Undated Model Debt Violation Notice Does Not Violate the FDCPA

On October 31, 2023 a district court in Nevada held that an undated, model form debt validation notice does not violate the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). In Bergida v. PlusFour, Inc., the defendant sent a debt validation letter to the plaintiff that followed the model form provided by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The letter was not dated. The plaintiff claimed the letter violated FDCPA §§ 1692d, e, f, and g because she could not determine what date was “today” and “now,” which allegedly misled her about the status of the debt, confused her, made the letter seem illegitimate and suspicious, and caused her to spend time and money trying to figure out whether the debt was valid. When considering the defendant’s motion to dismiss, the court applied the least sophisticated debtor standard and found that the plaintiff failed to state a claim.

The court rejected the defendant’s claim that using the CFPB model validation notice provided it a safe harbor from suit. The court noted that while Regulation F states use of the model letter provides a safe harbor from claims under 12 C.F.R. §§ 1006.347(c) and (d)(1), the safe harbor provision does not shield debt collectors from liability under any other statutes.

However, an analysis of the plaintiff’s claims under the FDCPA still resulted in judgment in the defendant’s favor. The court found the defendant did not violate § 1692g(a), which requires the debt collector to state the amount of the debt. Nothing in § 1692g(a) requires a date on the notice and the plaintiff did not plausibly allege how omitting the date impacted information about the amount due. The court noted the model notice does not include a date either.