Daily Digest - May 15, 2026

🎂 Happy Birthday to: Tom Gillespie of ACCESS Receivables Management, and Casey Hicks of Weltman, Weinberg & Reis.

🚨New Training Bytes Video Released!

Check out the newest Training Bytes video! Each week, an expert from the accounts receivable management industry will share how he or she would handle different scenarios that collectors often face. This week, Wade Isbell from Professional Credit shares what to say when a consumer asks if this is AI or a scam and won’t believe you. Thanks to Peak Revenue Learning for sponsoring this series! Click on the image below to view this week’s episode!

Logo Madness!

It’s time to crown the best logo in the industry. Full bracket available here so you can track the competition. Click on the link underneath the logo to choose your winner. Voting is open for 24 hours.

Collector Accused of Sending Telemarketing Texts in TCPA Class Action

• Under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act there are essentially two different types of calls — telemarketing calls and transactional/information calls. Calls that attempt to collect on an unpaid debt are not usually considered telemarketing calls — they are directed toward a specific individual in a specific circumstance. A consumer in California, though, has filed a class-action lawsuit and accused what appears to be a collection operation of violating the TCPA by sending two telemarketing text messages to her cell phone that were allegedly received outside of the window that these types of calls are allowed to be made.

• More details here.

• This series is sponsored by WebRecon

A MESSAGE FROM TCN

TODAY’S WEBINAR

UPCOMING WEBINARS

Judge Rules FDCPA Validation Notices Can Be Sent by Text and Hyperlink

• In a case that was defended by Dale Golden and the team at Martin Golden Lyons Watts Morgan, a District Court judge in Florida has ruled that a debt collector may satisfy the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act’s validation notice requirements by sending a text message containing a hyperlink to the required disclosures instead of mailing a paper notice, marking a notable ruling on how courts may view electronic communications in collections. The ruling came in a lawsuit accusing a collection agency of violating multiple FDCPA provisions through text messages, phone calls, and credit reporting activity tied to an alleged debt owed to an advising company. The court ultimately granted summary judgment to the defendant on all claims.

• More details here.

Judge Rules Dispute Over Returned Merchandise Refund Was Not an FCRA Reporting Inaccuracy

• A District Court judge in Arizona has dismissed a Fair Credit Reporting Act lawsuit against a credit reporting agency, ruling that it is not required to resolve underlying contractual disputes between a consumer, a retailer, and a credit card company when reporting charged-off debt information. The judge granted judgment on the pleadings in favor of the defendant after finding the plaintiff failed to plausibly allege that the reporting itself was inaccurate.

• More details here.

Senators Press Credit Bureaus on BNPL Reporting Practices

• A group of Senate Democrats is demanding answers from the nation’s largest credit reporting companies about how Buy Now, Pay Later loans are being incorporated into consumer credit files as the fast-growing financing product becomes more deeply embedded in household spending.

• More details here.

New Fintech Platform Launches to Consolidate and Discount Medical Bills

• A new healthcare-focused fintech company is entering the growing market for medical debt management with a platform designed to consolidate medical bills, reduce balances, and simplify repayment for consumers juggling multiple provider statements.

• More details here.

Patients Now Drive 12% of Hospital Revenue, But Health Systems Collect Just 31% of What’s Owed

• Health systems are collecting just 31% of patient billings on average as rising deductibles, higher out-of-pocket costs, and growing self-pay balances continue to reshape the economics of healthcare, according to a new PayZen survey of more than 200 healthcare revenue leaders nationwide.

• More details here.

WORTH NOTING: How you can get free ice cream at a Maryland Chick-fil-A ... How small businesses can hire employees efficiently ... A lot of people think saying "please" and "thank you" when using AI is important because it influences the information you get ... An article from ProPublica calls Russell Vought the "shadow president" ... Easy ways to ensure nobody can read your text messages ... Common gripes about style and fashion and how to fix them ... How much money you need to have to retire comfortably in every state ... Where inflation is hitting consumers the hardest.

Funny Friday, part I

Funny Friday, Part II

Webinar Recap: Best Practices Dealing With Reassigned Numbers

Reassigned numbers remain a persistent challenge for the credit and collections industry, creating compliance risks, wasted resources, and frustrated consumers. In this webinar, hosted by Mike Gibb of AccountsRecovery.net and sponsored by TCN, panelists from across the industry—including Blair DeMarco-Wettlaufer (Kingston Data and Credit), Steve Kusic (NRA Group), David Schultz (Hinshaw & Culbertson), and Beth Sprague (Reassigned Numbers Database at SomosGov) - shared insights on how agencies can mitigate risk and improve operational efficiency.

Beth Sprague highlighted the scale of the issue: the FCC’s Reassigned Number Database (RND) now contains over 630 million unique numbers, with nearly 29 million disconnects reported monthly. Panelists emphasized that failing to scrub against the RND exposes agencies to TCPA litigation, including the growing trend of “wrong number” class actions.

Operationally, reassigned numbers drain manpower and infrastructure. Agencies waste time on wrong calls, voicemails, and system costs, while bad data often recycles through bureau scrubs, compounding the problem. Best practices discussed included monthly scrubbing, integrating RND checks into workflows, and tracking data custody to prevent re-importing invalid numbers.

Spencer Peterson of TCN reinforced that compliance tools are not just checkboxes—they are essential for efficiency and consumer trust. AI-driven automation and smart integrations can help agencies maximize productivity while staying ahead of regulatory shifts.

🧠 Key Takeaways:

• Scrub Regularly: Query the RND at least monthly (after the 16th) to remove disconnected numbers and reduce wasted outreach.

• Track Data Custody: Maintain clear records of where numbers come from and how they are removed to avoid reintroducing invalid data.

• Mitigate Risk Proactively: Use RND scrubbing across all communication channels (calls, texts, voicemails) to minimize TCPA exposure and improve contact rates.

This session underscored that reassigned numbers are not just a compliance issue—they are a strategic efficiency challenge. Agencies that adopt disciplined workflows and leverage RND integrations will protect themselves legally while improving recovery outcomes.

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