.
According to the bureau, consumers complained that first-party collectors (creditors collecting on their own debts) forwarded their accounts to third-party collectors for debt that was not owed. “Upon dispute with the third-party collector, some consumers report that the debt is sent back to the first party, only to be later sent to a new third-party collector. Some consumers report that the onus of disproving that the debt is not owed is placed on them throughout this cycle,” the bureau reported