FDCPA Notice of Debt and Itemization Date

 FDCPA Notice of Debt and Itemization Date

§ 809 Notice of Debt

15 U.S.C. § 1692g

Debt Validation 

Debt collectors and others commonly refer to the validation requirements in FDCPA section 809(a) as a “validation notice” or a “G notice.”

(a) Notice of debt; contents

Within five days after the initial communication with a consumer in connection with the collection of any debt, a debt collector shall, unless the following information is contained in the initial communication or the consumer has paid the debt, send the consumer a written notice containing-

(1) the amount of the debt;

(2) the name of the creditor to whom the debt is owed;

(3) a statement that unless the consumer, within thirty days after receipt of the notice, disputes the validity of the debt, or any portion thereof, the debt will be assumed to be valid by the debt collector;

(4) a statement that if the consumer notifies the debt collector in writing within the thirty-day period that the debt, or any portion thereof, is disputed, the debt collector will obtain verification of the debt or a copy of a judgment against the consumer and a copy of such verification or judgment will be mailed to the consumer by the debt collector; and

(5) a statement that, upon the consumer's written request within the thirty-day period, the debt collector will provide the consumer with the name and address of the original creditor, if different from the current creditor.

(b) Disputed debts

If the consumer notifies the debt collector in writing within the thirty-day period described in subsection (a) that the debt, or any portion thereof, is disputed, or that the consumer requests the name and address of the original creditor, the debt collector shall cease collection of the debt, or any disputed portion thereof, until the debt collector obtains verification of the debt or a copy of a judgment, or the name and address of the original creditor, and a copy of such verification or judgment, or name and address of the original creditor, is mailed to the consumer by the debt collector. Collection activities and communications that do not otherwise violate this subchapter may continue during the 30-day period referred to in subsection (a) unless the consumer has notified the debt collector in writing that the debt, or any portion of the debt, is disputed or that the consumer requests the name and address of the original creditor. Any collection activities and communication during the 30-day period may not overshadow or be inconsistent with the disclosure of the consumer's right to dispute the debt or request the name and address of the original creditor.

(c) Admission of liability

The failure of a consumer to dispute the validity of a debt under this section may not be construed by any court as an admission of liability by the consumer.

(d) Legal pleadings

A communication in the form of a formal pleading in a civil action shall not be treated as an initial communication for purposes of subsection (a).

(e) Notice provisions

The sending or delivery of any form or notice which does not relate to the collection of a debt and is expressly required by title 26, title V of Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act [ 15 U.S.C. 6801 et seq.], or any provision of Federal or State law relating to notice of data security breach or privacy, or any regulation prescribed under any such provision of law, shall not be treated as an initial communication in connection with debt collection for purposes of this section.

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Debt Collection Rule

Small Entity Compliance Guide

https://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/documents/cfpb_debt-collection_small-entity-compliance-guide.pdf

Itemization-related information

A debt collector must include a breakdown of the debt, which includes the following items: Itemization date. 12 CFR 1006.34(b)(3). A debt collector must disclose the date that it will use when disclosing the itemization-related information. The “itemization date” reflects an event in the debt’s history that provides a reference point that consumers may recognize. Debt collectors may determine the itemization date, which will be used to identify other itemization-related items (as well as the name of the creditor as of the itemization date and the account number disclosures, discussed above in the debt information section), by selecting one of five reference dates:

1. The last statement date. The last statement date is the date of the last periodic statement or written account statement, or invoice provided to the consumer by a creditor. The last statement may have been provided by a creditor or a third party acting on the creditor’s behalf, including a creditor’s service provider. However, a statement or invoice provided by a debt collector is not a last statement, unless the debt collector is also a creditor. 12 CFR 1006.34(b)(3)(i); Comment 1006.34(b)(3)(i)-1

2. The charge-off date. The charge-off date is the date the debt was charged off. 12 CFR 1006.34(b)(3)(ii).

3. The last payment date. The last payment date is the last date a payment was applied to the debt. It can be the date a third-party payment was applied to the debt, such as a payment from an auto repossession agent or an insurance company, if that payment was the last payment on the account. 12 CFR 1006.34(b)(3)(iii); Comment 1006.34(b)(3)(iii)-1.

4. The transaction date. The transaction date is the date of the transaction that gave rise to the debt. It is the date that the good or service that gave rise to the debt was provided or made available to the consumer. For example, the transaction date for a debt arising from a medical procedure may be the date the medical procedure was performed, and the transaction date for a consumer’s gym membership may be the date the membership contract was executed. In some cases, a debt may have more than one transaction date. If a debt has more than one transaction date, a debt collector may use any of the transaction dates as the transaction date for purposes of the itemization date. For example, if a consumer enters into a contract on one date and the creditor performs the contracted service on another date, either date may be the transaction date. However, the debt collector must use the selected transaction date consistently. 12 CFR 1006.34(b)(3)(iv); Comment 1006.34(b)(3)(iv)-1. 

5. The judgment date. The judgment date is the date of a final court judgment that determines the amount of the debt owed by the consumer. 12 CFR 1006.34(b)(3)(v).

12 CFR 1006.34(c)(2)(vi); 12 CFR 1006.34(b)(3).

For any of the five itemization reference date options above, once a debt collector uses one of these dates in any communication with a consumer for a debt, the debt collector must use that date consistently in validation information communications about that debt to that consumer. For example, the debt collector may not use the last statement date for some items and the charge-off date for other items disclosed in the validation information. In that scenario, the debt collector must exclusively use either the last statement date or the charge-off date for all itemization-related validation information for that debt. Comment 1006.34(b)(3)-1. However, a subsequent debt collector need not use the same itemization date as prior debt collectors. Comment 1006.34(b)(3)-2.