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This week during our peer call we took some time to dissect the CFPB’s Advisory Opinion on Debt Collectors’ Collection of Pay-to-Pay Fees.  Here are a few of the highlights from that discussion.

Ultimately, the CFPB didn’t change anything with this advisory opinion. The FDCPA has always had the provision that debt collectors can’t charge a fee unless such amount is expressly authorized by the agreement creating the debt or permitted by law. Which has always made the assessment of payment processing fees a point of contention between compliance and business leaders. Understanding if the original underlying contract allows for fees or if a state explicitly permits the fees can be a daunting task for some organizations. 

If the advisory opinion doesn’t actually change anything, why did the CFPB publish it? Well, we can only speculate on this point but our peer group had the following takeaways:

• A warning shot? Can we expect to see this come up in upcoming examinations? Several of our members think it is likely. 

• We’ve long known that you can’t make money off fees. This was deemed an unfair practice through case law years ago. But that doesn’t mean in these trying times that all businesses are following these rules.  This may be a warning shot to those bad actors. 

• When surveying the peer group we learned that nobody has changed their practices based on this advisory opinion. 

As with most murky areas, companies should continue to evaluate their risk tolerance when it comes to payment processing fees. To better understand all perspectives you can check our Research Assistant compliance guide on payment processing fees, no-fee-to-biller solutions.

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• Disaster Recovery Policy and Procedure Template

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Upcoming Webinars/ Other Announcements:

• Reminder: Send any topics or questions that you want to discuss to sara@insidearm.com by Thursday to ensure it makes it on our agenda!

• Are you attending the ACA Annual Convention & Expo July 20 – 22 in Orlando? If you are Sara Woggerman is booking her meetings now and would love to meet as a group or individually as time permits.  If you are interested please reach out to Sara at sara@insidearm.com