The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s proposed Debt Collection Rule is now open for comments through August 19, 2019. As drafted, the rule allows debt collectors to:

1. Phone 7 times per week, per debt. Consumers with 8 medical debts could receive 56 calls a week.
2. Contact by text, email or direct message without permission, and send legally-required notice through hyperlinks in email or texts.
3. Sue people without the debt collectors’ attorneys reviewing original account documents to make sure that they are suing the right person and the debt is the right amount.
4. Collect debt that is so old that the deadline for a lawsuit has passed and records of who owes the debt and for how much may be lost.

The National Consumer Law Center provides resources to tell the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau that our communities need stronger protections from abusive debt collectors. Tools include a Comment Roadmap with prompts for pulling together an impactful comment, fact sheets with state data, and an August 8 webinar in collaboration with Prosperity Now.