Daily Digest - January 6, 2026

🎂 Happy Birthday to: Maressa Stabile of Velocity Investments.

🎉Congratulations for starting new positions: Colin Winkler as Partner at Hinshaw & Culbertson, Tonia Lafayette as Compliance Analyst at Williams & Fudge, Anthony Capizzano as Chief Growth Officer at Open Lending, David Grassi, Jenna Williams, and Marissa Coyle as Partners at Frost Echols, Lisa Kirk as Senior Vice President of Sales at Professional, and Megan Klamn as AI Operations Lead at Pay Ready.

New Speakers Being Added Daily

Check out ARMTech.live for the growing list of impressive speakers who are going to be in Dallas. This is going to be the must-attend event of the year!

Police Report, Lack of Contact Proof that Dispute Investigation Wasn’t Reasonable, Consumer Claims

• A collection operation is facing claims it violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act and Fair Debt Collection Practices Act by continuing to report a debt was accurate after the plaintiff submitted a police report indicating he was not responsible for the debt.

• More details here.

• This series is sponsored by WebRecon

A MESSAGE FROM TCN

TODAY’S WEBINAR

UPCOMING WEBINARS

Court Sides With Lender in FCRA and FDCPA Case Over Disputed Home Improvement Loan

• A Magistrate Court judge in Idaho has granted a defendant’s motion for summary judgment on claims it violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act with respect to a home improvement loan on which they made no payments because of a disagreement with the contractor over the quality of the work that was performed, concluding that the debt was accurately reported and that the plaintiffs failed to prove any recoverable damages.

• More details here.

2025 in Review: The Caselaw and Compliance Topics That Shaped Credit & Collections

• There are no small roles, only small actors, the saying goes. The same isn’t true for lawsuits and new rules and regulations. Some are more important than others. To get a sense of what shaped the compliance landscape for the credit and collection industry in 2025, AccountsRecovery asked legal experts for what was at the top of their list for the biggest legal and compliance news.

• More details here.

CFPB Credit Card Report Flags Rising Payment Stress and Shifting Collections Risk

• Credit card use continued to grow in 2024 and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s latest biennial credit card market report offers several signals that collection professionals should be watching closely. While overall balances and spending reached new highs, the CFPB found that growth is increasingly concentrated among higher-income, higher-credit-score consumers, even as payment stress quietly spreads across multiple credit tiers.

• More details here.

Industry Backs FCC Plan to Clarify TCPA Consent, Fraud Alerts, and Caller ID Rules

• A coalition of major financial services trade groups has formally urged the Federal Communications Commission to move forward with proposed changes to the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, calling the agency’s October proposal a necessary correction to rules that have increased compliance risk while undermining useful consumer communications. In a detailed comment letter filed this week, the groups expressed strong support for revising TCPA consent and revocation standards while simultaneously pushing the FCC to tighten controls on caller ID spoofing and impersonation calls.

• More details here.

WORTH NOTING: Apparently, the going rate for a piece of your skull is $25 in free gas ... How your website can build a better relationship with your customers ... A summary of what's going on in the world of credit cards ... A look at the changes to the collection agency licensing law in Illinois and new licensing requirements for debt resolution companies in Tennessee ... Tips on how to improve your dishwashing technique ... How a 15-minute exercise involving stick figures can help you find your purpose ... If you are using Chrome and have extensions, you may want to check this out ... Why you are wise on Tuesday, but foolish on Sunday.

Trailer Tuesday, part I

Trailer Tuesday, Part II

Webinar Recap: Reinvestigations Done Right: Practical Guidance for Furnishers and Collectors

Reinvestigations are one of the most scrutinized—and misunderstood—obligations under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. In this webinar, compliance and operations leaders explored how furnishers and collectors can conduct reinvestigations that are both reasonable and defensible while managing rising dispute volumes, increased automation, and evolving consumer behavior.

Panelists emphasized that a “reasonable investigation” is not about perfection, but about sound judgment, consistency, and documentation. Organizations were encouraged to clearly define what “reasonable” means within their own operations, with compliance owning the framework in collaboration with legal and dispute operations. This alignment is critical to ensure that reinvestigation standards can be executed in practice and defended when challenged.

The discussion also clarified how to handle repeat and duplicative disputes. Time alone does not trigger a reinvestigation—new information does. Additional documentation, new dispute codes, or materially different allegations typically require a fresh review, while truly duplicative disputes may be treated as frivolous if properly tracked and documented. Credit bureau disputes, however, must always be investigated and cannot be deemed frivolous by the furnisher.

Another key theme was the growing sophistication of disputes, including the use of AI to generate complaint letters and fabricated evidence. Panelists stressed the importance of verification, audit trails, and disciplined internal review processes, noting that documentation is often the strongest defense in regulatory exams and litigation.

🧠 Key Takeaways:

• Define and document “reasonable investigations.” Ensure your standards are clear, consistent, and supported by thorough documentation.

• Evaluate substance, not frequency. Reinvestigate when new information is provided, not simply because a dispute is repeated.

• Prepare for emerging risk. Train teams to recognize AI-generated disputes and verify supporting evidence carefully.

Did you know you can get full access to all of my past webinars, along with transcripts and summaries of each, for only $29/month? Sign up to be a premium subscriber today!

The Daily Digest is sponsored by TCN